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Vol, II SEPTEMBER, 1901 No. 21 JOURNAL OF The New York Botanical Garden EDITOR DANIEL TREMBLY MACDOUGAL Director of the Laboratories CONTENTS PAGE Report on Scandinavian Botanical Gardens 139 Second Flowering of the Tulip- Tree 136 International Conference on Plant Breeding and Hybridization 138 Noteworthy Accession for the Conservatories 140 Notes, News and Comment 142 A Fund for the Preservation of Native Wild Flowers 144 PUBLISHED FOR THE GARDEN AT 41 NORTH QUBBN STRBBT, LANCASTER, PA. BY THE NEW ERA PRINTING COMPANY O F F I C E R S , 1 9 0 1. PRESIDENT— D. O. MILLS, VICE- PRESIDENT— ANDREW CARNEGIE, TREASURER— CHARLES F. COX, SECRETARY— N. L. BRITTON. B O A R D O K M A N A O E R S , 1. ELECTED MANAGERS. ANDREW CARNEGIE, J. PIERPONT MORGAN, CHARLES F. COX, GEORGE W. PERKINS, W. BAYARD CUTTING, JAMES A. SCRYMSER, WILLIAM E. DODGE, SAMUEL SLOAN, JOHN I. KANE, W. GILMAN THOMPSON, D. O. MILLS, SAMUEL THORNE. » . E X - O F F I C I O MANAGERS. T H E PRESIDENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC PARKS, HON. GEO. C. CLAUSEN T H E MAYOR OF THE CITY OF N EW YORK, HON. R. A. VAN WYCK. 3. SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR.'. HON. SETH LOW, CHAIRMAN. HON. ADDISON BROWN, HON. MILES M. O'BRIEN, PROF. C. F. CHANDLER, PROF. H. H. RUSBY, PROF. J. F. KEMP, PROF. L. M. UNDERWOOD. G A R D E N S T A F F . DR. N. L. BRITTON, Director- in- Chief. DR. D. T. MACDOUGAL, First Assistant. DR. JOHN K. SMALL, Curator of the Museums. DR. P. A. RYDBERG, Assistant Curator. DR. ARTHUR HOLLICK, Assistant Curator. DR. MARSHALL A. HOWE, Assistant Curator. GEORGE V. NASH, Head Gardener. ANNA MURRAY VAIL, Librarian. DR. H. H. RUSBY, Curator of the Economic Collections. COL. F. A. SCHILLING, Superintendent. JOHN R. BRINLEY, Landscape Engineer. WALTER S. GROESBECK, Clerk and Accountant. CORNELIUS VAN BRUNT, Honorary Floral Photographer. JOURNAL OF The New York Botanical Garden VOL. II. September, 1901. No. 2 t. REPORT OF DR. P. A. RYDBERG, ASSISTANT CURATOR, ON THE SCANDINAVIAN BOTANICAL GARDENS. DR. N. L. BRITTON, Dircctor- in- Chief. Dear Sir: According to your request, I visited during my stay in Scandinavia this summer the botanical gardens at Gothenburg, Lund, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Upsala and Christiania, for the purpose of arranging exchanges between those institutions and the New York Botanical Garden, especially with regard to herbarium specimens, materials for the museums and seeds for the plantations. As the season of the year was inopportunate for exchanges, partly because most plants were then just in bloom, and partly because the officials in charge of the exchange departments were away, either on vacations or in the field, no material results can. as yet be shown from my trip ; but such arrangements have been, made that I hope that the future benefits to our Garden will fully pay for the extension of time given me for those visits. All the institutions mentioned above have promised to send their seed catalogues. These will contain several things of special interest, as for instance that from Lund a collection of the native plants of southern Sweden collected by Dr. Nordstedt, and those from Stockholm and Christiania many from the Scandinavian mountains. The former will probably all prove hardy in our herbaceous garden and the latter will be a valuable acquisition for our future Alpinum. 129 130 As to the museum material, the directors of the gardens have promised to let us have for exchange whatever we want that they can spare. From the Botanical Garden at Copenhagen we may expect collections of Greenland plants, seaweeds and mosses from northern Europe ; from Lund, among other things, a collection from Spitsbergen ; from Stockholm Swedish and Brazilian plants ; from Upsala plants from the mountain regions of Sweden, mosses and seaweeds.; and from Christiania seaweeds and arctic-alpine plants from Norway. When compared with Kew, the botanical gardens of Scandinavia may seem small and unimportant; but remembering that Denmark and Norway each have but little over two millions inhabitants and that Sweden with its five millions supports four botanical gardens, we are surprised at the work that has been done there and the collections that have been brought together. The Botanical Garden at Copenhagen is situated on the site of a part of the old fortifications of the city. The remnants of the old wall have produced the hills and the rockeries, and the lagoons are a part of the old ditch. The garden has a fine laboratory and residence for the director, a spacious conservatory and a museum which is, however, altogether too small for the collections brought together there. It contains a large herbarium and a good economic and ecological collection, the latter