PKEFACE. V 



This volume being intended as a field-book or travelling 

 companion for botanists, it is advisable to restrict the space 

 allotted to each species as much as possible ; and accordingly 

 the characters and observations are only such as appear to 

 be necessary for an accurate discrimination of the plants. 

 Facts relating to their geographical distribution are there- 

 fore usually omitted. Synonyms have been almost wholly 

 omitted ; but the plates of the original English Botany or 

 some other British plates are quoted. Syme's English 

 Botany may well be used by those who desire full de- 

 scriptions of the plants ; and the plates in that work have 

 often had valuable additions made to those of the old Eng- 

 lish Botany, from which most of them are taken. Localities 

 are only given for new or rare plants ; Mr. Watson's works 

 and the numerous local floras render it unnecessary incon- 

 veniently to swell the present volume by their introduction. 

 But in order to convey some idea of the distribution of 

 plants throughout the United Kingdom, the letters E., S., 

 or I. have been appended to the descriptions of such species 

 as have, it is believed, been found in England, Scotland, 

 or Ireland. The descriptions of a considerable number of 

 plants which only occur in the Channel Islands, and are, 

 therefore, not properly parts of the British Flora ; or which, 

 although included in our lists, there is reason to suppose 

 have never been really detected in Britain ; or, although 

 naturalized, have very slender claims to be considered 

 aboriginal natives; or which are now supposed to be lost 

 by the alterations made in the places where they were 

 found by our predecessors ; are included within [] ; and 

 notices of a few plants concerning which more accurate 

 information is requisite, are distinguished in a similar 

 manner. It is hoped that by this arrangement the truly in- 

 digenous species will be clearly distinguished from those 

 which have little or no claim to be considered aboriginal 



