CREEPING SOFT-GRASS 1872 John Edward Sowerby PLANT PRINT

Original 1872 6 1/2 inch x 9 7/8 inch coloured print titled HOLCUS MOLLIS. CREEPING SOFT-GRASS.

Holcus mollis, known as creeping soft grass or creeping velvet grass, is a species of grass, native to Europe and western Asia. Holcus mollis is favoured by conditions in woodland clearings and at the early stages of coppicing. Growth and flowering are restricted as the tree canopy develops. It is often a relict of former woodland vegetation, surviving in open grassland and grassy heaths after woodland clearance despite being a shade lover. It is found mostly on moist, freely-drained acid soils, normally light to medium texture and high in organic matter; it is absent from areas of calcareous or base rich soil, and often grows with bracken.

Drawn by John Edward Sowerby (1825 - 1870). A British botanical illustrator and publisher born in Lambeth, London.

From a disbound copy of English Botany; or, Coloured Figures of British Plants edited by John T. Boswell Syme

Third Edition Published in London in 1872 by by Robert Hardwicke, 192 Piccadilly.

The print is in very good condition. Reverse side blank.