probably the result of the work of the present director, Professor Warming. The herbarium contains, among other things, numerous Mexican plants brought together by Liebmann and Oersted, Professor Warming's Brazilian plants and the best Arctic collection in the world. The latter surpasses even considerably that at Kew. I spent two days and a half in looking over their Greenland plants and gathered valuable information concerning our arctic- alpine flora. Nearest the laboratory and director's residence is the experimental garden with small rectangular beds. The systematic plantations are scattered throughout the garden. They consist of beds with herbs or shrubs in the lawn, one for each family or still more often one for each genus. The trees were also scat- 131 tered, but more numerous along the sides of the garden. The greatest drawback to the garden was the circumstance that the garden is situated too near the manufacturing part of the city and suffers a good deal from coal smoke. The arrangement of the plantations in the Botanical Garden at Lund is similar to that at Copenhagen ; but the garden itself is more level. Lund, like Copenhagen, is situated in a flat country. As far as I know, Lund never had any fortifications, and the rockeries are, as at Kew, wholly artificial. The garden at Lund is almost free from smoke and the plantations looked very well. Among c uriosities seen there was a fine specimen of the bald cypress, Taxodium distickum; this tree, native of North America, reaches but the 390 lat. on the lower Delaware, but is perfectly hardy at Lund near the 560 lat. and is also grown, although with more difficulty, at Gothenburg, on the 570 40' lat. Liriodendron, the tulip tree, which reaches the 42 ° lat. with us, is grown at Lund with less success, but fails altogether at Gothenburg. Of course, neither is hardy at Stockholm, Upsala or Christiania. At Lund there are two series of greenhouses and a fine, new laboratory and museum ; the lower story of the old museum is used as a residence for the head- gardener and the upper for the herbarium. When the size of the place ( Lund has only about 15,000 inhabitants) and the facilities of the second university of a small nation are considered, the collection is surprisingly rich. It has been built up by such men as Areschoug, Agardh and the present professor, Berggren. A fine accession to the collection has lately been received, as Professor Agardh has bequeathed his whole herbarium and botanical library to the university. The collection of algological books is probably the largest in the world. The botanical garden at Gothenburg is scarcely a botanical garden in a strict sense. It is a private undertaking, based on shares. The stock, however, pays no dividend and was never intended to do so, but the expenses of the garden have to be defrayed from the sale of plants, flowers and seeds, the lease of the restaurant in the garden and the gate- money ( 2.7 cents in our 132 money per person). The place is therefore more a pleasure resort and ornamental garden, although some part is set aside for purely botanical interests. There is, for instance, a plantation of wild flowers of southern Sweden. It has a good palmhouse and a series of smaller greenhouses ; the former was so full that the director told me that he had to get rid of some specimens, and offered me several big palms and tree- ferns, if we were willing to pay for the transportation. The " Hortus Bergianus" at Stockholm was established through the generosity of a wealthy man in the city, who bequeathed a part of his property for the purpose. The original site within the city limits was sold and a better and more suitable one was bought a short distance outside. It is much better situated than any of the other botanical gardens in Scandinavia, on the shores of a small lake. The land is considerably diversified, comprising rocky hills, lowlands and fertile meadows. It is perhaps less wooded than desirable ; but in a few years this lack will be remedied by the thrifty plantations. Especially interesting was the " Alpinum " on top of the hill behind the director's residence and the littoral garden along the lake. A good deal of blasting had been done in the rocks of the hill mentioned, the holes had been filled with soil and such trees and shrubs as grow in mountain regions had been planted therein. On the north side of the hill I found a group of young trees of the North American conifers, Pinus scopulorum, Pscudotsuga taxifolia, Picea Engelmanni and if I remember right, Abies subalpina, growing in a locality as like as could be some I have seen in the Rocky Mountains. In another part of the garden there is also another interesting tree from North America, Populus trichocarpa from the Columbia Valley region, which, according to Professor Witt-rock, should be the tallest deciduous tree of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching the height of 250 feet; Professor Sargent in his Silva gives its height up to 200 feet. In the garden are many hedges of Norway Spruce ; but these were planted not so much for ornament as for making substantial windbreaks. Professor Wittrock is an enthusiastic " botanical gardener." 