Page:VCH Staffordshire 1.djvu/79

BOTANY woods about Frog Hall and Oakamore are water-worn ravines yielding a wealth of rare plants, as the mountain nightshade (Circcea alpina), the mountain polypody (Polypodium Dryopteris], the winter green (Pyrola rotundifolia], the mountain valerian (Valeriana pyrenaica), sweet Cicely (Myrrbis odorata), the bladder fern (Gystopteris fragilis) and Veronica Bux- baumia ; and on the rocks near Alton Castle the deadly nightshade (Atropa Belladonna). On the north-west side of the county are the ex- tensive woodlands about Whitmore, where are the smaller skullcap (Scu- tellaria minor), abundance of woodruff (Asperula odorata) and the rare bramble Rubus suberectus. South of this is Bishop's Wood ; here are found the columbine (Aquilegia vu/garis), the stork's bill (Erodium mos- cbatum), the bog bean (Menyantbes trifoliata), the sundew (Drosera rotundi- folia} and the shield ferns Nepbrodium filix-mas and N. spinulosum. Near High Offley are the woods around Norbury, rich in rare brambles such as Rubus Lejeuni, R. birtus and R. Bellardi, and near the large pool the sedges Carex stricta and C. teretiuscula and the rare water dropwort (Enanthe Phellandrium. In the south-west of the county in the valley of the small river Smestow are extensive woodlands around Himley and Bagginton ; here are found the elecampane (Inula Helenium), the rare white mullein (Ferbascum Lycbnites], the mignonette (Reseda luted], herb Paris (Paris quadrifolid) , the lily of the valley (Convallaria maja/is] and the rare Lonicera Xylostcum; on the south-eastern side of the county are ex- tensive elevated woodlands, the remains of the great forest of Needwood, where are still found lingerers of a former rich sylvan flora, as the needle furze (Genista anglica], the small-leaved lime (Ti/ia parvifolia], frog orchis (Habernaria Kindts], mezerion (Daphne Mezereori), Jacob's ladder (Polemonium cceruleum], the borage (Borago officinale] and the burnet saxi- frage (Pimpinella major). A comparison may be made here between the flora of Staffordshire and that of the surrounding counties. Staffordshire has 94 plants not found in Worcestershire, 70 not recorded from Warwickshire, 118 not recorded from Leicestershire, 168 not recorded from Derbyshire, 121 not recorded from Cheshire, and 106 not recorded from Shropshire. Wor- cestershire has 65 not recorded from Staffordshire, Warwickshire 65, Leicestershire 50, Derbyshire 26, Cheshire 85, and Shropshire 38. The total flora of Staffordshire is 948 species, including flowering plants, ferns, horsetails and charas. The total flora of Great Britain is 1,958 species ; hence it will be seen that Staffordshire yields less than half the British species. From its central position it naturally possesses a large percentage of the common or British type, namely 515 out of 532 for the whole kingdom; of the southern or English type 295 out of 409, one-eighth of the western type, one-sixth of the eastern type, and about one- eighth of the northern type. The botanical districts are based on the river basins. These are : I, the Weaver; 2, the Dove; 3, the Trent; 4, the Sow; 5, the Severn. With the exception of the Dane all the rivers of Staffordshire rise 45