General NotesSource: Botanical Gazette, Vol. 9, No. 1 (Jan., 1884), pp. 10-13Published by: The University of Chicago PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2993771 .

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10 BOTANICAL GAZETTE.

in accordance with accepted notions. The physiological method will bring a certainty so far as it accomplishes a concltision, which the method of systematic botany does not supply. Until we can separate escapes from natural species, that is, until we can determine species apart froni changes impressed upon plants by nman, it seems unsafe to refer our cultivated plants to localities wherein occur wildings of like species. Far preterable the argu- ment from historical nmention of the habits anid movements or migrations of peoples. It seems probable that variability or true- ness to seed may become the test as to the sufficiency of a conclusion in favor of or against an assigned species. This fact is an inter- esting one for the scholarly botanist, for it only needs the reading of De Can(lolle's work to realize the uncertainity at present exist- ing.

GENERAL NOTES.

Notes on Mahernia.-The genus Mahernia in the natural order Sterculiacea- presents many poinlts of botanical initerest. Our readers doubtless are familiar-

with the shrub as it occurs in con- servatories, with its pinnatifid leaves, very large and laciniate /

stipuiles, appearinig like a whorl / / of leaves, anid cymose cltusters of boney-yel low flowers. These staiid / \ ,t

\ , tNvo together, bell slhaped anid pen-

talait from the branches. The Y blossoms possess a most delicious

2/ fr;igrance. I have elsewhere re-l S cor lel the observation of Miss t 4 AntiL Chace, of Valley Falls, R.

I., that of the two flowers one is 1 / always convolute to the right, and the other to the left.

,' I have nowv to mention some notes that I made upon the spe- cies last winter in relation to the N manner in wvhich its nectaries are

A stamen. with protected from small predatory A petal with its niectary, 71.

fa,i-like row of insects. It will be remembered hairs at *f, anid fleshy disk at d. that the five stamens are somewhat monadelphous and that they

stand opposed to the five petals. This ante-position suggests the suippression of

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BOTANICAL GAZETTE. 11

a second whorl in the andrcecium. The anthers are upturned at their bases, and have a fan-shaped row of hairs. The filaments present about midway a fleshy, F

crescentic disk, pubescent with downward 9/ t poiniting hairs. The incurved claws of the petals form nectaries over which these disks

exactly fit. No more perfect protection could be offered. This disk probably offeers no p obstacle to strong flying insects attracted by the powerful fragrance ancl the bright L l a color of the flowers, but would effectually prevent the entrance of minuite creeping 5 a species. The accompanying diagrams will Ground plan of flower: s. sepals; p, illustrate the particular parts, and the petals; a, crescentic disks of filaments. ground plan of these parts in their mutual relations.

W. WHITMAN BAILEY, Brouin University.

Remarkable Vitality of Willow Twigs.-During the summer of 18,53 Sylvester Piper, now a residenit of 3526 Jones street, Chicago, called my atten- tion to a willow basket in a ditch, the basket having sprouts several inches in length all around it. A curiosity so remarkable-possibly having no parallel -led me to take immediate steps for its preservation. I dug the basket up with great care, an(l found it to be a worn out cast away which had done service as n basket until it had become so badly worn as to be w.orthless, when it found its way into a ditch at the base of the bank of the Illinois and Michigan canal, about 300 feet from the Bridgport lock (now within the limits of the citv) whence I transplanted it with great care, placing it in a wet place in my fath- er's garden; but notwithstanding its former vitality and careful removal, the shock was too great for the tender shoots and they all died. The basket was made wholly or in part of unpeeled willow, whose dried and withered germs needed only the opportunity to return to life. I have often resolved to have the story of the "willow basket " written and placed upoIn record while there were still living other witnesses than myself to verify it.

In reply to a suggestion of Prof. Gray, " Whether it was possible that wil- low sprouits may have sprung up around the basket instead of from the willow of which it was composed," I need but add that with a perhaps more than or- dinary love of tree culture, commencinig in early boyhood and continuing to some extent to the present time, it seem-s impossible that I should be misled or satisfied with ca,sual observation. In this case I was not. I handled the basket with mv ownl hands while the sprouts were still fresh and growing.

OSSrAN GUTHRIE.

[This incident comes to us abulndantly substantiated by several persons of unexceptionable integrity and forcible acumen. Its scientific value was sug- gested to the author by Mr. Leander Stone, assistant editor of Northwestern Christian Advocate, Chicago; and it was referred to the GAZETTE for publication bv Dr. Asa Gray, to whom the article was first sent.-EDS.]

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12 'IOTANrCA r, GAZETrTE.

