THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION, April 7, 1807. 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
i) 
M 
D 
W 
APRIL 7—13, 1857. 
Weather ne 
Barometer. 
ar Lon 
Thermo. 
DON IN 
Wind. 
1856. 
llain in 
Inches. 
Sun 
Rises. 
Sun 
Sets. 
Moon 
R.&S. 
Moon’s 
Age. 
Clock 
bf. Sun. 
Pay of 
Year. 
7 
Tu 
Prince Leopold born 1853. 
29.493—29.446 
59—39 
S.W. 
.04 
24 a. 5 
41 a, 6 
4 52 
13 
2 
8 
97 
8 
W 
Corn Sallad (Valeriana). 
29.260—29.183 
53—35 
S.E. 
06 
22 
42 
5 2 
14 
1 
51 
98 
9 
Th 
Crowberry ^Empetrum^. 
29.305—29.273 
56—42 
S.W. 
30 
19 
44 
rises. 
© 
1 
34 
99 
10 
F 
Good Friday. 
29.463—29.143 
60—41 
S.W. 
04 
17 
46 
8 a 28 
16 
1 
17 
100 
11 
S 
Birch (Betula alba). 
29.654—29.552 
62—47 
S.W. 
18 
15 
47 
9 42 
17 
1 
1 
101 
12 
Sun 
Easter Sunday. 
29.591—29.454 
63—33 
S.W. 
01 
13 
49 
10 55 
18 
0 
45 
102 
13 
M 
Easter Monday. 
29.632—29.585 
67—36 
s. 
— 
10 
51 
morn. 
19 
0 
29 
103 
Meteorology of the Week.— At Chiswick, from observations during the last twenty-eight years, the average highest and lowest 
temperatures of these days are 55.8°, and 35.9°, respectively. The greatest heat, 73°, occurred on the 9th, in 1844 ; and the lowest cold, 21°, 
j on the 8th, in 1851. During the period 96 days were fine, and on 100 rain fell. 
ORNAMENTAL GRASSES. 
CHRYSU'RUS CYNOSUROI'DES. 
(Golden-spiked Dog’s-tail Grass.) 
This annual Grass has roots fibrous and white, from 
which arise the flower-stems about nine inches high, 
having four or five knots, the three lowest of which are 
rather close together, and the stem produces one branch 
low down, or at least leaves, and commonly a panicle 
also. From one of the upper knots of the stems comes 
a leaf about two inches long, and an eighth of an inch 
broad, gradually tapering to a sharp point, keeled, 
smooth, hut slightly rough on the edges. Leaves 
about four inches long, narrow, tapering rapidly to a 
point, dark green. Sheaths of the leaves marked with 
channels, smooth, and clasping the stem. Th e panicle 
is on the top of the culm or stem, and is two or even 
three inches long, downy on one side, more dense 
than spreading. Spikelets in threes, barren; calyx 
two-valved, narrow, pointed, including many solitary, 
alternate, egg-shaped, blunt, concave glumes (chaffy 
flower envelopes); but, not having either the smaller 
valve, or stamens, or pistils, they do not, therefore, 
deserve to be called flowers, but rather are involucres. 
At the base of the spikelets are two flowers, with a 
narrow calyx as long as the florets, which are two to¬ 
gether, the lower one being stalkless; its outer glume 
is narrow egg-shaped, with a long, straight awn pro¬ 
ceeding from just below the tip; the inner glume is 
smaller, and very narrow. The upper floret is on a 
stalk as long as the lower floret, and is very like it, but 
smaller; there is the rudiment of a third floret. Anthers 
yellow. Pistils feathery. Seed single, narrow, oblong, 
about one-sixteenth of an inch long, pointed at each 
end, and inclosed in a membranous involucre. It 
belongs to the Triandria Digynia class and order of 
Linnaeus. It flowers in July. 
This very pretty Grass grows in tufts, throwing up 
many pale golden-coloured heads, compact, yet suf¬ 
ficiently open to be graceful, and rendered still more 
attractive by their bright surface and their light golden 
awns. It was known to the Bauhins and others of 
our early botanists, but was not brought into this 
country until 1770. It is a native of the south of 
Europe and the Levant. 
It should be sown in patches in March, requiring a 
light, well-drained soil. 
The Entomological Society’s March Meeting was held 
on the 2nd of that month, the chair being taken by the 
President, W. W. Saunders, Esq., F.R.S., Treas. Hort. 
Soc. Among the works presented to the Society since the 
last Meeting were the publications of the Royal Society, 
the Royal Agricultural Society, the Berwickshire Na¬ 
turalists’ Club, the Entomological Society of Stetten, 
MM. De Saussure, of Geneva, Bohemann, of Stock¬ 
holm, Frauenfeld, of Vienna, and Guerin-Meneville, of 
Paris, Newman, Stainton, and others. 
Mr. Wallace exhibited specimens of the rare British 
Moth, Laphygma exigua, reared from the caterpillars 
No. CCCCXLV. Vol. XVIII. 
