360 Andr. Lundager 



also in flower on the 20th, and Cerastium alpinum. Pedicularis hirsuta 

 peeps forth with its shoot-tops, woolly with white hairs, and appears 

 to be somewhat behindhand here around Danmarks Havn, for already 

 on the 22nd a flowering individual was gathered on Lille Koldewey, 

 although it was not yet in flower on the main land. It was one 

 of the few species, whose first flowering-period occurred later in the 

 year 1908 than in the year before. 



It appears as if spring comes earlier in the Island of Maroussia 

 than around Danmarks Havn, at any rate, there are many circum- 

 stances which seem to show this ; for instance, the Melandrium triflorum 

 brought home, was gathered there in flower earlier than I saw the 

 plant in flower at Danmarks Havn, although it may have been an 

 accident that a single species should be found in flower there before 

 it flowered in other places. 



Not until the 20th did Vester Elven force its way through its 

 upper course; before this there had only been a local draining of 

 the melting snow of Basiskæret. To the north of the bog large masses 

 of snow are lying on the southern slopes of the mountains; it is 

 from here that the clayey, gravelly flat towards the stream is irrigated, 

 and already some days ago Ranunculus sulphureus was found flowering 

 here in the more elevated parts of the gravelly flat, while the m^ore 

 low-lying parts of it are almost exclusively covered with Alopecurus 

 alpinus; but as yet the latter shows no sign of life here, while Erio- 

 phorum polgstachyum has reached its flowering stage. 



We have now advanced as far as "midsummer," which in these 

 parts is in reality the beginning of the summer. The transition in 

 1907 was indicated by the first rain of the year. On June 24 

 5.0 mm. of rainfall were measured; even if this was not a very 

 large quantity it was sufficient to make traffic out of doors irksome. 

 The rain began at noon and lasted all the afternoon. 



In the course of the following eight days the floral display had 

 reached its maximum. Probably about half of the flowering species 

 are out now, thus all the Drabas, several Saxifragas and the most 

 prominent of the. Ranunculi; these species are the character-plants of 

 the country which give the stamp to the landscape by the great 

 abundance of their individuals. In the bog, for instance. Ranunculus 

 sulphureus is now in full bloom and reminds one not a little of the 

 marsh-marigold on a spring day at home when, with its yellow patches, 

 it livens up surroundings which have hardly j^et become green. 



It is natural that moisture should be of the greatest importance 

 to this, the culminating period of the vegetation. Referring to the 

 measured amount of precipitation we see that June is relatively 



