66 TBIANDKIA MONOGYNIA. [CL. III. 



anthers linear. Style simple, deciduous ; stigmas three, downy. 

 Seed three-cornered, sometimes furnished with soft hairs at the 

 base. Name, cirs, Celtic for cord. 25. 



* Spikes solitary. 



1. S. ccespitosus. Scaly-stalked Club-rush. Straw round, sheathed 

 with numerous scales at the base, some of them bearing short 

 leaves ; two outer chaff-scales as long as the spike. Stems nu- 

 merous, from four to twelve inches high, growing in dense tufts, 

 striated, upper sheaths ending in a short leaf: spike small, red- 

 dish-brown. Perennial : flowers in July : grows on peat soil : 

 abundant. This is one of the most important of our native plants, 

 in respect to pasturage. Its very numerous long fibrous roots form 

 the principal part of the spongy varieties of peat. In the High- 

 lands it is often seen occupying extensive tracts, almost exclu- 

 sively, and forms excellent summer pasturage for cows, horses, and 

 sheep. Eng. Bot. vol. xv. pi. 1029. Eng. Ft. vol. i. p. 17. 75. 



2. S. pauciflorus. Chocolate-headed Club-rush. Straw round, 

 sheathed at the base, leafless ; two outer chaff-scales shorter than 



the spike. Spike smaller and darker than in the last : straw 



about six inches high : it resembles the last in its mode of growth 

 and qualities. Perennial : flowers in July : grows abundantly in 

 Scotland. Eng. Bot. vol. xvi. pi. 1122. Eng. Fl vol. i. p. 17. 76. 



3. S.fluitans. Floating Club-rush. Straw round, branched, leafy ; 



spikes destitute of external enlarged scales. Stem from six to 



ten inches long, slender, zig-zag, much branched: leaves linear, 

 keeled, sheathing: spikes small, few- flowered, pale green: no 

 bristles beneath the seed. Perennial : flowers in August : grows 

 in ditches, and in shallow water on heaths. Eng. Bot. vol. iii. pi. 

 216. Eng. Fl. vol. i. p. 57. 77. 



** Stem round, bearing several spikes. 



4. S. lacus'tris. Bull-rush. Great Club-rush. Stem round, leaf- 

 less ; panicle cymose, twice compounded ; bracteas two, shorter 

 than the panicle. Stems from four to six feet high, smooth, in- 

 ternally spongy : lower sheaths dark brown : a few short leaves at 

 the base of the straw : spikes brown, forming a cyme or panicle. 

 Perennial : flowers in July : grows in pools, and the edges of 

 rivers, with muddy bottoms. It is sometimes used as thatch. Bot- 

 toms of chairs are very commonly made of it, as well as mats. 

 Eng. Bot. vol. x. pi. 666. Eng. Fl. vol. i. p. 57. 78. 



5. S. Holoschai'nus. Round-headed Club-rush. Stem round, leaf- 

 less ; spikes nearly globular, closely set together, stalked ; brac- 

 teas two, leafy, unequal, sharp-pointed. Stems firm, about a foot 



high : spikes brown : the globular spikes, supported on stalks of 

 various lengths, distinguish this at first sight from every other 

 species. Perennial: flowers in July : grows on the sea-coast in 

 the south of England : rare. Brounton Boroughs, Devonshire, &c. 

 Eng. Bot. vol. xxiii. pi. 1612. Eng. Fl.p. 58. 79. 



6. S. setdceus. Bristle -stalked Club-rush. Stem bristle-like, leafy 

 at the base ; spikes few, sessile ; bractea leafy, surmounting the 

 spikes ; fruit inversely egg-shaped, ribbed, and marked with trans- 

 verse lines ; stamens two. Stems numerous, very slender, from 



