﻿GRASSES OF SCOTLAND. 47 



Obs. — In Orkney and Shetland Isles, the stems of this grass are 

 manufactured by fishermen into ropes ; and in England, the country 

 people make them into brooms, which they sell at a cheap rate. This 

 grass is comparatively of no agricultural value, as cattle seldom eat 

 it It grows on damp heathy places, and moors, and on the confines 

 of peat-bogs, and is abundant in Scotland, England, and Ireland. 

 It is found in Lapland, Norway, and Sweden, to the most southern 

 parts of Europe. It has not been discovered in America. 



Flowers in the third week of July, and ripens its seed about the 

 end of August. Its limit of altitude seems to be about 1500 feet 

 above the sea. 



32. Catabrosa aquatica.* 

 Water Hair- Grass. 



Specific Character. — Leaves broadly linear, obtuse. (Plate XX.) 

 Description. — It grows from one to two feet in length. The root 

 is perennial, creeping, often floating, with long, white, shining fibres. 

 Stem stout, round, smooth, procumbent at the base to a considerable 

 length, often bearing three or four leaves, with smooth striated 

 sheaths ; the upper sheath shorter than its leaf, crowned with an obtuse 

 membranous ligule. Joints smooth. Leaves flat, broadly linear, obtuse, 

 smooth, flaccid, of a light green. Inflorescence compound panicled. 

 Panicle erect, the branches spreading, arranged on the smooth rachis 

 in half whorls, generally three or four of unequal lengths arising 

 from the same base, ultimately becoming reflexed. Spikelets nume- 

 rous, rather small, pendulous, of two awnless florets much longer than 

 the glumes, projecting one beyond the other. Calyx of two mem- 

 branous very unequal obtuse glumes, (Fig. 1), roughish on the keel 

 and sides ; without lateral ribs ; the lower glume much the smaller. 

 Florets of two palese, (Fig. 2), the outer palea of lowermost floret 

 three-ribbed, notched at the summit, smooth at the keel. Inner palea 

 about equal in length to the outer palea ; linear, cloven at the sum- 

 mit, and furnished with two green marginal ribs not fringed. Se- 

 cond floret elevated on a long smooth footstalk, but similar in other 

 respects to the one below. 



* Catabrosa aquatica, Hook. Lindley. Aha aguatica, Smith, Hooker, Fl. Scot. Gre- 

 ville. 



