SHORT NOTES. 185 



place. I then asked him what other rare local plants he had. 

 The first he showed me, which he said he found on the rocks near 

 the Head, he did not know the name of, but I recognised it as 

 Claytonia sibirica, and on my telling him it was not British, he 

 supposed the seed must have blown from some garden. I did not 

 disguise my incredulity, but he continued very good-humoured 

 and communicative, and showed me several letters from botanists 

 at a distance in proof of the truth of all he had said. No one 

 pretends to have seen any of these plants growing wild at Llan- 

 dudno except himself, but, as he added, he was born and brought 

 up in Kent, so, of course, knew more about Orchises than people 

 were likely to do in North Wales.— C. W. Dod." 



Spring-flowering Form of Colchicum autumnale (p. 145). — 

 Mr. White's remarks about this form are fully confirmed by the 

 discovery of precisely similar flowers by Miss Louisa Chapman at 

 Bishop Frome, in Herefordshire, and at English Bicknor, in 

 Gloucester shire. Both corm and flower are just as those described 

 m the May number of the 'Journal of Botany,' and the "latter differs 

 from the figure given in ' English Botany ' in size and colour out- 

 side, as mentioned by Mr. Baker. Considering the dreadful season 

 of 1879, and the pollen less anthers of the plants under considera- 

 tion, it seems to me that Mr. White's suggestion is correct, and 

 that this peculiar form is merely a temporary one. It will be 

 interesting to* see whether the same form will appear again next 

 year. — T. A. Preston. 



The same vernal form of Colchicum autumnale occurred this 

 year for the first time, as far as I am aware, at Bishopstone, near 

 Hereford ; it was confined to one field, but was very abundant 

 tnere. The leaves were just appearing with it, and the corm in 

 jay specimens, instead of being similar to that of the autumnal 

 wm was much larger than usual.— H. N. Bidley. 



[It would be interesting to know whether this form, which 



seems to be unusually frequent this year, has appeared elsewhere 

 At the meeting of the Societe Boyale de Botanique de Belgique, 

 Jjeid on May 2nd, M. De Vos announced that he had recently seen 

 Iv ri , neux a meadow completely chequered with the flowers of 

 wis Colchicum.— Ed, Journ. Bot.] 



Leucobryuu glaucum in Fruit.— I found last Easter, in com- 

 pany with Mr. George, Leucobryum glaucum in fruit, in the birch 

 Jjooa called Egypt, about a mile to the north of Burnham Beeches, 



ad a *• Was in fine condition, some 0I tlie capsules being still 

 orned with the white calyptra. On mentioning the circumstance 



ol)^ n , eigllbour ' Mr. Latimer Clark, he informed me that he had 

 of t i Xt Uear the same locality some years ago. Mr. T. Walker, 



W" !S dge Wells > found i1; wifch ver y y ouug fruit in Great Easla 



buu ? ear Great Mar l° w . ^ the same district. Although Lmuxh 

 foun'i '•' T 1 "" is so common, I have no record of its having been 

 in tr in frui t in this country, excepting in this district, Bramber 

 Hampshire, and in the Lake country.— T. Howse. 



2b 



