CHAPTER VI 



PLANTS OF THE MOORLAND 



Heath and moor The secret of the Heather Other heath plants 

 The problem of the high moor Bog Moss The making of peat 

 Butterwort and Sundew Some other moor plants Fly Toad- 

 stools Fairy rings "All things flow." 



WE mean by moorland a wide expanse, more or less 

 level or undulating, open to the wind and the sun, 

 covered with short vegetation and with very few 

 trees. The word suggests spaciousness, solitude, 

 lack of shelter, and rather unfriendly soil. We wish 

 to use the word in a rather wide way. 



The term "heath" is strictly applied to a tract of 

 poor sandy soil with little lime in it, where the Com- 

 mon Heather or Ling and related Heathers form the 

 prevailing vegetation. A heath may be on low 

 ground near the shore or it may be on the uplands. 

 A heath vegetation covers the sides of many moun- 

 tains, but we are not including steep slopes in our 

 picture of moorland. As time goes on the surface of 

 the heath may accumulate a carpet of heather peat, 

 and this brings a heath nearer a true moor. 



For the term "moor" is best applied to more or 

 less level or gently undulating tracts where abundant 

 peat has accumulated or is accumulating. When the 

 soil is poor in lime and the standing water is coffee- 

 coloured with org*anic matter in solution, the term 

 " high moor " is often used the characteristic feature 



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