6o PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



l*lienoloi;it'al ()l)S"rv:iti()iis in an Klemenlary School. 



By A. (). Walker, F.L.S. 



[2(ltli June, l'.)18.] 



l)i;RiN(i tlie last tlirce yi^ars tlie senior pupils of Uk-ombe School 

 have iiudertakfii to observe the first appearance in tiower of 

 certain coinnioii wild flowers well known to all of them, small 

 prizes being given to those who are the first to find one of these 

 in bloom near their own iiome. 



The Piirish of Ulcoinbe, Kent, forms a rough parallelogram 

 abont a n)iles long by 1 mile wide, extending lengthwise from 

 south about 100 ft. above sea-level on the Weald Clay to about 

 500 ft. above sea-level on the Lower Greensand ridge on the 

 north. The population in 1011 was 649 and is entirely agricultural. 



The number of children (boys and girls) who took part in the 

 competition was 20 to 25 out of a total of a little over 100 

 scholars. Each of the ciiildren was supplied with a book in which 

 they had written the rules of the competition and the names of 

 the plants to be noticed, each j)lant on a separate page. On the 

 first finding of a jjlant the child entered the date, the exact place 

 of finding, and ttie number of examples in bloom up to H, after 

 that " m " or " many." A specimen was then gathei-ed and taken 

 to the school to be checked by the schoolmaster or mistress (Mr, 

 and Mrs. A. Robinson), without whose co-operation, most heartily 

 and u illingly given, the competition could not have been carried out. 



The following plants were chosen as being very common and 

 well known to the children. The dates of the first observation of 

 one or more plants in flower are given : — 



1915 1916 1917 



1 . Tussilago Farfara Feb. 22 Feb. 1 Mar. 17 



Coltsfoot. 



2. Cardamiiie iiratensis Feb. 17 Tan. 29 Mar, 28 



Cuckoo Flower, Milkmaids.* 



3. Anemone nemorosa ^lar. 11 Mar. 5 April 2 



AV^ood Anemone. 



4. SfeUaria llolostea :\[ar. 9 l"'eb. 16 A])ril 28 



Great St itch wort. 



5. Erysimvhi AUlaria April 8 Mar. 31 April 28 



Jack-by-the-Iledge. 



6. Galeohdoloa luteiim Mar. 9 Mar. 20t Mav 1 



Yellow Dead Nettle. 



7. Scilln nutans Ajjril 1 Mar. 18 April 22 



Bluebell. 



8. Anagallis arvensis May 17 May 1 June 2 



Scarlet Pimpernel. 

 As a control \ give the flowering in my garden of JS'arcissvs 

 "■ Sir Wafkin," of whose flowering I have kept a record since 1903, 

 viz.:— 1915, April 16; 1916, March 23 ; 1917, April 27. The 

 earliest record is March 10, 1913. 



* Local iiamp. 



t Exoeptionnl. Tlio iipxt plants observeil Iti flower wi'iv on April 8 and 

 April 15. 



