Illustrated Descriptions of the Grasses 



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areas with its smooth, dark green leaves and stems and its vividly 

 coloured flowering spikes of purple flecked with yellow anthers. 



This and the Black-grass — 



really a rush — are valuable 



plants of the seaside, and 



their low, dense growth of 



leaves and stems, so fre- 

 quently seen by tidewaters, 



is easily recognized by the 



characteristic dark green 



colour. These plants yield 



a large amount of the salt 



hay gathered each year, and 



the wiry stems of Fox-grass 



are much used in packing. 



This, also, is one of the 



many plants that have 



been proved to yield fibres 



suitable for spinning and 



weaving, and it is said that 



although the fibre from the 



stems of Fox-grass is defi- 

 cient in length it is equal in 



strength and fineness to 



that of flax. 



Creek Sedge advances 



into the water and one must 



wait until low tide before 



approaching by land the 



pale green spikes which are 



so beautifully fringed with 



their white anthers. This 



grass is common everywhere 



along our coasts and by 

 ( y creek margins, where it 

 ' borders the water with im- 

 passable thickets of reed- 

 like stems which remain 



green until late autumn. 



The stout stems, leafy to 

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Fox-srass 

 Sparlina patens' 



is: 



Creek Sedge 

 Sparlina glabra, var. pilosa 



