90 TKIANDRIA DIGY1STIA. [cL. III. 



acute. Filaments hair-like, shorter than the calyx ; anthers 

 erect, oblong, cleft at both ends. Germen oblong. Styles 

 very short ; stigmas cylindrical, feathery. Seed oblong, ob- 

 tuse, loose, enveloped in the unaltered husks. Name, lagos, a 

 hare, and oura, a tail. 54. 



1. L. ovdtus. Hare's -tail-grass. Straws about a foot high, 



erect, round : leaves lance-shaped, acute, ribbed, downy on both 

 sides : sheaths inflated, ribbed, very downy : spike egg-shaped, 

 many- flowered, woolly. Annual : flowers in June : grows in 

 sandy ground : very rare. Guernsey. Eng. Bot. vol. xix. pi. 

 1334. Eng. Fl vol. i. p. 167. 196. 



39. AVE'NA. OAT. 



Calyx of two somewhat unequal, broadly lance-shaped, thin, 

 awniess chaff- scales, containing a loose spikelet of several 

 flowers. Corolla of two unequal husks ; the outer egg-shaped, 

 involute, pointed at both ends, deeply cleft at the top, and 

 bearing from the back a spirally -twisted awn. Nectary of two 

 lance-shaped scales. Filaments shorter than the corolla j an- 

 thers rather short. Germen obtuse. Styles short; stigmas 

 densely feathered. Seed oblong, sometimes downy, enveloped 

 in the hardened outer husk, which retains its awn. Name, 

 Avena, of the Romans. 55. 



1 . A. fatua. Wild Oat. Panicle erect ; spikelets pendulous ; 

 flowers about three, shorter than the calyx, bristly at the base, all 



awned. Straws three feet high, erect, round, smooth : leaves 



flat, linear, rough, sometimes hairy : panicle erect and spreading, 

 with half-whorled, rough branches. The twisted awn makes an 

 excellent hygrometer, and Smith says the flowers are used by rus- 

 tic anglers instead of artificial flies. Annual : flowers in June and 

 July : grows among oats and barley : common. Eng. Bot. vol. 

 xxxi. pL 2221. Eng.Fl. vol. i. p. 163. 197. 



2. A. strigosa. Bristle-pointed Oat. Panicle oblong, inclined to 

 one side : spikelets of two flowers ; outer husk tipped with two 

 straight bristles. Straws three feet high : leaves rough : chaff- 

 scales as long as the spikelet : dorsal twisted awn twice the length 

 of the flower. Annual : flowers in June and July : grows in corn- 

 fields : common. Eng. Bot. vol. xviii. pi. 1266. Eng. Fl.vol. i. p. 

 164. 198. 



3. A. pubescens. Downy Oat-grass. Panicle erect, nearly sim- 

 ple ; flowers about three, longer than the calyx, with a bearded 



stalk ; leaves flat, downy ; root somewhat creeping. Straws 



about two feet high, smooth : leaves flat, obtuse, covered with soft 

 hairs : flowers generally three, one of them imperfect : awn from 

 the middle of the husk. Perennial : flowers in June : grows in 

 pastures: not common. Eng. Bot. vol. xxiii. pi. 1640. Eng. Fl. 

 vol. i. p. 164. 199. 



4. A.pratensis. Narrow-leaved Oat-grass. Panicle erect, with 

 very short simple branches ; flowers about five, longer than the 

 calyx, with a hairy stalk ; leaves involute, finely serrated, with 



smooth sheaths. Straw about a foot high, erect, stiff : leaves 



mostly radical : panicle erect, simple, with some of the upper 

 spikelets sessile. Perennial : flowers in July : grows in dry pas- 

 tures : common. Eng. Bot. vol. xvii. pi. 1204. Eng. Fl. vol. i. 

 p. 165. 200. 



