268 Mr. J. T. Syme on some Plants observed in Orkney. 



was very limited, as we had to beat against wind and tide, and 

 so did not reach the Bow (at the foot of the hill) till the after- 

 noon. The ascent to the hill is at first not quite so steep as 

 the slope of the debris of Salisbury Crags at Edinburgh, and 

 here Galium pusillum, Saxifraga aizoides and Silene acaulis were 

 abundant, even at the very foot of the hill. After ascending 

 about 500 feet, the red sandstone rock rises nearly perpendicu- 

 larly for about 150 feet, and here we gathered Thalidrum alpi- 

 num, Saussurea alpina, Oxyria reniformis, Sedum Rhodiola, and a 

 Hieracium not in flower, which appeared to be H. murorum y. Law- 

 soni. Above the rocks the hill is nearly bare of vegetation, and 

 covered with debris, among which Dryas octopetala was growing 

 in great perfection. Saxifraga oppositi/olia and Draba incana 

 also occur on the hill, but we had not time to look for them, as 

 I was most anxious to see the station for Ajuga pyramidalis, 

 found by Mr. Robert Heddel, at the Burn of Berridale. We 

 accordingly descended into the valley of Rackwick, gathering 

 Lycopodium annotinum on our way, and reached the Burn of 

 Berridale about six o^ clock in the evening. This ravine is re- 

 markable as being the only place in Orkney where the birch and 

 mountain-ash are to be seen growing wild. We soon found the 

 Ajuga pyramidalisy which is confined to the west side of the burn 

 near its mouth, and is by no means easily noticed. The barren 

 plants resemble very much young plants oi Digitalis purpurea, and 

 they usually flower under the shelter of bushes of Calluna vulgaris. 

 The plants were small, from 1-3 inches high, but were still in 

 flower, while that which I had seen in Neversdale some days 

 before had its seeds nearly ripe. Melampyrum pratense fi. mon- 

 tanum, Scirpus fluitans and Drosera anglica also occurred here, 

 and Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi in great profusion. There are also 

 bushes of Corylus Avellana and Hedera Helix among the rocks. 

 Rubus suberectus was found by Dr. Duguid on the north-west of 

 Hoy, but we had not time to visit the station before embarking 

 on our return to the Bow. 



My next trip to Hoy was on the 3rd of July, when I ex- 

 amined part of the south-west coast, in company with Mr. Hed- 

 del. About two miles from Melsetter, Stenhammaria maritima 

 occurred, and on the hills in several places Arctostaphylos alpina 

 and Vaccinium uliginosum. Mr. Heddel has found Lobelia Dort- 

 manna in several of the lakes in Waas, but 1 did not meet with 

 it myself. 



On the 17th of August I again visited Howton Head, but 

 found Primula scotica out of flower. I was misled by the plants 

 of it in the garden at Swanbister, which came into flower at this 

 time, being probably delayed in flowering by having been trans- 

 planted in the spring. Anagallis tenella and Habenaria vvridis 



