REPORT FOR I902. 
63 
‘Top. Bot.,’ ed. 2.— Edward S. Marshall. “Both these named ‘/T. 
cristata^ var. gracilis^ Pers.,’ by E. Hackel.” — Ed. 
Catabrosa aquatica, Beauv., nov. var. grandiflora, Hackel in lit. 
The spikelets are two-flowered, and twice as large as in type. I found 
this conspicuous-looking grass in damp sand by the shore at Downreay, 
Caithness, August 1902, but well above high-water mark. It grew in 
very large tufts. It appeared to be at least varietally different from 
the ordinary plant, and Professor Hackel, to whose kindness we are so 
much indebted, named it as above. It is probably the same as the 
plant found by Mr. Hanbury, see ‘Scottish Naturalist’ (1889), p. 91, 
on Dunnet Links, and then named ^ gra?idifiora by Prof. Hackel. — 
G. Claridge Druce. 
Poa compressa, L., var. Old Wall, Chepstow, Monmouthshire, 
county 35, 22nd July 1902. — W. A. Shoolbred. compressa, 
L.”—E. Hackel. 
Glyceria plicata, Fr. (?) Marshes near Belfast Harbour, Co. Down, 
loth July 1902. — Messrs. Lett and C. H. Waddell. “Not recorded 
for Co. Down.” — Ed. “ Glyceria plicata, Fr.” — E. Hackel. 
G. distajis, var. obtusa, Parnell. Breedon Cloud Quarry, Leicester- 
shire, 1902. This variety is not included in the ‘London Catalogue,’ 
but is described in Babington’s ‘Manual’ as occurring in Leicestershire. 
There is no reference to it in the ‘ Flora of Leicestershire,’ published 
in 1886, and until recently no specimen of Glyce?da distans existed in 
the county herbarium, this grass apparently not having been found in 
Leicestershire by any living botanist. When examining the Glycerice 
in the ‘ Babington Herbarium ’ at Cambridge last summer, I came 
across a sheet labelled as above, gathered near the limestone, quarry 
at Breedon Cloud Wood, Leicestershire. Babington in his ‘Journal,’ 
p. 63, mentions flnding the plant at Cloud Wood, near Breedon, on 
the banks of the tramway, on 23rd June' 1837. He then considered 
it allied to G. distans, and perhapk;only a variety of that plant. In 
August 1901 I paid a visit to the locality in company with my friend 
Mr. T. E. Routh. After a short search we found a Glyceria which 
was evidently Babington’s grass. Most of the specimens were quite 
past flowering and dried up by the recent drought, but a few were 
obtained with the spikelets intact. Parnell’s variety is said to differ 
from the type in having the ligule transversely truncate instead of 
deltoid, subacute, and the lower pale transversely truncate, not 
obliquely so as in the type; and Babington adds “spikelets more 
compound.” I found, on comparing these Leicestershire specimens 
with examples of the type from maritime and inland localities, that 
there was no appreciable difference in the shape of the glumes, the 
other characters given for the variety being also unstable. There is a 
slight difference in habit, but this is probably attributable to environ- 
ment. Prof. Hackel, to whom I sent a specimen, says it “does not 
sensibly differ, whether in the form of the apex of the pales nor in that 
