156 



were Calopogon, Hahenaria lacera, Liparis liliafolia, Arisaema 

 siewardsonii, Thalictrum revolutum, and Oxyhaphus nyctagineus. 



W. L. HiGHTON 



Trip of July 9 to the World's Fair Region 



Of the approximately 1,000 species of wild plants within the 

 city limits of New York exclusive of Staten Island, little less 

 than I were noted in our trip to Corona and Flushing, by actual 

 count 318. One hundred eighty-three of the total are regarded 

 as native to the United States and 135 as adventive. Defining 

 families and genera as in the Illustrated Flora, we examined 69 

 of the former and 198 of the latter. 



We observed that within two years the alteration of this 

 area will be complete. If not completely destroyed, the colonies 

 of plants that flourished during the Age of the Meadows, a 

 long time ago (1936), now are reduced to a few stray ditch 

 dwellers that are neighbors to the steam shovel. We found no 

 trace of Guizotia ahyssinica that bloomed yesteryear, a compos- 

 ite (Helianthoideae) taller than one meter, many branched, 

 with the appearance of an over robust Bidens cernua. Solanum 

 villosum was covered with ashes simultaneously with the good 

 fruiting Sesamum indicum and Conium maculatuni. Carduus nu- 

 tans, with its carmine centered nodding flower-buds, is out of 

 our area, if not, as yet, from the city. Astoria still boasts many 

 colonies of Allionia nyctaginea, but we failed to see this umbrel- 

 lawort in Flushing; nor did we mourn the loss of Bassia hyssopi- 

 folia, since it is common in other regions. But our showy Ver- 

 bena stricta, whose progress of inflorescence flared up the spike 

 like blue flame, where else in the city can we find it? Our two 

 undescribed Helianthus and Liatris scariosa may still be alive but 

 we did not encounter them. The tall alyssum-fragrant Lepedium 

 latifoUum and chicory-blue Lactuca pulchella, though still 

 plentiful, will now see their last hour any day. Cydoloma atripli- 

 cifolium is common on the south coast of Long Island, thus when 

 the few remaining specimens in the area under consideration are 

 obliterated we can still continue for several years to regard 

 it as a member of our city flora; this is also true of Planlago 

 arenarea and Hieracium florentinu^n which are now common in 

 New York. This negative aspect of ours, the most important. 



