84 THE WOODLANDS. 



and coarser, and more addicted to swamps. The 

 wood Club-rush l reaches the height of three feet in 

 damp corners of woods ; the great drooping serge, 2 

 with its long pendulous " cat's-tail " spikes is easily 

 recognized; as also the pendulous wood sedge, 3 with 

 its looser, more straggling spikes. There are also a 

 few smaller species commonly sylvan in their habits, 

 but offering no special cause for mention. 



The true grasses some of them are the same as are 

 found in lanes and by roadsides, such as the common 

 Cock's-foot, and the sweet-scented vernal grass, 4 which 

 has the odour of melilot in drying, and, in fact, gives 

 the odour to new-mown hay. Then there will be 

 found the tall Brome-grass ; 5 the rough Brome- 

 grass ; 6 the wood Couch-grass ; 7 the Oat-grass : 8 the 

 wood reed ; 9 and the false Brome-grass. 10 In addition 

 to these will doubtless be the tufted Hair-grass, 11 and 

 the Soft-grass, 12 which will not by any means exhaust 

 the list. 



Grasses are particularly subject to two kinds of 

 parasites. One consists of a soot-like dust which 

 smothers and destroys the flowering heads, and is 

 known as smut, 13 common to all the cultivated grains 

 as well as the grasses. The other is a black, hard, 

 horny body, which absorbs and takes the place of 



1 Scirpus sylvaticus. 



2 Carex pendula. 



3 Carex sylvatica. 



4 Anthoxanthum odoratum. 



5 Bromus gigan tens. 



6 Bromus asper. 



7 Triticum caninum. 



Arrhenatherum avenaceum. 

 Calamagrostis epigeios. 

 Brachypodium sylvaticum* 

 Aira ccespitosa. 

 Holcus molliS. 

 Ustilago carbo. 



