24 PRACTICAL NOTES ON GRASSES AND GRASS GROWING. 
which it catches upon its leaves as a spider catches flies in 
its web. 
Dodder assimilates these two vegetarian anthropophagi, in 
that, when pressed in the hand, the gelatinous substance which 
is peculiar to them is also found in it, and if you place dodder 
upon a flat piece of iron, wood, or on a slab of marble, and 
feed it regularly with clover leaves during warm summer or 
autumn weather, it thrives and grows without soil and moisture 
which are so essential to vegetable life. Our remarks naturally 
refer to the clover dodder, the most common and the chief 
variety ; there seem to be many other varieties, with which it 
is unnecessary for us to treat. Although dodder is one of the 
worst weeds we have, it is not a very serious grievance, for it 
only affects clover which comes but once in eight years. To 
get rid of it the rake must be used, and the pulled-up weeds 
burnt. 
That the seeds of dodder lie dormant in the land we are 
convinced, and we have observed many instances to confirm 
our conviction. One case especially is fresh in our memory. 
Dodder appeared to the astonishment of a certain farmer on 
his land, which he had sown with English-grown seeds, clean 
and most carefully selected. He had seen no dodder there 
previously, and the inquiries he afterwards made told that 
dodder had been a stranger there for many years. He again 
grew his seeds, cut them, and used them without mixing other 
seeds with them; yet, in spite of this, dodder suddenly made 
its appearance in several places. Few farmers know dodder 
seed, or are able to distinguish it; a less number still know 
the seed of clover dodder, although hardly one will admit it if 
questioned. It is, perhaps, fortunate for us that the weed 
flourishes more in foreign countries than it does in our own, 
which is possibly accounted for by climatic influences. France 
seems to be more favourable to dodder than any other country 
we are acquainted with, and we are of opinion that (fortunately 
