PRELIMINARY REPORT ON PEAT. 
27 # 
HERBS 
Panicum hemitomon (maiden cane) 
Eriocaulon compressum 
Andropogon sp. (broom-sedge) 
Lycopodium Chapmani 
Pontederia cordata (wampee) 
Dr os era capillaris 
Spartina Bakeri (a large grass) 
Anchistea Virginica (a fern) 
Eupatoriam capillifolium (dog-fen¬ 
nel) 
Castalia odorata (white water-lily) 
(stunted) 
Centella re panda 
Osmunda cinnamomea (a fern) 
Rhynchospora axillaris 
Fuirena scirpoidea 
Solidago fistulosa (golden-rod) 
Amphicarpum sp. (a grass) 
Sagittaria lancifolia 
Erianthus sp. (a tall grass) 
Cladium effusum (saw-grass) 
Eleocharis interstincta 
Rhynchospora Tracyi 
Triadenum Virginicum 
Bartonia verna 
Gyrotheca tinctoria (paint-root) 
Rhynchospora ' fascicularis 
Syngonanthus flavidulus 
Tillandsia usneoides (Spanish moss) 
Tillandsia recurvata (air-plant) 
Gerardia linifolia 
Osmunda regalis (a fern) 
Lorinseria areolata (a fern) 
Dryopteris Thelypteris (a fern) 
MOSSES 
Sphagnum sp. 
The trees, vines and air-plants and nearly all the shrubs and 
ferns grow in dense clumps which are a very characteristic feature 
of the larger peat prairies. (See illustration.) The location of these 
clumps seems to have little to do with the depth of the peat under 
them, and in fact I have not been able to discover any striking 
correlation between the depth of various parts of these prairies 
(whose solid sandy bottoms are sometimes very irregular) and the 
vegetation on the surface, except that the saw-grass and a few other 
plants seem to be confined to the wettest places. It will be noticed 
that nearly all the plants mentioned a few pages back as char¬ 
acteristic of sandy shores of small lakes occur also in these peat 
prairies. 
The peat of the prairies of course contains a few woody roots 
and little or no sediment, and it is just about the purest peat we have. 
(See analyses under localities 4, 13, 15, 29 and 41, and miscellane¬ 
ous No. 1). One sample from Lake County (No. 29.11) showed 
only 1 of ash, which is the purest peat of which we have any 
record. Depths of 6 or 8 feet in these prairies are common, and 
some exceed 20 feet (which is considerably more than is needed 
to work with a dredge to the greatest advantage). Where samples 
have been taken from different depths in the same prairie those 
from near the surface usually show more mineral matter than those 
