R . P. Rodder. Sculp S
BROMUS ERECTUS. { ^ ^ : Arrang-
Upright Broom.
Spec. Char. Panicle upright» arista about one third or half the length o f the valve;
root leaves narrower than those o f the straw.
Bkomus erectus is far from being a general plant, but is not uncommon in some places; upon the
dry stony hills and in the rough fields of Wiltshire and Somerset it is frequently to be met with, and
when young catches the eye by the purple colour of the aristae, and the edges of the calyx, but
advancing towards maturity that colour fades away.------ The leaves upon the stem are twice or thrice
as broad as those of the root; sheathing and leaves hairy; peduncles supporting commonly only one
spiket, but we sometimes find the lower ones with two or three, each containing about six florets;
calyx, edges coloured with purple, rough, and the larger valve with two ribs and a keel; larger floret
valve rough, and -.the edges coloured, a short arista arises from the back, about one third or half the
length of the valve.------The harshness of the upright Broom makes it always to be rejected by cattle,
which consume the herbage in its neighbourhood, and leave this plant solitary and untouched; the
stations it delights in-are almost always dry and stony, and it acquires the hardness and roughness
commonly attendant -upon plants vegetating in those situations.
A, the Calyx.
B, the Floret Valves.