Mr. Woods on the Genera of European Grasses. 29 



totally wanting ; but I have already stated in my observations on that tribe 

 the reasons which induce me to place it here. The want of any trace of an 

 exterior rudiment, as well as the more delicate texture of the palese, keep them 

 away from the Panicece and Phalaridece, and they have not those long silky 

 hairs which distinguish the Arundinacece. The last character is, I must con- 

 fess, the least satisfactory, for some species of Agrostis have soft hairs and 

 not very short ones, so that without the smaller size and more delicate tex- 

 ture of the plant one might be at a loss in which tribe to place it. 

 Genera : 



1 . Polypogon. Glumes scariose, furnished with a long seta ! Palese nearly 



equal, filmy, included. Awn dorsal, or none. 



2. Milium. Glumes herbaceo-scariose, hardly exceeding the membrano-co- 



riaceous palese. Palese nearly equal, unarmed, hardening on the seed ! 



3. Agrostis. Glumes membranous, acute. Palese smooth, scariose, unequal 



in length, the inner sometimes wanting. The awn, if any, is dorsal. 



4. Vilfa. Glumes unequal, falling short of the palese, both membranous. 



Palese nearly equal, unarmed. 



5. Coleanthus. Glumes ; flowers solitary ; paleae unequal ; the outer with 



a rough keel, terminating in a short seta. Stamens 2 ! 



6. Knappia. Inflorescence in a raceme, somewhat one-sided, Spiculee trun- 



cate. Paleae included, scariose or filmy, shaggy, the inner minute or 

 wanting. 



The awn is wanting in Polypogon maritimum ; where it occurs it is easily 

 separable from the corolla, and is therefore a true awn. The long terminal 

 seta of the glume in this genus is very remarkable, separating it at once from 

 almost all others. Smith and Hooker describe it as strictly terminal. To 

 me it seems to be placed a little below the extremity. 



Milium. M. effusum is the only European species left by Kunth in this 

 genus, and he places it among the Panicece, considering the part which has 

 the appearance of an inner glume, and which is quite similar in form and tex- 

 ture to the outer glume, as a neutral floret. There is nothing in the structure 

 or disposition of the parts to countenance such an hypothesis, and I therefore 

 consider it as belonging to the Agrostidece. Vilfa of Link offers only one 



