Transactions. 35 



Parishes from the Kirkcudbright Museum, viz. : Borgue, Buittle, 

 Dalbeattie, Dahy, Girthon, Kelton, Kirkcudbright, Kirkmabreck, 

 Kirkbean, Newabbey, Parton, lierwick, Terregles, Troqueer, 

 Twyuhohn, and Urr. 



Communications. 

 I. Botanical Notes for 1887. By Mr James Fingl.\.nd of 

 Thornhill. 

 The season of 18^57 will be remembered for its ideal summer 

 weather, which, for at least the months of June and Julj', was an 

 almost unbroken record of sunshine and genuine warmth. This 

 hot weather, although fiivourable and enjoyable for outdoor botani- 

 cal work, was fatiguing for long excursions on foot, whilst a certain 

 drawback was exijerienced in the shorter time plants remained in 

 bloom. The rather unfavourable character, too, of the early 

 autumn caused an unusually line season to be also a short one 

 from a field botanist's point of view. 



A notable feature of 1887 was the early flowering of many 

 plants, which I more especially observed amongst aquatics. The 

 intermediate form of the yellow water lily, wliich occurs in 

 Glencairn, was gathered in flower on the 12th of July last. In 

 1885 it was seen in flower on the 28th of August — perhaps, 

 however, at a later stage, for which a few days might be deducted ; 

 nevertheless, making a marked ditt'erence of nearly six weeks 

 between the two dates. The water lobelia at lioch Urr I obtained 

 in flower on the 20th of July last, which ^^•as just a month earlier 

 than in the previous year. Some of the Potamogetous or pond- 

 weeds, I am sure, came very much earlier too, but I have no 

 previous dates to compare with. It has occurred to me that the 

 flowering of aquatics might more fairly indicate the character of a 

 season in regard to temperature, these plants not being affected Ijy 

 drought, which so often hastens the maturing of terrestial vegeta- 

 tion by stunting the growth, were it not that aquatics probably 

 derive a stimulus and benefit from direct sunshine whether the 

 atmospheric temperature is of an average warmth or not. The 

 amount of solar heat absorbed by a lake will vary with its depth 

 or shallowness. Other affecting circumstances will be found in its 

 physical surroundings, situation, or exposure. The matter may 

 appear to be unimportant. It is not so, however, to a collector 

 who wishes to secure specimens valuable for exchange from a 

 locality at some distance. Disappointment may be thus saved by 



