70 
hypnoides. Also Loiseleuria has branching year’s-shoots and 
no typical scale-leaves. 
From a vegetative point of view most of these Greenland 
Ericineæ agree very closely with Calluna, their chief means of 
propagation being seeds; it is chiefly by the primary root that 
the plant absorbs food from the soil, the adventitious roots 
play a less prominent part in this respect. Decided deviations 
from this rule are the Pirolas, Andromeda polifolia, Vaccinium 
Myrtillus, Vaccinium Vitis-idea and uliginosum, all of which 
have subterranean runners with elongated internodes. It is 
characteristic of the Ericineæ that the adventitious roots spring 
from the axils of leaves, above the buds. 
Of all the 16 species of Ericineæ, mentioned above, two 
only have typical deciduous leaves, viz. Vaccinium uliginosum 
and Vaccinium Myrtillus. The leaves of Arctostaphylos alpina 
appear neither to fall nor to keep fresh during winter. The 
leaves of the other species keep fresh through at least one 
winter, and the ensuing spring they appear to be able to assimilate 
afresh; they are then found to contain starch; the leaves of 
some of the species can evidently keep fresh even longer. 
The form of branching of the Ericineæ is rather varied. 
In the Pirola-species a racemose inflorescence generally occurs 
which terminates the growth of the pleiocyclic shoot; in this 
genus the foliage-leaves occur in a few-leaved rosette. There 
usually occur only subterranean lateral shoots which begin as 
colourless runners bearing scale-leaves (see Warning, 1884). 
Pirola uniflora is an exception (ibidem p. 86, Fig. 23). In some 
of the Ericaceæ the flowers occur singly in the axils of foliage- 
leaves (Cassiope tetragona), or on small dwarf-shoots which 
occur towards the base of the long-shoots, and bear only a 
few pairs of foliage-leaves, dying after setting fruit (Calluna 
vulgaris). Solitary flowers occur also in Vaccinium Myrtillus 
(for further information regarding its sympodial growth, etc., 
see Warminc, 1884, pp. 76—77). Vaccinium uliginosum may 
