﻿Armstrong. — On the Naturalized Plants of Canterbury. 285 



the number of species, and by far outnumber tliem in the abundance of each 

 kind. The rapidity with which foreign plants become naturalized in New 

 Zealand is indeed a most surprising and extraordinary circumstance, and of 

 great interest to every colonist, as it must be quite evident to every observer 

 that the introduction of these European plants will certainly result in the 

 extermination of the indigenous flora, and that at no very distant period of 

 time. 



The indigenous Flora seems to have arrived at a period of its existence, 

 when it has no longer strength to maintain its own against the invading races ; 

 indeed, every person who has attempted the cultivation of native plants knows 

 how difficult it is to cultivate the most of them, on account of their weakness 

 of constitution. Again the hand of man is busily employed in their extermi- 

 nation — everywhere the forests are being cut down or burnt, the swamps 

 drained, and the grassy plains and valleys broken up and cultivated. Under 

 these combined influences it is evidently utterly impossible that the native 

 plants can survive. Already a few of the rarer species are nearly extinct, and 

 nothing can save our fine forests from destruction but the most rigid preserva- 

 tion by the Government. 



It will be seen from the list of species that most of the plants enumerated 

 are natives of Europe ; in fact, most of them are common British weeds. 

 Along the roadsides, for miles from the city of Chiistchurch, are to be seen 

 such plants as Polygonum avicidare, Stellaria media, Capsella Buraa-pastoris, 

 Sinajns arvensis, and an abundant growth of grasses, the most common of 

 which are Hordeum murinum, Poa annua, Bromus Schraderii, B. racemosus, 

 B. mollis, Lolium (several species), etc. On the hills and waste ground may 

 be found Hypochoiris radicata, Garduus lanceolatus, Erodium cicutarium, 

 A7i,themis nohilis, Marruhium vulgare, Trifolium repens, which is, perhaps, the 

 commonest plant in Canterbury, Conium maculatum, Daucus Garota, Pastinaca 

 sativum, etc. In wet places we find an abundant growth of the large English 

 docks, Rumex ohtusifolius and R. crispus, with the sorrel, R. A cetosella, Ranun- 

 culus repens, Galium Aparine, etc. 



In the river Avon two plants are found which require more than a passing 

 notice — these are the watercress. Nasturtium officinale, Linn., and Anacharis 

 Alsinastrum. The former was introduced about twenty years ago, and has 

 proved a great nuisance, blocking up the river and adjacent watei'-courses, 

 impeding drainage so much that the Provincial Government have had to spend 

 large sums of money to keejj it down ; it grows to an immense size, far exceed- 

 ing anything ever seen in England. I may here mention that the water cress 

 is very much infested with the cabbage blight, AjyJiis brassica. 



The Anacharis Alsinastrum, a well known and remarkable American 

 aquatic, is now to be found in abundance in the I'iver Avon, where two years 



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