PROLIFERATION OF SPIKELETS IN BRITISH GRASSES 53 



Table 4 



Characters of viviparous Deschampsiae 





D.c. 



Dep. 



D.i. 



D.a. 



Forty-six as originally collected : — 











Third glume Sub-basal 

 awn- insertion Subterminal/central dorsally 

 Slightly subterminal 

 Terminal (or awn absent) 



X 



20 



9 



17 



Leaves Rough 



Slightly rough 

 Smooth 



X 



1 

 12 

 7 



1 

 3 

 5 



8 

 9 



Panicle branches Rough 



Slightly rough 

 Smooth 



X 



9 

 11 



4 



5 



3 

 14 



Lower portion of Rough 

 glume keels Smooth 



X 



20 



9 



17 



Hairs at floret (or Many and long 

 third glume) base Few and short 

 Absent 



X 



10 

 5 

 5 



6 

 3 



13 

 4 



Sixteen plants which bore culms in culture : — 







1 



V^ldooiiiCU Ljy tiiCii vJll^liicti dWli liloti tlL/ii . 





g 



3 



5 



Awn-insertion after Dep. 

 cultivation in Lon- DA. 

 don D.a. 





4 

 2 

 2 



2 

 1 



1 

 4 



Classified by their final awn-insertion 





4 



5 



7 



Typical condition of seminiferous plants indicated by ' X ' 

 Abbreviations : D.c. - Desehampsia eespitosa seminiferous type; Dep. -Dcsehampsia eespitosa var. pseudalpina ; 

 D.i. - Deschampsia intermediate viviparous type; D.a. - Desehampsia alpina. 



Waviness of panicle branches, leaf rolling, bladc/shcath lengths ratio and leaf/culm height ratio were 

 tried, but abandoned as they vary within seminiferous D. eespitosa as well as amongst the viviparous forms. 



through D. alpina to the extreme var. pseudalpina type, in which the third glume has lost 

 all lemma-like qualities and resembles a foliage leaf. Morphologically the var. pseudalpina 

 is farther from normal D. eespitosa than D. alpina. 



Ecological discussion is deferred, but, briefly stated, seminiferous D. caespitosa in all 

 its forms is the most widely distributed ecologically and geographically. In Britain, var. 

 pseudalpina has the greatest range among the viviparous Deschampsiae and D. alpina the 

 least. * Intermediate ' forms are found mainly within the range of D. alpina, but also 

 beyond, as in North Wales. Some botanists report D. alpina in N. Wales; they may 

 either have found this species in the strictest sense, have been unaware that all viviparous 

 specimens are not within D. alpina, or have taken a broader view on the 'intermediate' 

 types, which is reasonable. 



