\ 



i' 60; 



'■ tint 

 ping, 



'lows 

 'Sin 



;foot 



! Up. 



often 

 long. 



most 

 sarly 



irmi- 

 ■the 

 ■ two. 

 ions. 

 lion, 

 inot 



defi- 

 nen- 



)uter 



mh 



ffn- 

 ate. 



J. 



de- 





iiter- 



k 



Jl?5^22ca.2 



CYII. GRAMINEiE 



559 



smaller one single-nerved, larger one thickened at the margin and as 

 if S-nerved. Florets rather distant on the rachis. Outer glumellas 

 lanceolate-acuminate, scahrous, often also denticulate on the midrib 

 throughout. 



+ 



II Ligule of the uppermost sheath very shorty scarcely perceptible. Outer 



glumella 5-rihbedA Bucetum Parn, ^ 



m 



5. F. pratensis lluds. (meadow F.) ; panicle close never diva- 

 ricated, branches in pairs one bearing a single spikelet, the 

 other a solitary or several spik'elets sometimes wanting, spike- 

 lets 5 — 10 flowered, outer glumella 5-ribbed with a very short 

 or obsolete awn, leaves linear-lanceolate. — a. some or all of the 

 branches ofthe panicle in pairs, one usually Avith several spike- 

 lets. E.B.t 1592 : Bucetum Parn. G?\ t. 46.— /?• branches of 

 the panicle solitary reduced to a single spikelet which is sessile 

 or shortly stalked below. F. loliacea SmJ JE. ^. t. 1821 ? Bu- 

 cetum lol. Farn. Gr. tt. 45. 113, 114. 



Moist meadows and pastures, banks of rivers, Sec, common. — )J. 

 more rare. 1^. 6,7. — It is probable that there are two plants 

 confused under the name of /'. loliacea : one, which is the Bucetum 

 loliaceum Parn., with only 3 ribs to the outer glume, and these not 

 very strongly developed : another in which the outer glume is flat, 



8 very strong whitish ribs, thus agreeing better with Smith's 

 description, as it otherwise does with the figure ; in it the spikelets 

 are all solitary, almost quite sessile, and awnless. This we should 

 have retained as a distinct species, did not Parnell figure at t. 114. 

 an intermediate form, having a convex slightly keeled 5-nerved larger 

 glume, which, however, we have not seen. 



6. F. eldtior L. (TallF,); panicle dlfluse patent mucb 

 branched, branches divaricated after flowering mostly in pairs 

 each with 2 or more (usually numerous) spikelets, spikelets 5 — 

 6-flowered, outer glumella 5-ribbed with a very short or obso- 

 lete nearly terminal awn, leaves linear-lanceolate. F, B. t. 

 1593, Bucetum Parn. Gr. tt. 46, 47. F. arundinacea Schreh. 



Moist pastures and banks of rivers, not unfrequent. It. 6, 7. — 



We have a specimen '* from the side of the river Lsk," with the panicle 



coarctate ; but as it is only in flower it may afterwards assume the 



divaricated appearance which best characterizes the present from the 



next species : it is the F, lonyifolia Don, and has been recognized by 



Nees V. Esenbeck as certainly belonging to F. elatior. Mr, Borrer 



IS of opinion that we have two plants in this country, one F. elatior^ 



the other F, arundinacea; but we have not seen Illustrative spe- 

 cimens. 



w 



7. Y.gigdnteaYiW, (tall-bearded F,); panicle branched droop- 

 ing towards one side, spikelets lanceolate 3— 6-flowered awned, 



with 5 



} This character applies to all our British species of Festucn, except 1^. 

 ttca; hence Dr. Parnell places it in Poa. la Bro??ius the ligule of the 



most sheath is also prominent. 



sylva - 

 upper 



B 6 4 



