A HISTORY OF DEVONSHIRE 





Table i. — Decade 1890-9 





Station 



Altitude, 

 feet 



Mean annual rainfall, 

 inches 



Mean annual number of days on 

 which -01 inch or more of rain fell 



Bere Ferrers 



Tavistock, Public Library .... 

 Polapit Tamar, Werrington . . 



100 

 283 

 3IS 



41-87 



43-81 

 36-79 



i8S 

 198 



Table 2 



Station 



Altitude, 

 ' feet 

 above 

 sea-level 



Mean 

 annual 

 rainfall, 

 inches 



Mean 

 annual num- 

 ber of days 

 on which 

 •01 inch or 

 more of 

 rain fell 



Mean 

 percentage 



of 



humidity 



at 



9 a,m. 



Mean 

 percent- 

 age of 

 possible 

 sunshine 



Temperature in Fah. degrees, 

 average annual 



Mean at 

 9 a.m. 



Mini- 

 mum 



Maxi- 

 mum 



Lee Moor, Shaugh .... 

 Head Weir, Plymouth Reservoir 

 Statsford, Whitchurch . . . 



Beer Alston 



Princetown Prison .... 



720 



59+ 

 124 



1359 



68'oi 



58-25 

 53-00 

 40-48 

 78-59 



174 

 203 



196 

 183 



83 

 92 



35 

 31 



49-8 

 51 



45-8 



20-15 

 23-67 

 20-98 



82-43 

 81-67 

 76-58 



The columbine {Aquilegia vulgaris) is frequent in many parts of the county, and appears 

 to be native in some places, as for instance in the southern part of the district ; it is not con- 

 fined to a calcareous soil. 



The shepherd's cress {Teesdalia nudicaulis) is widely distributed over the district, with 

 a preference for granite rocks ; it also affects the neighbourhood of the coast in other 

 districts. 



The larch-leaved spurrey {Sagina subulata) is locally rather common on moors and downs ; 

 it was recorded by Jones and Kingston in 1829. 



The dwarf mallow {Malva rotundifolia) grows sparingly in several stations, preferring 

 very dry spots. 



The common flax [Linum usitatissimum) is not now cultivated in the district, but the plant 

 occurs casually ; Polwhele in 1797 stated that every species of flax grew on Dartmoor and its 

 cultivation might there be turned to good account. 



The small-fruited pear {Pyrus communis, var. P. cordatd) was first recorded for England by 

 Dr. Boswell Syme in 1871, on the authority of Archer Briggs ; it was figured in the 

 Journal of Botany iox 1876, tab. 180 ; it occurs also in east Cornwall, and a nearly similar form 

 is found in western France. Tillaa muscosa was discovered by Archer Briggs on 13 May 

 1 86 1, in Egg Buckland ; in dry seasons it soon passes out of flower and dies. The smaller 

 long-leafed sundew {Drosera intermedia) is native in several stations ; it was reported by G. 

 Banks in 1830 as occurring occasionally in company with the round-leaved sundew (D. 

 rotundifolia). 



The profusion of Epilobium lanceolatum in many parts of the southern part of the district 

 and elsewhere near Plymouth is a very striking fact ; while abundant over a considerable 

 extent of the country, it is rare in certain localities or altogether absent ; it ascends above 

 500 feet near Roborough village, but mostly grows in low and warm situations especially 

 where slaty or shaly soils prevail, though it is not confined to such places ; it may often be ' 

 seen growing abundantly on banks or railway cuttings ; the flowers diiFer conspicuously in 

 colour from those of E. montanum, being of a rosy or pinkish hue and not purplish ; they 

 are pure white at the time of opening, but soon assume colour (Archer Briggs). 



The Cornish bladder-seed {Physospermum cornubiense) was first reported for Devon in a 

 paper read at the Plymouth meeting of the British Association in 1841 as occurring in an oak 

 coppice near Tavistock about a quarter of a mile from New Bridge ; it is believed to exist 

 still in that neighbourhood and ascends up to 400 feet altitude above sea level, favouring 

 partially shaded woodland glades ; it is rare and local. 



The pale butterwort {Pinguicula lusitanica) was first recorded as a British plant in 1666 

 as occurring in boggy meadows midway between Okehampton and Launceston ; it is one 

 of the common and characteristic plants of the peaty and moorland areas. 



Arum italicum was detected by Archer Briggs in May 1884 in the parish of Egg 



92 



