394 Harper: BOTANICAL CROSS-SECTION OF MISSISSIPPI 
Terrestrial oe Quercus falcata 
Pinus (all species) Quercus marylandica 
aca us virginiana Liriodendron 
ag rugos Sassafras 
Nyssa biflora 
rhe nes stellata 
Banks of the Mississippi (PLATE 22). Of the banks of the 
“Father of Waters”’ I can say very little, having seen them only 
for a few miles, between Greenville, Miss., and Luna Landing, Ark., 
on June roth. Nuttall passed by there in January, 1820, and pub- 
lished some observations on the river-bank vegetation in his 
‘Journal of travels into the Arkansa territory”’ the following year. 
Lyell traversed part of the same route in March, 1846, and his 
observations can be found in his ‘‘Second visit to the United 
States,’ 2: 163-164. 1849. 
On the inner sides of bends Salix nigra (?) is seen everywhere on 
sand-bars between high and low water marks, and Populus 
deltoides on more silty soil a little higher up. These trees can 
probably stand as much seasonal fluctuation as any in the world. 
They seem to prefer soils poor in nitrogen and rich in inorganic 
plant foods, and they must be regarded as the pioneers for that 
particular type of soil. On the outer sides of bends, where the 
river is eroding its banks, Liguidambar, Arundinaria, and various 
other species characteristic of river-bottoms are visible, together 
with occasional specimens of Taxodium in the swamps farther 
back. 
CONCLUSION 
Notable absentees. Of the plants which are common in other 
parts of the coastal plain and rare or absent in northern Mississippi 
the following occur to me. Nyssa biflora was seen only twice, 
once in Clay County and once in Lowndes; and Juniperus was 
seen only once on the IgII trip, that in Lowndes County. (It 
is rather.common in the black belt of Alabama.) Ferns are rare, 
as are nearly all pine-barren plants. The following were not 
seen at all. 
Pinus palustri Myrica cerifera 
Taxodium tenbekcattens Magnolia (all species) 
Tillandsia* Ericaceae 
Orchidaceae 
* In crossing the ‘‘delta’’ I must have been pretty close to the range of Tillandsia 
usneoides, for Nuttall (Travels, 228), in floating down the Mississippi on Jan. 22, 
