FERNALD, —SCIRPUS ERIOPHORUM. 499 
habit is that of many Scirp?, and it seems much better placed there than 
in the other genus. 
As stated, the plants of Linnzus and his predecessors and of Michaux, 
both of which are probably extremes of a single species, are coarse plants 
most common from southern New England southward. The base of the 
involucre and the spikelets are ferruginous, and the long tangled bristles 
are also reddish brown, and in the fall, when the plants are mature, the 
ample inflorescences have the appearance of loose reddish brown masses 
of short wool. That this plant was clearly identified by American sys- 
tematists early in this century is shown, not only by their descriptions, 
but by the English name “ Red cotton-grass,”! sometimes employ 
by them, 
Not until 1836, however, in Torrey’s monograph of the Cyperacee, 
was the slender and uniformly smaller greenish-brown or drab “ wool- 
grass,” familiar to all botanists of New England and Canada, noted in 
botanical works; although from a manuscript note made by Dr. Gray 
while examining the Michaux herbarium, it seems that Michaux col- 
lected the smaller northern plant at Lake Mistassini, and that in the 
herbarium Lestiboudois had treated it as an undescribed species. In 
his monograph Torrey described the plant without a name as a variety 
of Scirpus Eriophorum (S. Eriophorum 7”). Apparently the next 
- Teference to the plant is in the first ‘edition of the Manual, where, under 
Scirpus Eriophorum, Dr. Gray says, “and northward are slender, less 
leafy forms, with much smaller umbels, and greenish-brown scatte 
small heads.’? 3 
The slender northern plant, with the involucre black below and with 
greenish black scales and dull brown or dark bristles, by all means the 
commonest “ wool-grass” north of Boston, does not seem to have re- 
ceived much further attention. In subsequent discussions of the group 
it has been united with the now clearly identified ferruginous coarse 
Plant of more southern range. The latter plant, the true Seirpus Erio- 
phorum, Michaux, and its var. eyperinus (Eriophorum cyperinum, L.) are 
Usually not mature until late August or September (the average date of 
Collection, without regard to locality, of the specimens examined is Sep- 
tember 1), while the slender northern plant, the S. Zriophorum », Torrey, 
‘Ss generally mature in late June or in July (ayerage date July 18), though 
“8 dead-ripe woolly umbels may remain in recognizable condition until 
1 Bigel. Fl. Bost. 16. 8 Gray, Man. 528. 
2 Torr. Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y. iii. 331. 
