T, Holm — Studies in the Cyper'acece. 445 



Akt. XLiy. — Studies m the Cyperacem ; by Theo. Holm. 

 XX. ^'Greges CaricumP'^ 



Of tlie two methods adopted for the classification of species, 

 and especially of those pertaining to large genera, the artificial 

 system, of course, has the advantage of being the most con- 

 venient, but seldom leads further tlian to their immediate 

 determination. The natural classification is, on the other 

 hand, much more difficult by being based upon supposed 

 affinities between the species themselves, thus excluding such 

 morphological characters as are common to a number of species, 

 but of no importance from a biological point of view. Let us, 

 for instance, consider Linngeus' classification of the species of 

 Carex. When he treated the genus, "Yignea" had not yet 

 been invented, and the "Indicse" were not known. And with 

 the object in view to render the determination of the species 

 as easy as jDOssibleJ Linnaeus arranged these in accordance with 

 the inflorescence, this being a single spike : staminate, pistillate 

 or androgynous, or the spikes being several : androgynous or 

 with the sexes separate, the pistillate spikes being either sessile 

 or peduncled. Such classification is, of course, very artificial, 

 considering the fact that the monostachyous species contain 

 representatives of very different liabit and of very different 

 structure of the perigynium. But it is mucii less artificial than 

 the system in whicli the species are simply classified as YignecB: 

 all those with two stigmata, and Carices genuince: those with 

 three. For in the former, the Yignem^ if the number of stig- 

 mata be' the most important character, the species must neces- 

 sarily become badly mixed, since then Carex vulgaris, lenti- 

 cidaris, angustata and their numerous allies must be arranged 

 side by side with C. rosea, inuricata, stelhdata, vuljtnnoidea, 

 stijjata, etc. The Linngean method is still adopted in a number 

 of manuals and systematic works, where it figures prominently 

 in the artificial keys, and justifiably so. But it is rather sur- 

 prising that the author, who treated the Cyperacece in the very 

 modern and comprehensive work: "Die naturlichen Pflanzen- 

 familien," should not have felt called upon to give a more 

 natural classification of the Carices than the one adopted, where 



* Earlier numbers were published in tbis Journal as follows : No. 1 in vol. i, 

 Fourth Series : 348, 189(j— No. 2 in vol. ii : 214, 1896— No. 3 in vol. iii : 121, 

 189T— No. 4 in vol. iii : 429, 1897— No. 5 in vol. iv : 13, 1897— No. 6 in vol. 

 iv : 298, 1897— No. 7 in vol. v : 47, 1898— No. 8 in vol. vii : 5, 1899— No. 9 

 in vol. vii: 171, 1899— No. 10 in vol. vii: 435, 1899— No. 11 in vol. viii : 

 105, 1899— No. 12 in vol. ix : 355, 1900— No. 13 in vol. x : 33, 1900— No. 14 

 in vol. x: 266, 1900— No. 15 in vol. xi : 205, 1901— No. 16 in vol. xiv : 57, 

 1902— No. 17 in vol. xiv : 417, 1902— No. 18 in vol. xv : 145, 1903— No. 19 

 in vol. xvi : 17, 1903. 



