AMENTIFERiE. 245 



ovate or half- cord ate. Catkins opening before the leaf-buds, shortly 

 stalked or subsessile, with a few small silky leaves on the stalk, oblon«>-- 

 cylindrical, dense, but becoming rather lax in fruit. Catkin-scales 

 oblong or obovate, thinly silky-pilose. Stamens 2; filaments free, 

 j)ubescent. Capsule conical-subulate, grey-silky, on a stalk 4 or 5 

 times as long as the nectary; style scarcely any; stigmas short, thick, 

 at length cleft. Young branches and buds pubescent, soon becomiuf 

 glabrous; leaves pubescent with soft hairs when youno-. 



Var. a, genuina. 

 Leaves oblong-oval or oblong-obovate, slightly hairy. 



Yar. /3, major. 



S. versifolia, " Ser. S. p. 40," Borrer. 



Leaves oblong-obovate, larger than those of var. a, silky on both 

 sides. 



Var. 7, spathulata. 



S. spathulata, Willd. Spec. PI. Vol. IV. p. 700. 



Leaves oblong-oblanceolate, slightly silky-hairy. 



Var. 8, undulata. 



Leaves oblong-elliptical, slightly hairy. Stipules more distinctly 

 stalked, and style longer than in the other vars. 



On gravelly heaths. Rather rare, but Avidely distributed. Var. a, 

 Sussex, Perth; Epping Forest, Essex; Hopton, Suffolk; Aberdeen; 

 Inverness ; Forfar ; Caithness ; Orkney ; and the Isle of Staffa. 

 Var. l3, Hopton, Suffolk; Restennet Moss, near Forfar (now lost by 

 drainage). A^ar. 7, Epping Forest; Hopton, Suffolk; and between 

 Balnagard and Aberfeldie, Perth. Var. 0, Hopton, Suffolk. Some of 

 the forms occur on the north-west side of Ben Buben, Sligo, and on 

 hills near Belfast, but I have not seen Irish specimens. 



England, Scotland, Ireland. Shrub. Late Spring. 



A small much-branched shrub, rarely more than 1 to 3 feet high, 

 with ascending or procumbent branches. Leaves generally about 

 1 inch long, rarely attaining to 2 inches, very similar to those of 

 S. aurita, between which and S. repens it is no doubt a hybrid. From 

 S. aurita it differs in its smaller size, more rigid, less rugose, flatter 

 and less serrated leaves, smaller stipules, and more silky pubescence. 

 From S. repens it is distinguished by its more rugose leaves, less silky 



