﻿r 
  

  

  Harper: 
  A 
  week 
  in 
  eastern 
  Texas 
  311 
  

  

  One 
  might 
  suppose 
  that 
  siich 
  a 
  large 
  and 
  interesting 
  and 
  

   easily 
  accessible 
  prairie 
  area 
  would 
  long 
  ago 
  have 
  attracted 
  both 
  

   taxonomists 
  and 
  ecologists 
  in 
  considerable 
  numbers, 
  and 
  that 
  

   several 
  descriptions 
  of 
  it 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  published 
  before 
  this: 
  

   but 
  the 
  information 
  about 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  existing 
  botanical 
  literature 
  is 
  so 
  

   meager* 
  as 
  to 
  be 
  of 
  very 
  little 
  assistance 
  in 
  identifying 
  the 
  plants 
  

   that 
  were 
  not 
  in 
  bloom 
  the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  August. 
  Consequently 
  

   the 
  subjoined 
  list 
  contains 
  many 
  interrogation 
  points, 
  and 
  even 
  

   the 
  names 
  not 
  queried 
  should 
  not 
  be 
  accepted 
  without 
  reserva- 
  

   tions; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  at 
  least 
  superior 
  to 
  previous 
  lists 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  

   region 
  in 
  being 
  longer 
  and 
  having 
  the 
  species 
  arranged 
  in 
  approxi- 
  

   mate 
  order 
  of 
  abundance. 
  

  

  The 
  composition 
  of 
  the 
  prairie 
  vegetation 
  varies 
  considerably 
  

   from 
  place 
  to 
  place, 
  even 
  where 
  soil 
  conditions 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  

   same, 
  and 
  — 
  which 
  cannot 
  be 
  said 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  regions 
  last 
  de- 
  

   scribed 
  — 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  are 
  unknown 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   River. 
  This, 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  flowers 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  

   (which 
  made 
  even 
  generic 
  identifications 
  doubtful 
  sometimes), 
  

   made 
  it 
  impossible 
  for 
  me 
  to 
  get 
  a 
  thoroughly 
  representative 
  list 
  

   of 
  plants 
  in 
  the 
  short 
  time 
  available. 
  

  

  Trees 
  in 
  the 
  coast 
  prairie 
  are 
  chiefly 
  hardwoods 
  characteristic 
  

   of 
  the 
  neighboring 
  hammock 
  belt, 
  growing 
  on 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  per- 
  

   manent 
  or 
  intermittent 
  streams, 
  small 
  groves 
  of 
  Pinus 
  Taeda 
  near 
  

   the 
  inland 
  edge, 
  and 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  Crataegus 
  near 
  the 
  Brazos 
  alluvial 
  

   region 
  to 
  be 
  described 
  next. 
  The 
  only 
  native 
  shrubs 
  observed 
  

  

  dry 
  

  

  My 
  

  

  t 
  

  

  frutescens, 
  in 
  dai 
  

   benlonia 
  longifolia 
  

   h 
  larger 
  than 
  the 
  tw 
  

  

  L 
  ™ 
  

  

  mentioned, 
  though 
  probably 
  shorter-lived), 
  it 
  is 
  the 
  most 
  abundant 
  

   one 
  at 
  the 
  present 
  time, 
  in 
  all 
  sorts 
  of 
  places. 
  Rosa 
  hradeata, 
  

  

  * 
  

  

  an 
  Asiatic 
  species, 
  is 
  scattered 
  around 
  Rosharon, 
  in 
  Brazoria 
  

   County. 
  

  

  * 
  a 
  few 
  of 
  the 
  characteristic 
  genera, 
  both 
  native 
  and 
  introduced, 
  are 
  mentioned 
  

   on 
  pages 
  19-20 
  of 
  Bailey's 
  Biological 
  Survey 
  of 
  Texas; 
  and 
  Bray, 
  on 
  page 
  86 
  of 
  his 
  

   Bulletin 
  82, 
  lists 
  22 
  species 
  and 
  4 
  additional 
  genera 
  from 
  the 
  coast 
  prairie, 
  apparently 
  

   mostly 
  spring-flowering. 
  

  

  t 
  Shrubs 
  not 
  provided 
  with 
  subterranean 
  stems, 
  as 
  M^rica 
  pumila 
  is, 
  would 
  

   lead 
  a 
  very 
  precarious 
  existence 
  on 
  a 
  prairie 
  subject 
  to 
  fire. 
  

  

  