ALONG THE RIVER 75 



gate the green beds. Bur-reed is brighter green, with soft 



blades harmless to the touch ; it has spikes bearing little 



silvery heads of unfertile 



blossom, and beneath 



them the fertile burrs 



like little thorn-apples, 



which grow larger as 



summer goes on. The 



scented rush is a local, 



but often an abundant, 



plant ; if a boat is driven 



at random into one of 



the reedy islands on the 



upper Thames in soft 



June weather, the sweet 



spicy smell of the bruised 



stems and blades will 



often rise thickly all 



round. The scented rush 



bears an outstretched 



green finger, like the 



spike in the cowl of an 



arum, but netted with 



angular lines ; by this it 



can easily be identified 



at a little distance, when 



deep water prevents th,e 



plant being plucked and 



its scent proved. 



There is much confu- 

 sion in the popular names 

 of many of these water-plants. The scented rush is not one 

 of the rushes, and indeed does not resemble them ; it is some- 



YELLOW FLAG 



