718 
BLAKENEY POINT IN 1913. 
Though not a few plants otherwise intolerant of salt reach 
the beach by the drifting of their very resistant seeds — -others, 
like Statice (Sea Tavender), Artemisia (Sea Wormwood), etc., 
characteristic of salt marshes, migrate to the shingle from the 
marshes as the former encroaches on the latter. As the shingle 
overwhelms these plants their permanent stems push up 
through the shingle and their buds expand above the surface. 
In the case of Statice it is easy to trace this migration and to 
verify in the shingle the production of new root systems. That 
this should be a normal mode of establishment in shingle of 
certain plants is remarkable, for no two soils could differ more 
in physical properties than that of a salt marsh and a shingle 
beach. The opportunity to investigate the nature of the 
adaptive responses shewn by these migrating halophytes was 
too good to be missed and the matter is being followed out in 
detail. 
SU^EDA FRUTICOSA. 
This plant is the largest and most conspicuous of all our 
shingle plants (it is our only shingle bush), and flourishes 
nowhere in England better than on the Blakeney beaches. Its 
distribution on the area is singular and its relation to mobile 
shingle of great interest. For the last four years the plant has 
been under close observation, and some account of the results 
obtained recently appeared in Publication No. 8. 
Suceda establishes itself readily from seed left with the tidal 
drift on the lee fringe of the beach. Wherever this fringe is 
sufficiently protected from scour, quantities of seedlings arise 
and grow into vigorous bushes. When shingle is shot over the 
crest these bushes are liable to be prostrated and partially 
buried, but they rapidly push through and grow more vigorously 
than ever. Along the “ Marrams” stretch, especially, the bushes 
occupy successive longitudinal zones between the crest and the 
marshes. These zones correspond with periods of dormancy in 
the landward travel of the beach, whilst the intervening belts, 
which do not bear Suceda, represent advances of the shingle 
due to abnormally high tides and on-shore gales. 
