Dry Land Plants 223 



maria parviflora, Specularia hybrida of the arable land of the 

 western district, and local or not found in the eastern. 



This division has been marked on the map. The eastern 

 portion is coloured yellow with a few brown patches, the 

 western pink. To the east are found sands and gravels, 

 covering chalk ; to the west, to a large extent, chalk. 



The large pink area, however, does not by any means 

 represent a purely chalk flora; it is rather all those parts of 

 the dry flora that remain after such obvious plant associations 

 as the Carex and Bracken, and the Heather associations (to 

 be referred to presently), have been separated from it. Other 

 such groups might quite possibly have been found with a more 

 careful survey of the county, but time has not permitted. 



Everywhere over the western or pink area is the work of 

 man apparent, the land is almost entirely under cultivation. 

 A few semi- disused chalk-pits retain the remains of the 

 ancient flora, which persists also upon the Fleam and Devil's 

 Dykes and Roman road over the Gogmagog Hills. On these 

 older works which have been undisturbed for centuries can be 

 found Anemone Pulsatilla and Senecio campestris. The turf is 

 close and springy and composed of grass and thyme. Where 

 rabbits disturb the soil annuals appear; Myosotis collina and 

 arvensis, afterwards followed by Carduus nutans. Here and 

 there orchids are found, and on the Devil's Dyke Thalictrnm 

 collinum is abundant. 



Before passing on to the eastern division it would be well 

 to take the flora of one of the chalk pits, such as that at 

 Haslingfield, as an example of the chalk flora. This pit is 

 still used, but the greater portion is overgrown either with 

 May bushes or grass; the former occupy the gullies in the 

 sides, the latter the ridges. The flat bottom of the pit is 

 cropped with sainfoin. 



The vegetation as a whole may be said to show the effect 

 of the soil. Only where the whitethorn has established itself 

 is the vegetation rank ; here Arrhenathrum avenaceum is 

 abundant and Qalium Aparine sprawls over the ground and 