Cobtea seandens.- Among some specimens of Cobca3 scandens appeared one that seemed to me worthy of notice. The cotyledons were grown together, the frst pair of truie leaves were also combinied in one aind pnloed opposite the

douible cotyledon. The first pair of leaves usually has only six lealdets, while this has eight. The plant is represented by the accompaniying figire.

F. L. HiARVEY.

1, RtRdbeekia fulgida.-I believe the ligulate flowers of the oider A,d Compositce aire regarded as monopetalous corollas split downi onl one I side. While collecting some specimens of 1?udbeckia fitlgida recently,

* I found one of the ray flowers moniopetalous anid of the form repre- " sented by the accompanying figure. F. L. HARVEY.

The Root-haiis of Adiantiim pedaturn, L.-While examining the root-hairs of the above-named fern recently, I found two in-

stances of abnormality which seem worth recordinig. The root-hairs of the Maiden-hair fern are exceedingly numerous and long'

so numerous and so long that in most cases they form a brown, cottoiny mat

about the rootlets. These hairs are all single-celled, having the b

proximal moiety wavy, and the distal end cluibbed and otherwise 4

deformed. The walls of two of W / the hairs were found to present Root-hair of Adiantitm pedattm. L., showing spiral

* . Z ~~~tliiekeniiig. X 4 aO0 p,P, scattered masses of proto- near their proximal ends a spiral thceigX ' catrdmsssfpoo plasm. s, spiral thread. w, wall of hair. thickening, giving them an extra- ordinary likeness to spiral vessels. The spiral thread extended in one case one-

fourth of the length of the hair, and in the other half as far. In both the

thread commenced and ended quite abruptly. The accompanying figure will

give an idea of the diameter of the hair, and the closeness of the spiral. C. R. B.

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BOTANICAL G AZETTE. 13

The Chlorophyll Bands of Spirogyra.-In some cases it is desirable to count the number of chlorophyll banids in each cell of a filament of Spirogyra. When the band is single or double there is no difficulty, but when the filaments are crowded with chlorophyll the task is not so easy. While studying Spirogyra Mr. 0. F. Dragoo, of the class of '86, Purdue University, devised a novel and

Cs, R certainly very ingeni- / , d. S & &ous plan, which may

be explained bv refer- enice to the accompany-

/< ing diagram. e e 9 'i -i Select any band, as.

of the chlorophyll ab and focus on its pro- Diagram of thc ehloroliyll bands in a cell of Spirogyra. file, as at a. Follow the

band to the opposite side of the cell where it is againi seeni in profile, as at b. Fix the poinlts a and b in memorv, focus oni the uppeli surface of the filament and couint the number of bands betweeni a and b, in this case three, cd, ef, gh. This nurnber, increased by one, the one first examined, will be the number of distinict bands inl the cell. C. R. B.

EDITORIAL NOTES THE PHILADELPIHA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES is buLil(ling upl) a very finle

herbarium, clairnin1g now to possess probably one-half the kniown species of plants. The grovth has been very rapidi for some years, tlle past year slhowilng an additioni of 2, 868 species. The species are all poisoniecl, labeled, and syste- miatically arrangred, and this great work is being done gratuitously by the per- sistent labors of Mr. J. II. Redfield, assiste(d by other botanists.

DR. T. F. ALLEN, in the Tormeye Bulletin for October an1d November. gives. some notes oni the Amiericain species of T'hlyipelita, accompanied by six plates. A key to the species is given and six new species dlescribed.

IN TIiE DECEMBEMR nulmber of the Gardener's JMonth1qmm is giveni an abstract of a lectuire by Dr. .J. 1'. Rothrock upotn "American Forestry." The statement is made that, so far as the lumbering prodluct is concerned, Michigan ranks. iirst, followved by Pennsylvania, Wisconisini, anid New York, anid far (lown the list stand Oregoni and Washinigton. If the forests of Pennsylvania are ravaged as in, the past, the lectuLrer estimated that in much less than fifty years they would be stripped, and it is urged that forests shlould le planted at least as fast as thev are cuit down.

PRoIF. C. E. B3ESSEY, in the December Vatturalist, describes a new species of insect-destroying fLunigus, unnder the name Entoniopthora Cctlopteni. It occurs as a clay-colored mnass in the body cavity and femora of the common loctust, C,alop- tenis differentialis.

IN THE AMERICAN JOICRNAL OF SCIENCE for December, Dr. Gray gives. (luite an elaborate review of De Candolle's " Nouvelles Remarques sur la No- mnenclatuire Botanique," which for those wlho eitlher can not read or do not have the original will be a convenient substitute for a translation.

MR. THios. MEEHAN calls attention to the fact that considerable quantities of a sweet liquiid are frequently secreted by certain flowers during and after anthesis which are not derived fronm nectar glands, and do not appear to be as- sociated with means for cross-fertilization.

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