Carex Gracilis. Slender Spiked Carex. 



CAREX gracilis fpicis mafculis.et femmeis pluribus, fubfiliformibus, floribus digynis. 

 CAREX nigra verna vulgaris. Lin. PL Lap. 330.? 



CYPEROIDE3 anguftifolium, caule exquiiite triangular], afpero, fpicis floriferis prselongis, tenuioribus, 

 fembalibus autem fpicis biuncialibus, et habitioribus, erectis, iquamis brevibus acutis, 

 capfulis fpadiceo viridibus, rhomboideis, fubtriquetris. Micheii Nov Gen. p. 00. ii. 40. 

 "GRAMEN cyperoides majus anguftifolium. Park, 1265. Ran hjh 1293. Syn. p. 417. n. 2. Great narrow, 

 leaved, vernal Cyperus-grafs. 



RADIX perennis, repens. £ ROOT perennial and creeping. 



CULMUS m aquoiis bi feu tripedalis, in pratis humilior, | STALK, in watery fituations two or three feet high, in 

 foiioius, nodofus, triqueter, angulis acutis, af- f meadows not fo tall, leafy, jointed, three cor- 



perrimis. I ,nered, the angles fharp and very rough to the 



■% touch 



FOLIA rad'calia longa, viridia, vix glauca, lineas du as | LEAVES from the root long, of a green colour, fcarcely 

 lata, ad margines et carbarn afpera, vagbantia, ■% glaucous, two lines in breadth, on the edges 



b>aticeaUa lmeam cum dimidia lata, inferiorej and midrib rough, fheathing the ftalk, b-a5i?al 



(florente planta) Ipicis iougiore. | leaves a line and a half in breadth, the lower—- 



mod, while the plant is in flower, longer than 

 I the fpikes. 



SPICiE mafcuhe et 'femineae diftinche, mafcuhe plerum- % SPIKES, both male and female, growing diftinctly, the 

 que tres, e fufco nigricantes, graciles, obfolete | male generally three in number, of a brownifll 



triquetral, nutantes, terminalis biuncialis, in- % black colour, fiender, faintly three cornered^ 



ferior duplo aut triplo brevior, infima faspius| drooping, the terminal fpike about two inches 



androgyna, longior, femineae tres aut quatuor, | in length, the next below twice or thrice as 



teretes, graciles, longitudine mafculi terminalis, % fhort, the lowermoft for the moft part andro- 



iefiiles ieu breviter pedunculate, fuberecti, ni- 1 gynous and longer, female three or four, rom d, 



gricantes. % flender, length of the terminal male fpike, ieiliie 



I or ftanding on fhort footftalks, nearly upright 



% and blackifh. 



Mas. I Male. 



SQUAM/E ovato- acuta?, arete imbricatae, carinata?, e J SCALES ovate, pointed, lying clofely one over another, 

 purpureo nigricantes, carina, iubviridi. fig. 1. 1 keeled, of purpliih black colour, the keel 



auct. I greenifh, fig. 1. magnif. 



STAMINA: Fil amenta tria, capillaria, alba; An- STAMINA: three Filaments (lender and white; 

 therje lineares, flavas, fig. 2. I Anthers linear and yellow, fig. 2. 



Fem. f 



SQUAMiE mafc. fimiles, magis vero oblongse ac ob- 1 SCALES as in the male, but more oblong and blunter, 



tufas, fig: 3. f fig. 3. 



NECTAR1UM oblongum, glabrum, ore integro ; | NECTARY oblong, fmooth, the mouth entire ; Ger- 

 Germen minimum ; Stylus nectario longior; | men very imall ; Style longer than the Nec- 



Stigmata duo, villofa, fig. 4. 5. tary ; Stigmata, two, villous, fig. 4. 5. 



SEMEN tnquetrum, minimum, intra neQarium. Jig. 6. | SEED, three-cornered, very minute, within the nectary, 



If thefeafon be mild, this plant and the Riparia flower in April, and ripen their feeds in June and July. 

 The gracilis, though aflenderer plant both in ftalks, leaves, and fpikes is equal in height where it grows in fi- 

 milar iituations to either of the other two, but as this has a greater tendency at leaft in Batrerfea Meadows to grow 

 among the herbage, it is frequently found (horter, and fometimes large patches of its foliage are viiible without any 

 flowering Ipikes. 



This fpecies is diftinguifhed from the other two, not only by having narrower leaves, which want the glaucous 

 colour of the other two, and flenderer fpikes, which in their young ftate are remarkably pendulous, fo as at firft 

 fight to give this plant an appearance of the Carex pendula, but the female flowers are conftantly and invariably di- 

 gynons. My moft obliging friend Dr. Goodenough, to whom 1 had communicated my thoughts on this fubject, 

 examining thefe plants with his ufual accuracy, anticipated me in the difcovery of this moft important, moft necef- 

 iary character; a character which in a moment decidedly diftinguiihes betwixt two plants, which without it would 

 for ever have been liable to be confounded. 



We mould, have been inclined to fuppofe that our gracilis was the acuta of Linnjeus, had he not quoted Micheli's 

 figure, to which he adds the epithet bona, that figure is a tolerable reprefentation of our acuta, but the Ipikes are far 

 too thick for thofe of the gracilis. 



This fpecies, which is equally common with the two others, flowers a week or two later. 



Agriculturally confidered, if is perhaps doubtful, whether we are to rank the Carices with the ufeful or the noxious 

 Dlams ; from what we have hitherto obferved, vve fhould rather clafs them with the latter, not but we think the 

 Yund, Scirpi, &c. infinitely more injurious, yet ftill they occupy the room of better graffes ; their principal merit is, 

 that they afford early pafturage, yet their foliage is harfh and rough, and productive of indifferent hay ; and fuch is 

 the opinion of Linnaeus, who, in his Plora Lappon, remarks that the Hufbandman is not fond of fuch meadows as. 

 are overrun with Carices, as they afford bad fodder and unprofitable pafturage " nee pinguefcat bos cance pajius 

 acuta; unfortunately, however, when the p relent fpecies, or fuch as have fimilar creeping roots, have once got pof- 

 feilion of the foil, they are the moft difficult plants pofhble to eradicate. 



As articles of rural oeconomy, they are in many inftances highly ufeful ; in Hampihire, Surry, and perhaps other 

 hop counties, the leaves of thefe three fpecies are ufed indifcriminately under the name of Sedge, for tying the young 

 hop plants to the poles. Micheli informs us, that in Italy they are ufed to cover their wine flafks, to make the 

 common fort of chair bottoms, and that the Coopers in making tubs, &c. place them betwixt the ftaves to make 

 them water-tight : to the comfort of the Laplander, they contribute in a high degree by defending him from the le- 



verity 1 



