SHORT NOTES 825 



veiy scaly. Onh^ a luxuriant biennial state. No doubt this is what 

 Bromfield mistook for Smithii and described as occurring in old 

 clover-fields, in clover not ploughed up in the autumn but left until 

 the following June : found b}' me in Armagh." The last part of the 

 sentence refers no doubt to More's Irish specimens mentioned by 

 Mr. Salmon in this Journal for 1911 (p. 163), which Dr. Thellung 

 refers to L. campestre. Under L. Smithii More has this further 

 note: — "There is a var. of L. campesire which I call '"longistylum^ 

 likely enough to be mistaken for L. SmifJiii. Its style is much 

 exserted but the capsule is scaly at back, and was probabh^ the liyde 

 plant." The Leijidium found b}' Mr. H. N. Dixon and myself on a 

 railway embankment at Kingsthorpe, Northants, in 1905 (see B. E. C. 

 Eep. 1905, p. 541, and W. B. E. C. Kep. 1905, p. 41), must be very 

 near this ; it agrees as regards the style-character, but the pods are 

 only slightly scaly. A plant collected by Mr. Druce in the same 

 locality (see B. E. C. Eep. 1910, p. 541) does not seem to be quite 

 the same as mine ; it has slightly longer st3des and has been put 

 under L. heterophylliom by Dr. Thellung, the monographer of the 

 genus, Avhile More's Armagh plant he refers to L. campestre. The 

 occurrence of these doubtful forms suggests that intermediates between 

 L. campestris and L. lieteropliyllum sometimes occur, as all the 

 characters mentioned in the books as distinguishing the two species 

 are variable. — A. Beuce Jackson. 



SiJERET Helleboeines. Last year I was shown by Mr. A. 

 Beadell, of Warlingham, a locality in his district where Helleborines 

 were especially fine and abundant. At the time these plants appeared 

 to be II. latifolia, but later study suggested the possibility of H. atro- 

 viridis being represented Jiere. Mr. John Cryer, who has made a 

 special study of the genus, was also of this opinion, and fresh ex- 

 amples from the same locality, gathered this year, have demonstrated 

 the existence of this species in the county. H. airo-viridis has also 

 been found during the past season at Oxshott and on the North 

 Downs near Leatherhead. I have a typical example from the downs 

 near Horsley, gathered so long ago as 1899. This form is probably 

 frequent in Surrey, but restricted IL. latifolia I believe to be by no 

 means common, though I have it from Chelsham and West Horsley. 

 H. media is found at various places on the North Downs as at 

 Clelsham, Mickleham, and near Leatherhead. It appears to be a 

 species not very well understood, as botanists of repute have, in the 

 past, given me this name for forms of H. purpnrata. This latter 

 form is quite frequent on the deposits overlying the chalk, though it 

 seldom occurs in profusion. The most interesting member of the 

 genus encountered in Surrey hitherto is H. afro-tnihens, which was 

 found in a wood on the North Downs near Leatherhead. This is a 

 rather notable extension of its range, as I am not acquainted with 

 any previous record of its occurrence in the south of England. I am 

 indebted to Mr. Cryer for valuable assistance rendered in the exami- 

 nation of my plants, as well as for the loan of dried specimens, 

 microscope slides, and other material elucidating these highly critical 

 species. — C. E. Beitton. 



