THE VEGETATION TODAY. 



The Downs. 



Some Englishman familiar with the Downs of Sussex and neighboring 

 counties must have first applied the term to the rolling, apparently grass- 

 covered, hills of Montauk. Except for the lack of chalk, the similarity to 

 the South Downs is remarkable. Of course the plants in the English locality 

 are different, but topographically, and so far as the general appearance of 

 the vegetation is concerned the areas are quite similar, except that the 

 Montauk Downs are all smaller and lower. The Downs in England are 

 probably very primitive and, as suggested by A. G. Tansley, in "Types of 

 British Vegetation," (pages 173 and 174) were never forested. He writes 

 of the grassland association that, "It is unlikely that primitive man was 

 responsible for the disforestation of such great areas of the chalk upland 

 as are marked by traces of his existence, and the conclusion is therefore 

 indicated that much of this grassland is primitive, or at least has existed 

 since the conditions of climate resembled at all closely those at present 

 obtaining." 



It is scarcely credible that the Montauk Indians, with the crude im- 

 plements which they were known to have had before the advent of the 

 whites, could possibly have cleared such extensive areas as the English 

 found covered by open Downs (approximately 6,000 acres), if most of it 

 was primitively covered with woods. 



And even if there had been some ancient cutting by the Indians, it may 

 well be that at Montauk, as on the coast of Denmark, afforestation is im- 

 possible on certain specially exposed parts of the peninsula. 



At the present time the dominant plant of the Downs is the grass 

 Schizachynum scoparium, which is of wide distribution over the greater 

 pait of the United States, and on Long Island is dominant mostly on these 

 Downs, and on the Hempstead Plains. It is this plant that makes the gen- 

 eially grass-like covering of the Downs, and tinges with purplish russet 

 colors a landscape that is wonderful in September and October. 



While Schizachyrium sccparium is dominant, there is associated with it 

 a group of herbs that during different seasons, and because of their color, 

 give definite character to the Downs: Antennaria plantagimfolia early in 

 the season rnakes great areas of white cottony flower masses; in August and 

 late July, myriads of Polygala polygama, with racemes of rose-purple 



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