president’s address. 
665 
almost as persistent in blooming as is the furze, and the later 
dainty Bogbean, each in their season have a peculiar charm 
of their own. Few British wild flowers increase so much in 
beauty and interest upon close and individual inspection as 
do the blooms of the last named, whose boiled down seeds 
were formerly looked upon as a specific cure for rheumatism 
— a reputation which they shared with Eel skins and Viper 
oil. 
The Yellow Iris sheds a sheet of yellow over the Smeath, or 
South Fen, in early summer, but when one comes to 
examine the separate flower stalks, their beauty is spoilt 
by their untidiness : each single blossom lasting for a couple 
of days or so at the most ; there are, therefore, almost always 
faded blooms whose incurved, dried-up petals detract from 
the brightness of the succeeding blossoms and pointed, 
uncurling buds. For several successive seasons, perhaps, it 
may be impossible to form any fair estimate of what a brave 
show the Yellow Gladden can, upon occasion, make, for two 
things are necessary for this semi-aquatic plant to display 
itself to perfection, namely, plenty of moisture — that is, rain 
— during the time that the rhizomes are growing, and plenty 
of warmth — that is, a hot and dry autumn to subsequently 
ripen them. 
In 1907 the foliage of the Yellow Iris was hereabouts much 
damaged — literally eaten into ribbons — by multitudes of the 
caterpillars of a species of Sawfly ; but failing to hatch any 
out from their pupae, I was unable to have them identified. 
The Cuckoo flower ( Cardamine pratensis) is either more 
plentiful or blossoms more profusely some seasons than in 
others. I have found a double form on the common, and 
Mr. R. Gurney showed me specimens of this plant which were 
propagating themselves by leaf- plant lets. 
The white-tasseled Cotton Grass, and the comparatively 
inconspicuous Marsh Cinquefoil, the former bespecking and 
the latter closely carpeting some of the moister portions of 
