Welsh Journals

LIMOSELLA PLANTS OF GLAMORGAN. By ELEANOR VACHELL, F.L.S. Limosella subulata Ives (=~L.tenuifoliaNutt.=L. aquatica var. tenuifolia Lej.) was first collected by Professor Trow in 1897 on the shores of Kenfig Pool in Glamorgan as typical L. aquatica L. It was subsequently noticed in the same locality in 1901 by the Rev. E. S. Marshall and Mr. W. A. Shoolbred, who were both of the opinion that it was a species distinct from L. aquatica. For many years afterwards the plant was very uncertain in its appearance and in 1930, when Professor Gluck of Heidelburg visited Glamorgan expressly to see it in situ, before the publication of his "LimoseUa Studien," I was unable to show him a single plant though we searched the shores of the pool for 3 hours. Before leaving Kenfig village, however, he discovered the type L. aquatica in a small road- side puddle about i-mile from the Pool. In this locality and near a spring in an adjoining field it seems to be regular in its appearance and quite uniform in character. This was a New County Record for Glamorgan. In 1933 L. subulata was noticed again near Kenfig by Mrs. Sandwith in great abundance and reappeared annually until 1938. The leaves are all subulate and grass--green and the pure white flowers remain open in the sunshine. L. subulata is recorded from 4 localities in Wales: 1 Kenfig, 2 the Glaslyn River, 3 Crumlin Bog, 4 Morfa Pools near Port Talbot, and having seen it only in the first named habitat I visited Morfa Pools in 1935 to see if it still occurred there. Only a few plants were seen on the shallow reed-bordered shore of the eastern pool, but the muddy cattle-trodden north shore of the western pool was found to be practically covered with Limosella plants for perhaps one-third of a mile. They were in fact growing so thickly together that the whole area ap- peared to be covered with grass. Further examination showed great variety among the plants, some having spathu- late leaves, some narrow-spathulate leaves and others subulate leaves, and after a while it became possible to dis- tinguish the different forms at sight, even from a considerable