Lol 
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75 
The Ald Plants of foreign Barley fields. 
_ By James.G. WELLS. 
(Read before the Society, January 6th, 1888.) 
FEW years ago, my friend Mr. F. W. Andrews, in the 
course of his malting labours, was struck by the variety 
and beauty of the seeds which were separated from 
the various barleys in the process of screening, and he 
- commenced collecting them. So interesting and beautiful were 
many of them in form and colour, and so admirably were most of 
them adapted for dispersion by birds, or animals, that we came to 
the conclusion that the plants which produced such wonder- 
exciting fruits should be of sufficient interest to repay the trouble 
of growing them from the seeds. Unfortunately, my friend’s 
removal to one of the colonies put an end to our joint labours, so 
that I am deprived of his aid in laying before you some of the 
results of the cultivation of these seeds. The seeds were sown 
in the open ground in arich soil during April, 1886, and were 
_ exposed to the ordinary conditions of temperature. Every farmer 
grumbles at the effect the weather has on his crops, so must I 
grumble at the effect the weather has had on the growth of my 
plants. Many interesting seeds have come to nothing, and many 
plants are, undoubtedly, dwarfed, but I trust that the specimens I 
have on the table will be productive of some interest. I cannot, 
of course, claim that I shall give, in any degree, a complete list 
of the weeds of foreign barley-fields, but only of such, the seeds 