133 Although a scientific man of high standing, he lays aside, if not disdains, other scientific work, in order to make his garden a real botanical garden and as he said himself " to study the living things." He spends all the time he can among his plants. It is a pity, however that his health is rather poor and he is often confined to his house. One of the finest sights was his collection of columbines, which he now is studying in the same way as he studied the pansies some years ago. The director's residence contains also his laboratory and library. The former and the halls were ornamented with the portraits of hundreds of botanists from all parts of the world. Many familiar faces from America met me there. The fine, although small, conservatory contained among other things specimens of Victoria. The herbarium is located in the city, at the " Riksmuseum." It is a fine collection, rich especially in Scandinavian and Brazilian plants. Dr. Rignell, a physician who resided for years in Brazil, gave a large fund, the interest of which may be used for the investigation of the flora of Brazil. Two expeditions have been made, and Dr. Malme, who had charge of the preceding expedition, was just ready to start on another trip to the mountains of south central Brazil. I spent a day at the Riksmuseum, studying especially the willow collection of the late Professor Anderson, who published a large monograph, wrote the genus Salix for DeCandolle's Prodromus and helped in preparing the manuscript for Hooker's Flora Boreali- Americana. I took many valuable notes regarding species occurring in this country. The old botanical garden at Upsala was situated on the lowlands along the river and suffered much from frost. Linnaeus therefore removed most of the flowers to his country place, " Ham-marby." After his death and that of his son, the place passed into other hands and the collections were removed to the new botanical garden at Upsala. Lately Hammarby has been bought by an association, somewhat in the same way as Mount Vernon, Washington's home, and has been partly restored to its old conditions. The new garden is situated on a plateau above the University 134 and not far from the Old Castle. The location is not the very best, as the soil is clayey and the land too level. The grant was given under certain stipulations, which make it almost impossible to change the general arrangements of the garden. The systematic portion is broken up into triangular pieces surrounded by hedges of Norway spruce. These tracts are further divided up into small square beds, with sanded paths between. Each square contains but one species ; annual and perennial species being intermixed. The annual species were sown in small rings, which at first looked a little strange to me. The purpose was to facilitate weeding, and where the plants had grown up, the rings had developed into nice, bouquet- like bunches. Under the new directorship of Professor Kjellman, a rearrangement of the systematic order has been begun; the work was in progress when I was there. The sequence is to be that of Engler & Prantl's " Natiir-lichen Pflanzen- Familien," the same as adopted by us. The garden also contains a good conservatory, the residence of the head- gardener and a museum- laboratory. This is a curious old- fashioned TJ shaped building, with the bottom of the LT toward the northeast. The northwestern arm is devoted to laboratories, herbarium rooms and museum ; the southeastern, with glass front on one side, constitutes the temperate house and the winter house for such plants as are put out during the summer. Having too little time, I saw only a very small part of the museum, and could not form any opinion thereof. The herbarium is rich, especially in Scandinavian, Arctic and South American plants. The richest are perhaps the cryptogamic collections, a result principally of the work of the two Fries, father and son. It is hoped that the large collections of the present director, Professor Kjellman, will be secured by the institution in the near future. Unfortunately, Sweden possesses very little of the collections of Linnaeus, which were mostly bought by the Linnaean Society of London. The botanical garden and collections at Christiania, are perhaps the least developed of those in Scandinavia. This is not the fault of the men in charge ; for Professor Wille is indeed an energetic man, and his predecessor, Professor Blytt, was