282 THE JOURNAL OF BOTANY 



The most interesting phase of the existence of this plant is when 

 it casts its frond in April and May. The new lamina begins to grow 

 at the apex of the stem, pushing on the old frond Avith its sori already 

 exhausted or still continuing to produce " sporangia." The old fronds 

 may he encrusted with polyzoa, and become much hardened. The 

 new frond, at first entire, and as much as 6-8 inches each way, shows 

 a narrow detached segment on each side, and begins to split into 3 or 



4 parts, though still securely holding the old frond. With further 

 extension to as much as 10 inches in length and breadth, new sub- 

 divisions are added, ultimately as many as 30 in fine plants ; and by 

 this time the ends connected with the old frond are attenuated and 

 weakened, so that the first gale, or even strong wind breaks the last 

 links, and tens of thousands are landed on the beach. This is the 

 farmer's and kelper's opportunity. Many farmers will leave their 

 " here " (of barley) unsown till this " hrealcing the ware " occurs. They 

 then have a busy time carting and spreading it on their land : about 

 the middle of May this year I saw many hundred cart-loads of cast- 

 off fronds along a bay only half a mile across. After a strong gale in 

 winter, heaps as high as a cart have accumulated in the more favoured 

 I'ecesses of the bay. The farmer backs his cart up to the bank, 

 but then the tangles are so interwoven that it is impossible to lift the 

 tangled mass. However, with a sharp garden-spade he makes a cut 

 parallel with the edge of the heap, and loading becomes an easy 

 matter. 



L. Cloustoni is the least flexible of any of the tangles — in fact it 

 resembles a stout walking-stick, with rough corrugated bark, com- 

 monly covered with epiphytic FloridesB. A good plant weighs more 

 than 4 lbs. The length of the stem, when a few years old, averages 



5 ft., and the longest I have measured was Q\ ft. ; but a farmer in 

 Stronsay tells me he has measured one of 7 ft. The circumference 

 just above the root averages 5\ inches, and the thickest I have seen 

 was 7 inches. On cutting across the stipe, annual rings of growth 

 can be seen, which afford a guide to the age of the plant. The strong 

 roots, or haptera, grow to a stout cage-like mass, 8 inches each way ; 

 the members being arranged in fairly strict orthostichies, and few in 

 number. As a general result of adding only one member each year to 

 an ortbostichy line, the age of the plant is roughly determined 

 externally by counting the number in the vertical rows. 



II. L. PLEXiCAULis Le Jobs has a flexible stipe of 3| ft., but 

 often a long frond : I measured one last June which was 7 ft. In 

 Deer Sound, in a long well-sheltered bay, L. fiexicaidis grows in 

 fair abundance ; but specimens are seldom cast ashore. In April this 

 year I got among a quarter of an acre exclusively covered by these, 

 none of which had attained the size either in stipe or frond of those 

 in the open sea ; but the fronds were undivided, 2-3 ft. long and 

 broad, curving over the stipe like a shoemaker's leather apron. This 

 is the var. cucullata Le Jobs, found at Faeroe (Borgesen) and in 

 quiet water of Norwegian Fjords. 



It is interesting to note that though Clouston's description of the 

 Orkney " Cuvy " was particularly vivid and correct, his ideas of the 



