Page:Journal of botany, British and foreign, Volume 34 (1896).djvu/245

 HEREFORDSHIRE RUBI. 223 begins to flower along with R. casius L., as the earliest species, in the end of June. I have not the requisite knowledge to give the distribution of its varieties accurately ; but var. a. ferox W. is far the most abundant throughout the county; var. b. diversifolius (Lindeb.) occurs [teste Eogers), but much more rarely; var. e. tuher- culatus Bab. I beheve to be pretty common ; var. f. concinyius Warren has been passed by the same authority, but is certainly rare ; var. g. fasciculatus P. J. Muell. also occurs. E. coRYLiFOLius Sm. Flora, 106, 107. Var. a. sublustris (Lees). Very rare in Herefordshire. Characteristic and typical at one station in the north (Pudlestone) ; scarcely found elsewhere. Var. b. CYCLOPHYLLus Lindeb. This is a well-marked form which is locally common, at least in the south of the county, and occurs in many other districts. R. corylifolius Sm., taken as an aggregate, is sparsely distributed through Herefordshire, and is nowhere an abundant species. K. coMMixTus Frid. & Gel. Bot. Tids., Copenhag. 1890, p. 245. Damp wood-border, Coldborough Park, in the south of the county ; 1888, and again in 1890. Named by Dr. Focke. R. commixtus Frid. & Gel. appears to be closely connected with R. corylifoJins Sm., under which species it would probably be ranged as a variety by British batologists. It dififers from ordinary British forms of R. corylifolius in the assurgent fruiting calyx, and in the presence of rather numerous stalked glands upon the rachis, besides other less remarkable cha- racters. It does nob seem to approach any of the forms of R. dumetorum W. & N. I am not aware that R. commixtus Frid. & Gel. has been previously recorded as Britisli. R. Balfourianus Blox. Exclude R. Balfourianus Blox., Flora, 106. Wood-borders and bushy places ; rare in Herefordshire. At two localities in the south of the county (Yatton and near Mordi- ford) ; unknown as yet elsewhere. First record, the present paper; the inclusion of Herefordshire in the list of vice-counties in Journ. Bot. 1895, 105, being founded on plants now pronounced to be hybrids. R. CiEsius L. Flora, 110. Abundant as an aggregate in Here- fordshire, chiefly on low damp ground and ditch- or stream-sides. Of the named varieties, all have been given for Herefordshire by the late Prof. Babington, with the exception of var. f. hispidus W. & N. ; and occur, I believe, occasionally as well-marked forms ; but the forms which are referrible to none of these named varieties are of far greater frequency, and no specially marked form seems to exist as type casius. Plants intermediate between the last four spe- cies are very common, and are now treated by the best authorities as hybrids ; if this is really their origin, they often far exceed in abundance the parents from which they are supposed to originate.