very 135 well known among botanists ; but it depends on very natural conditions. Before 1814, when Norway became united with Sweden, the former had scarcely any national institutions. All educational and scientific work was centered at Copenhagen, and it takes a long time for a small and poor nation to build up institutions of its own. The herbarium is rather small, but the Norwegian collection is in excellent order. The general herbarium is only partly mounted, but the work is progressing as fast as money and help ( both rather limited) permit. The museum contains a rich collection of seeds, drugs and economic plants. I spent fully half a day in the herbarium, studying the alpine- arctic plants, and taking many notes. I also spent half a day at the garden. Even here the plantations are being rearranged ; but the work had to be stopped during the hot spell on account of lack of water. The City of Christiania has not done what it could do for the garden; only the greenhouse and the nearest plantations are supplied with water. The director has not succeeded in getting an extension 01 the pipes from the waterworks to the rest of the garden. The plan of the garden is novel and suggestive. The largest portion of the Arboretum is on the west side, partly in order to serve as windbreaks. The buildings and some older tree- plantations serve for the same purpose on the north. Around the buildings is and will be an ornamental garden ; the rest of the ground is laid out in lawns with sanded walks. Here and there along the walks are the systematic plantations. The plantation of each family ( or in the larger families, each tribe or genus) consists of a series of beds in concentric half circles. The center is at the edge of the walk and bears a wooden label of the family. As the number of plants represented in the family grows, new half circles are added outside. This arrangement is perhaps not so ornamental, but very instructive ; for standing near the center one can at one glance get a view of the different forms of plants belonging to the family. The sequence followed is that of Engler & Prantl. The greenhouses and the workrooms were in the same building, the former having glass only on the south side. Although not spacious, they contain many rare plants. Victoria was on bloom when I was there. 136 I also visited the Royal Botanical Garden at Kew. I spent four days in the herbarium, looking up the types on which Hooker's Flora Boreali- Americana was based. The notes I took will be of great value in my work on the flora of the Rocky Mountains. I also spent a day at the British Museum, trying to find the older types of Pursh's Flora and Nuttall's Genera. Although many of Pursh's and Nuttall's plants were there, I could not find, however, what I most wanted. P. A. RYDBERG, NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN, Assistant Curator. August 20, 1901. SECOND FLOWERING OF THE TULIP- TREE. An interesting illustration of variation in the time of flowering of plants was recently seen in a tulip tree, Liriodendron Julip-ifera, growing in the New York Botanical Garden, near the western end of the Museum Building. This tree flowered abundantly during the latter part of May and on July 6 a few blossoms again appeared. These gradually increased in numbers until the 18th, when the entire tree was well supplied with blossoms. By the 23d but few flowers remained and the period of flowering was at an end. Thus it will be seen that the duration of flowering was practically normal, but the period was two months later than that of spring. The flowers were normal in structure, though rather smaller than the earlier ones. They usually originate in the axils of the first or second leaf of the shoot bearing the spring flower, following the same sequence noticeable when several blossoms are developed from a branch in May. It is difficult to suggest the cause of a variation of this kind, which I believe has not been reported before in the case of Liriodendron. The tree is a perfectly thrifty plant about 20 m. high and 1.2 m. in circumference. It has grown in the open and in consequence lacks the uniform dimensions and column or trunk that characterize the other representatives of this elegant and stately tree which is abundantly represented in the Garden. 