THE KUSHES, GRASSES, AND FERNS. 26'/ 



taken with it. The sweet-scented vernal grass 

 blooms at a time when most other grasses are short 

 and inconspicuous, so that it is doubly welcome on 

 that account. Towards the end of May you may 

 see it in full flower, the flowers forming a spike-like 

 panicle from one to two inches in length. It has 

 been supposed that it is the quantity of pollen 

 thrown off by this species of plant that causes the 

 peculiar catarrh known as " hay-fever." The seeds 

 are highly hygrometrical, and when subjected to 

 moisture, or after being moistened, to warmth, they 

 exhibit a series of very interesting movements. Tho 

 flowering glumes are awned, the glumes being 

 covered with stiff, brown, erect hairs, particularly 

 towards the base, where the hairs are generally 

 spread out somewhat after the style of a cat's 

 whiskers. These awns, when seen with a low 

 microscopic power, form really beautiful objects. 

 They are also easily influenced by moisture, that of 

 the hand alone being sufiicient to make the bent awns 

 screw themselves about in quite a comical fashion. 

 Indeed, the queer contortions and postural move- 

 ments of these organs must be experimented on to 

 be thoroughly appreciated : and we can promise our 

 young readers no little harmless fun if they will try 

 the experiment. 



Another genus of our commonest grasses, to bt 



found by every roadside, is the Alopecurus or Fox-tail 



as it is appropriately called, from the resemblance of 



tuft to the tail of a fox. We have several 



