50 ' GRASSES OF SCOTLAND. 



moist pastures, but attains to the greatest degree of luxuriance on 

 light moist soils of a peaty nature. It is met with in almost every 

 county throughout Britain. Not found in Lapland. Common in 

 Germany, France, and Italy. Said to have been introduced into 

 America. Its limit of altitude about 1500 feet above the sea. 



Flowers in the first week of July, and ripens its seed about the 

 end of the same month. 



34. HOLCUS MOLLIS.* 



Creeping Soft-Grass. 



Specific Characters. — Awn rough throughout its whole length, 

 (Plate XXL) 



Description. — It grows from one to three feet high. The root is 

 perennial, creeping. Stem erect, round, and smooth, bearing four or 

 five leaves with generally smooth sheaths ; the upper sheath much 

 longer than its leaf, inflated, crowned with an obtuse membranous li- 

 gule ; the lower sheaths shorter than their leaves. Joints usually 

 four, covered with fine delicate hairs pointing downwards. Leaves 

 of a pale green, flat, broadish, acute, slightly roughish and soft to the 

 touch on both surfaces. Inflorescence compound panicled, soon be- 

 coming of a bleached appearance. Panicle erect, when large, slightly 

 drooping at the summit ; the branches spreading, hairy, arising from 

 the rachis alternately, in pairs of unequal lengths. Spikelets mostly 

 ascending, with hairy peduncles ; of two florets, the upper one awned. 

 Calyx of two membranous glumes of equal lengths, (Fig 1), acute, 

 hairy on the keels, roughish on the sides ; the upper glume the larger, 

 three-ribbed ; the lower glume without lateral ribs. Florets of two 

 palese, (Fig. 2) ; the outer palea of lowermost floret of an oval form, 

 about half the length of the calyx, without lateral ribs, obtuse at the 

 summit, with three long delicate hairs at the base, and a long naked 

 footstalk. Inner palea about equal in length to the outer palea, 

 membranous, obtuse, with the margins delicately fringed. Upper 

 floret smaller than the lower one, elevated on a long naked footstalk, 

 furnished at the base with a tuft of white hairs ; from a little below 

 the summit arises a long awn about equal in length to the palea, 



» Holcus moins^ Linn. Smith. Hooker, Greville, Lindley, Koch. 

 3 



