IPostelsia 45 



tain the columbine and he allows the 

 time of flowering in the lower hills to 

 pass by, he may still, two or three 

 weeks later, get the plants in prime 

 condition by climbing to an altitude 

 of 2,500 meters or more. 



Plants of Very High Altitudes. It 

 is only in the sub-alpine regions, at 

 an altitude of about 3,200 meters, that 

 distinctly mesophytic conditions pre- 

 vail. Where the timber has not been 

 cut or burned, the shade permits the 

 snows to lie until June or July. The 

 ground may be quite wet all summer. 

 Summer showers are frequent. Con- 

 siderable areas of swampy ground 

 occur at the bases of the high moun- 

 tain peaks. There are also many 

 ponds or small lakes. In wet places 

 there are sedges and some marsh 

 grasses. Polytrichum, Funaria, Sphag- 

 num, and other mosses are found where 



