What is a Lint hole? And why would there be one in a peat bog?

There is a small area of marginal lagg fen on the north side of the reserve, while the Deschampsia cespitosa dominated area to the west has a high water table for much of the year and contains come interesting sedge communities. The water in the lagg fen is relatively nutrient-rich and plants growing here reflect base-rich conditions and include meadow sweet, tall grasses, sedges, and flowering herbs such as ragged robin, marsh marigold, buttercups, and wild angelica.The top of the peat dome lies about 2.5m above the encircling ditch. Trees (mainly birch and pine) grow around the better-drained margin, but the bog centre is largely open, although tree seedlings, especially birch, are colonising it, probably a sign of natural drying out. Control of these young trees by cutting and careful use of herbicides is carried out. To see the wesite this is taken from go to: http://www.swt-fife.org.uk/reserve1.htm Look out for different types of Sphagnum, especially in the depressions or lint-holes, which are artificial, and were used for retting flax in the 18th and 19th centuries. Also visible in the drier lint holes are sundews, and dragonflies breed in some of the more open ones.... Show More