Welsh Journals

presented us with a set of Phil Tanner's records, as a tribute to our work in making his art better known. Schoolteachers and others interested are invited to make contact with Mr. Evan Evans, so that the steps and music shall become generally known. GOWER'S OWN PLANT DRABA AIZOIDES MONTANA A short history of the Yellow Alpine Whitlow Grass. I trust that, among the many activities of the Gower Society, the study of the Flora of Gower, and the preservation of rare plants may be included, and therefore it may be appropriate to include in this number a short note on Gower's own plant, a plant which (at least in its varietal form though not as a species) is peculiar or endemic to Gower. Even the species is not found elsewhere in Britain, though, as its name Alpine implies, it exists in the moun- tain ranges of Central Europe. In Gower, it occurs on parts (for obvious reasons not particularly specified) of the south coast, mainly, though not entirely on limestone cliffs, on at least two of which it may fairly be described as abundant. It possesses a root which is found very deep in the crevices of the rocks so that, fortunately, it would require a cold chisel to dislodge large specimens. Above the root is a semi-woody branched stem, each branch ending in a tuft of short stiff somewhat hairy leaves, each ending in a bristly point. The plant belongs to the Cruciferae (Wallflower or Cabbage Family) and the bright yellow flowers, which in an advanced season may appear as early as the first week of March, present the typical cruciferous form-four free petals in the shape of a cross. It is necessary to stress the word free, for there are other families of plants which have four petals. The fruit which is set by the end of April is a short pod-like structure (it is not a true pod ") ending in a short point. The species appears to have been observed by Lucas on the limestone rocks of Worm's Head as early as 1795, but it was not until 1842 that Gutch described it as occurring on Penard Castle (it still does in small quantity). Fortunately perhaps the floras still give Penard Castle and rocks near," as if this were its sole habitat, which is far from being the case It does not occur east of Pwlldu Head, nor on the limestone cliffs of north west Gower. As recently as 1929 Druce (" Comital Flora of the British Isles ") describes our plant as a definite endemic (peculiar) variety under the name montana which means that Glamorgan, like Brecon, possesses at least one plant variety not found elsewhere on earth. I have said that the plant is mainly a calcicole (limestone-loving),