’ 
THE SEA LAVENDER (STAZ7/CE LIMONIUM) IN 
HOLDERNESS. 
‘“TT’S an ill wind that blows nobody good” is as true 
botanically as in other pursuits. The cornfield weeds 
and plant diseases which harass the farmer are the 
delight of the botanist, as he thus becomes acquainted with 
many forms of vegetable life which he would not find in his 
district in its natural condition. Similarly, whilst the collector 
laments the gaps in our local floras, since they compel him to 
travel far afield to complete his series, or to exterminate his 
rarities for exchange, the absence of plants that we should 
expect to occur provides instruction and opportunity for in- 
vestigation for those who wish to ascertain the ‘‘why” of 
things. 
Statice limontum, the sea lavender, offers us an interesting 
example. It is a handsome plant, very conspicuous in July 
and August—though its leaves somewhat resemble young 
specimens of aster and may be overlooked at other seasons 
—andits magnificent purplepanicle colours acres of salt marsh 
in other districts. The coast line of the East Riding is long 
and varied, and Statice grows in customary profusion at Clee- 
thorpes (Lincs.), yet our only records date from the middle 
of the last century—Bridlington, where it is now extinct; and 
‘*Marshes below Keyingham’’—a record which the reputed 
author denies. 
. Under these circumstances, it is satisfactory to know that 
it still exists with us, though shorn of the greater part of its 
glory. Instead of acres of purple, crowding out all other 
plants, and visible a mile or more away, three small patches 
wage with the Aster and Atriplex, a struggle whose intensity 
may be estimated from the fact that the whole of the Statice 
on the Holderness coast could be held in one hand. In two 
of these stations however, the plants are larger and more 
handsome than any I have seen on the East Coast. 
Why does Statice occur only sporadically on our coast ? 
The answer is to be found, I think, in the configuration of the 
coast itself. From Hull to Paull Point, the bank, often faced 
with timber and chalk, rises abruptly from the mud. About 
halfway there is a fairly large area outside the bank, but this 
