XIX. 
REPORT ON PHENOLOGICAL PHENOMENA OBSERVED IN 
HERTFORDSHIRE DURING THE YEAR 1886 . 
By John Hopkinson, F.L.S., F.G.S., etc. 
Read at Watford, 19 th April, 1887 . 
There is only one change to report in onr staff of observers of 
Pbenological Phenomena in 1886. Owing to the avocations of onr 
Secretary, Mr. Lloyd, taking him to London instead of to Croxley, 
we lose him as an observer, and his station, Croxley, disappears 
from onr table. The following are therefore the phenological 
stations where observations of the first flowering of the plants in 
the Loyal Meteorological Society’s list have been taken, as entered 
in the accompanying table :— 
Station. 
N. 
Lat. 
Long. 
Observer. 
Watford (1). 
... 51 
39 
0 
24 w 
Mrs. J. Hopkinson. 
v (2). 
.. 51 
39 
0 
24 w 
Mrs. Applebee. 
Harpenden .... 
.. 51 
48 J 
0 
21 w 
Mr. J. J. Willis. 
Hertford. 
.. 51 
48 
0 
5 w 
Mr. R. T. Andrews. 
Ware (Fanhams Hall) . 
.. 51 
49 
0 
lw 
Major R. B. Croft. 
High Wych, Sawbridgeworth ... 
.. 51 
484 
0 
8 E 
Miss Simpson. 
Hitchin . 
.. 51 
57 
0 
16 w 
Natural Hist. Club. 
Odsey . 
.. 52 
1 * 
0 
7 w 
Mr. H. G. Fordbam. 
The Insects observed being reported upon as nsnal by Mr. 
Silvester, and the Birds by Mr. Littleboy, the earliest observations 
only are here given. Of frog-spawn there is no special report; 
it was observed at Watford on the 21st of March; at Hertford 
on the 24th; at Harpenden on the 26th; and at Panhams Hall, 
Ware, on the 27th. In 1885 the interval between the first and 
last recorded observation was a month (of 28 days); it 1886 it 
will be seen that it was barely a week. 
The year 1886 was most decidedly a late year np to the period 
when onr observations become few and far between—that is to the 
end of June. The whole of the 79 species were observed, and their 
mean gives 6*7 days late. The mean of the 60 selected species, 
most of which have been observed for 11 years and none for less 
than 9, shows '7*7 days late. Of these 60 species, 45 came into 
flower later than the mean of 1876-86, 12 earlier, and 3 on the 
same day as the mean; the years 1885 and 1886 being in this 
respect precisely the same. 
Of the 30 species which come into flower by the middle of May 
(onr spring flowers), 29 appeared after the mean date, and 1 on the 
same day as the mean; and of the 30 which come into flower later 
(onr summer flowers), 16 appeared after the mean date, 12 before 
it, and 2 on the same day as the mean. The spring flowers were 
on the average a fortnight late and the summer flowers a day late. 
Dividing the period of observation into three, the average date 
of the first 20 species, flowering from 22nd Jan. to 20th April, 
is 17-4 days late ; of the next 20, from 21st April to 3rd June, 5*7 
