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H O R D E U M pratenfe.
Meadow Barley.
lo+]
T R 1 A N D R 1 A Dlgynla.
G ent. C har. Calyx lateral, o f a valves, containing a
tingle flower, and growing 3 together.
Spe c. C har. Lateral flowers abortive, ariftated. Calyx-
valves briftle-thaped, rough.
Syn . Hordeum pratenfe. Hudf. FI. An. 56. With.
Bot. Arr. 126. Relh. Cant. 54. Sibth. Ox. 51.
Mart. F l. Ruß. t. 108.
H . nodofum. Linn. Sf. PI. 12 6.
H. murinum ß. ibid.
Gramen fecalinum. Ger. etn. 29 * Rail Syn. 392.
A V E R Y common grafs in meadows and paftures that are a
little moift, as in the north part of Hyde Park, flowering in June.
Root perennial, fibrous, but often becoming knotty in a fitu-
ation whofe degree of moifture is fluctuating, as happens alfo to
Phleum pratenfe. Straw 18 inches or 2 feet high, ere£l, (lender,
fmooth, bearing 3 or 4 leaves, but none near the top. Leaves
narrow, pointed, roughilh, often hairy on the upper fide, having
a long fheathing ftriated bafe, brown and contracted at its fum-
mit, and fometimes crowned with a minute ftipula. Spike terminal,
erect, thick-fet with 2 ranks of the ternate flowers. In
every duller of thefe the middle flower is fefiile, and has the
parts of fructification perfect; the two lateral ones are elevated
on footftalks, and have none, or only barren, organs of fructification
; but the glumes of the corolla, as well as the calyx, are
bearded in all. The inner valve of the central flower is much
fhorter than the other.
This grafs has fome refemblance to the Hill more common
H. murinum, but is much more tall and (lender, and differs alfo
in the Itructure of its flowers. Vaillant, tab. 1 7. f . 6 . is certainly
our pratenfe, as quoted by Dr. Withering, and we have
afcertained ours to be the nodofum of Linnseus by'his herbarium,
though he has mifquoted Ray, and defcribed the lateral flowers
as wanting arifla; but that he has corrected in his manu-
fcripts.