10 



scenery existed so close to the town, and frequently expressed 

 their regret that a larger party was not there to enjoy it. 

 Leaving Belvoir, a visit was paid to Drumbo round tower, 

 which the party sketched and accurately measured. 



The botanical results obtained were, on the whole, highly 

 satisfactory. From the commencement of the present cen- 

 tury the native plants of the district around Belfast have been 

 diligently sought out by Templeton, and other able and 

 zealous botanists who succeeded him. Mr. Tate's " Flora 

 Belfastiensis," published mainly for this Club, embodied these 

 researches in a permanent form, and since the issue of that 

 Flora a good deal has been done by several of the members 

 in the discovery of species hitherto overlooked, and in ascer- 

 taining the range and frequency of occurrence of others. It 

 could not be expected that many rarities still remain unnoticed 

 so near Belfast; nevertheless, there is much to be done before 

 we know all the species that compose our indigenous flora, 

 their distribution, and their comparative rarity or abundance. 

 Several scarce plants were noticed on the occasion of this 

 excursion, and are deserving of record. Among these was one 

 of the rarest of our sedges {Carex strigosa), which occurs in 

 only a few localities in the North, and is extremely rare in the 

 South and West of Ireland. The three nerved sandwort 

 (Arenaria trinervis) was found growing most luxuriantly, and 

 in the greatest profusion, under the shade of the venerable 

 trees that dignify Belvoir Park, This species is accounted by 

 Irish botanists as one of our rare plants. The white meadow 

 saxifrage (Saxifraga granulata) was also found in plenty in 

 the park. It is recorded as occurring in three or four other 

 Irish stations, but is, we fear, only a doubtful native. Be that 

 as it may, however, it is growing here spontaneously and in 

 abundance. 



Belvoir Park affords many suitable habitats for crypto- 

 gamic plants, and two very rare species of mosses were 



