REPORT OF FIELD MEETINGS 1 65 



Sunspurge. The pasture fields were carpeted with daisies just 

 like an April day. 



On halting on one occasion to look over the gate into a 

 stubble field, I drew the attention of two or three of the 

 members who remained behind with me to a flock of sheep 

 " cropping" the young clover growing amongst the stubble. 

 I pointed out that I always considered this as a wrong practice 

 in farming, as the clover, denuded of its foliage in such a 

 young stage so late in the year, was unable to resist the 

 severity of the winter frosts owing to the tender nature of its 

 roots, thereby causing a diminution or total absence of clover 

 in the following seeds' crop of new land hay. 



Being by this time hopelessly behind the advanced party, a 

 short lane eastwards was followed by which we reached the 

 coast in a short time, and thus coming to the front by a kind 

 of flank movement. After spending a few minutes at luncheon 

 I took an extensive ramble on the links amongst the sand 

 dunes, which were covered with brown-coloured brackens. 

 AVhile rambling thus, I gathered belated blooms of Creeping 

 Potentil, Thrift, Wild Celery, Scurvy Grass, Saltwort, Bur- 

 reed, Agrimony, Blood Geranium, Buckshorn, Plantain, Sea 

 Purslane and Storksbill. The dried, withered capsules of the 

 spring blooms of Primroses and Cowslips were noticed every- 

 where. 



As it was low tide, and being anxious to see something of 

 the flora and fauna of marine life about low water mark, I, 

 after having luncheon for the second time while sniffing the 

 sea breeze, crossed the beach to a dark patch of rocks. Here 

 I had a good opportunity of seeing a fine growth of a great 

 many of our sea-weeds, including several kinds of the yellow, 

 green and red classes. Amongst the yellow kinds there was 

 a profusion of the four species of Wrack, viz. : the one with 

 bladders or floats in pairs, the one with single bladders, the 

 one with toothed margins of bladderless fronds, and the 

 smallest of the four containing narrow fluted fronds, also 

 minus of bladders. The two Laminarias or Tangles were 



