Autumn workshop 1980: Reading University

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1 November 1980 - 2 November 1980

Workshop report

This meeting was held over the weekend of 1 and 2 November, based at the Department of Botany, University of Reading by kind permission of Professor V. H. Heywood. About 30 members and guests attended.

Saturday was spent on the chalk of south Oxfordshire. In the morning we visited the Warburg Reserve at Bix Bottom, owned by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Naturalists’ Trust and named in honour of the late Dr. E. F. Warburg. No rare bryophytes were recorded, but a good range of woodland and chalk grassland species was seen, including Brachythecium salebrosum, Bryum flaccidum, B. ruderale, Entodon concinnus, Orthotrichum affine, Pottia recta, Ulota crispa and Zygodon conoideus. The keen eye of Mr R. J. Fisk detected a single plant of Ephemerum recurvifolium! In the afternoon chalk grassland on the north side of Watlington Hill yielded, among others, Mnium stellare, Neckera crispa (c. spor.), Thuidium abietinum ssp. hystricosum and Tortella tortuosa.

Saturday evening and Sunday were spent in and around the Botany Department working over specimens and enjoying talks and demonstrations on the themes “Identification of Bryum and Pohlia“, and “Cultivation of Bryophytes”. Dr. E. V. Watson gave a talk entitled “Problems of a Referee in the Bryaceae” as well as displaying slides depicting leaf and peristome characters of member species. Demonstrations of bryophytes in agar culture were presented by Drs H. L. K. Whitehouse and R. E. Longton, and the greenhouse culture collections of Mr M. V. Fletcher and the University of Reading were examined. Thanks are due to Mr Fletcher, Dr Watson and Dr Whitehouse for their contributions to what appeared to be an enjoyable and instructive meeting.

R. E. Longton

Location:

Reading University