482 HYPNACEjE. 



single and forked, reaching about half way, frequently longer and 

 unbranched, nearly attaining the summit, less commonly very 

 short, faint and double. Areolation rather lax, short, linear- 

 rhomboid or linear and flexuose, rather opaque, 5-10 times as 

 long as wide, rather shorter at point, becoming slightly laxer at base, 

 angular few, quadrate, moderately large, but somewhat opaque 

 •with granulose contents, not very pellucid, nor hyaline, forming 

 small, ill-defined and inconspicuous auricles. Seta \-\ inch, 

 rarely 1 inch. Capsule oblong or oval-oblong, rather short, thick 

 and irregular, horizontal, dark red ; annulus none. Autotcous. 



Var. fl. hamulosum B. & S. Slender ; leaves regularly 

 falcato-secund ; oblong-lanceolate, more or less tapering ; nerve 

 short, double; capsule oblong, narrow, curved. 



Var. y. subsphaericarpon B. & S. (H. subsphasricarpon 

 Schleich.). Robust; stem longly denuded ; leaves large, widely 

 ovate, tapering, secund or falcato-secund ; nerve strong, single, 

 reaching high in the leaf. Capsule short, widely oval, turgid. 



Hab. On rocks in and by streams ; rarely on wood by water. Common in 

 subalpine regions. The vars. &, y, less common. Fr. summer. 



The most widely distributed and common of this Section, and the most variable ; 

 it is the only one which is found at all commonly outside mountainous districts. 

 There are two distinct groups into which its varied forms may be separated, one with 

 the leaves widely ovate, hardly tapering, obtuse or apiculate, imbricated all round the 

 stems so as to render them julaceous, not or hardly at all secund (laxer and denser 

 forms of this group are described under the names of var. laxum B. & S. and var. 

 julaceum B. & S. ) ; the other with the leaves more or less tapering above to an obtuse 

 or more rarely acute point ; to this group the two varieties described belong. The 

 var. subsphtzricarpon must be considered to depend chiefly on the form of its fruit, 

 for the same form of leaf with long single nerve is frequently found associated with the 

 longer, more typical capsule, while on the other hand very short, turgid capsules are 

 not always accompanied by the long single nerve. 



The fruit is common, and the want of annulus, and autoicous inflorescence will 

 separate H. palustre from several of its allies ; but as most of these are rarely found 

 in fruit it is of more importance to point out the vegetative characters of distinction. 

 The habit and the indistinct auricular cells will separate it at once from all but H. 

 arcticiim, H. molle and H. dilatatum ; these all have wider, almost rounded leaves, 

 which are however a little narrower in H. molle, and this is really the only species 

 which might be confused with H. palustre ; the former however is always of softer, 

 flaccid texture, the leaves wider, never narrowly tapering, nor secund, usually a little 

 denticulate at summit, the pericba^tial bracts distinctly so. Probably the widest 

 leaves of H. palustre are narrower than in H. molle, and are always entire. 



28. Hypnum molle Dicks. (Amblystegium molle Lindb.) 



(Tab. LIX. C). 



Stems sparingly divided, often denuded at base, branches 

 ascending or procumbent, tumid, obtuse; forming low, lurid, 

 brownish tufts of very soft and flaccid texture. Leaves rather 



