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having more or less distinct characters. 1. There are plants having 
broad leaves, heads without ray-florets, and phyllaries not only con- 
cealed by their appendages, but with these appendages also concealed 
by the dense filamentous fringe. This form has some of the upper 
leaves, particularly those at the junction of the branches, somewhat 
auricled at the base, and almost entire, or with but few teeth. The 
form seems to be a very rare one in the Isle of Wight ; I have met 
with it in one locality only, a moist meadow near the salt water river 
Medina. 2. A plant very like No. 1, but having generally rayed 
heads, with less densely hairy phvllary-appendages, and leaves less 
broad, with no auricles at the base of the upper ones, and very faintly 
dentate. This form grows on heathy pasture, with clay and gravel 
underneath. 3. Growing with No. 2, are plants having heads always 
rayed and phyllary ; appendages scarcely concealing the phyllaries, and 
with much shorter fringe ; the leaves very narrow and hardly dentate. 
The same form grows also on the chalk as at Bowcombe. 4. On the 
chalk downs grows a plant generally diminutive, but occasionally be- 
coming tall and branched. A great portion of the phyllaries is not 
covered by the appendages, the latter being small, with very short 
fringes, the phyllaries are also much more loosely set. The leaves of 
this form are usually broader in proportion than those of Nos. 2 and 3. 
I have sent a few examples of Nos. 2, 3, and 4, but of No. 1 I have 
not been able to obtain a sufficient number of specimens.” — Fred. 
Stratton. 
Aster longifolius, Lam. In an excursion made to Perth in Septem- 
ber, in which I had the benefit of the guidance of Mr. John Sim ; he 
pointed out to me the Aster, which had been sent to Prof. Babington, 
and pronounced by that botanist to be A. salignus, Willd. The plant 
grows in great abundance over the couple of miles of bank which we 
traversed, and Mr. Sim assured me that it extended much further 
down the river side. As I stated in my last report, A. salignus is 
a doubtful plant, but if the Tay-side plant be A. salignus , that name 
is one of the numerous synonyms of the American A. longifolius, Lam. 
Prof. Babington is doubtless right in considering the Tay-side plant 
distinct from the Derwent-water Aster , sent to the Club last year 
by Miss Edmunds. Along with A. longifolius there grows on the 
banks of the Tay several other species of Aster in small quantity, 
among which are A. pmiceus, L., A. prenanthoides, Muhl., and a 
