1 8 C.C. NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. 



On Saturday, May 22nd, we had our annual excursion to Whit- 

 combe woods and Birdlip, but the very cold winds of May prevented 

 our finding as much as usual. None of the rareties of the district 

 were out. 



On Saturday, June 12th, there was an expedition to Colesbourne. 

 The Monkey Flower (Mimulus Luteus), White Helleborine (Cephal- 

 anthera Grandiflora), Butterfly Orchid (Habenaria Bifolia), and Beam 

 Tree (Pyrus Aria) were among the finds. 



A small expedition on Jubilee Day to the woods beyond Whit- 

 tington produced several rare flowers, among which were the Wood 

 Vetch (Vicia Sylvatica), Butterwort (Pinguicula Vulgaris), the Cotton 

 Grass (Eriophorum Polystachyum), which have not been previously 

 recorded, and also the Bog Bedstraw (Galium Uliginosum), the Bee 

 Orchid (Ophrys Apifera). 



Among the new records we were glad to welcome Geranium Luci- 

 dum and Erodium Cicutarium which are curiously rare in this 

 district, although the former is a common weed at Malvern ; Geran- 

 ium Pusillum found at Whittington ; Cerastium Verna found on 

 Leckhampton, where the orange Alpine Hawk-weed seems to have 

 established itself; Lathyrus Sylvestris, Smyrnium Olusatrum near Haw 

 Bridge ; Epilobium Tetragonum ; Inula Helenium on Painswick 

 Common. 



Hodson and Currie, the winners of last year's prize pressed some 

 flowers, with a view to starting a new collection for the Museum. 

 Currie was most successful in drying his specimens without their los- 

 ing their colour, which is always a difirculty. This year we hope to 

 have a competition for previous winners in the identification of the 

 rarer plants of the district. 



It is interesting to compare the dates of first flowering with those 

 of previous years. After the very mild winter the earliest Spring 

 flowers were recorded about a fortnight earlier than usual, but the 

 cold winds of the latter part of April and May completely altered the 

 aspect of things, and we had a very late Summer ; in fact a large 

 number of the July flowers were not out before the end of the Sum- 

 mer term. 



The competition for 1898 will begin as soon as possible, and a 

 special look out should be kept for early records after the exception- 

 ally mild Winter. Flowers should be brought to the Museum at 2.30 

 on Mondays during this Lent term, at 2 o'clock on school-days dur- 

 ing the Summer term. 