137 Variation in the flowering period of the apple and pear is of common occurrence and usually in such cases an injury or decay of a portion of the stem furnishes a ready explanation of this interrupted periodicity. A noteworthy illustration of this was furnished last year at Tremont. A roadway had been cut through near a chestnut, necessitating the removal of several large roots. This did not interfere with the flowering of the tree or the maturation of the fruit. About the loth of September the tree again budded and later presented the novel sight of a tree in full flower and bearing at the same time mature fruit. In this instance and in the case of injured or decaying trees it is evident that the plant has been able to repair more or less completely the injury by extending the root system, thus supplying the stem with additional food substance. This affects the plant as do the stored foods in the spring when they are released and put into circulation, resulting in renewed growths. In the cace under consideration, however, there were few disturbing conditions. Nearly two years previous a roadway was laid out near the tree but this did not disturb the roots at any point, little more than the turf being removed. At the same time the steam heating conduits were laid down at a distance of 7 m. from the base of the tree. This probably severed a few roots though there was no effect apparent last year. It has been suggested that the warmth from the pipes may have had some effect, and this appears not improbable for it was very noticeable during the winter that the course of these pipes under the lawn could be followed by the greener sward of the turf. It appears reasonable to suppose that a more extended root system resulted by reason of this condition and the additional food supply thus made available resulted in the unusual flowering. Another factor that may have played a role in this variation may be found in the severe climatic conditions that prevailed in the spring and summer. A late, cold spring followed by heat and drought and preceding the second flowering copious rains. The earlier conditions were not sufficiently unfavorable to interfere noticeably with the growth of the tree but the drought and heat later may have acted as an effectual check and with the renewal of favorable conditions the spring • 138 conditions may have been practically repeated. Certainly the most noticeable feature of the tree is the unusual number of vigorous new shoots. Several other trees in the Gardens show this condition in a marked degree— noticeably the plane- tree, Pla-tanus, and the linden, Tilia, also some of the hemlocks, oaks and birches. It is possible that all of these conditions may have had their effect in producing the peculiar growth. An examination of the wood will be made in the fall for the purpose of observing if there is any indication of a second renewal of growth in the annual zone of this year's wood. C. C. CURTIS. THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PLANT BREEDING AND HYBRIDIZATION. As already noted in this JOURNAL, the Horticultural Society of New York, at its June meeting, held at the Garden, took preliminary steps to arrange for an international conference on Plant Breeding and Hybridization, to be held here in the autumn of 1902. The Council of the Society has so far advanced the plans for this important conference as to be able to present the following partial programme: 1. Results of Hybridization and Plant Breeding in Canada ( illustrated by specimens). Wm. Saunders, Director of the Central Experimental Farm, Ottawa, Canada. 2. Notes on Plant Breeding in California. E. J. Wickson, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California. 3. Plant Breeding in New Jersey ( illustrated by specimens). B. D. Halsted, Professor of Botany in Rutgers College, New Brunswick, N. J. 4. Hybrid Plums. F. A. Waugh, Horticulturist, Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station. 5. Variations in Hybrids not Appearing in the First Generation, but Later. E. S. Goff, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Wisconsin. 6. Results in the Breeding of Species of Ricimts. E. Mead Wilcox, Botanist, Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station. 139 y. On Orchid Hybrids ( illustrated by specimens of the parents and progeny). Oakes Ames, Ames Botanical Laboratory, North Easton, Mass. 8. The Wild Hybrids of the North American Flora ( illustrated by specimens of the parents and progeny). David George, Museum Aid, New York Botanical Garden. 9. Hybrid Beans. R. A. Emerson, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Nebraska. 10. Cytological Aspects of Hybrids. W. A. Cannon, Columbia University, New York City. 11. Correlation Between the Fruit and Other Portions of the Plant in Form, Color and Other Characteristics ( illustrated by specimens). S. A. Beach, Horticulturist, New York State Experiment Station, Geneva. Papers, the titles of which have not yet been communicated, are also promised by the following : Delegates representing the Royal Horticultural Society of England ; K. C. Davis, West Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station ; H. C. Price, Iowa Agricultural Experiment Station ; J. Craig, Cornel! University, Ithaca, N. Y.; J. C. Whitten, Agricultural Experiment Station, Columbia, Mo.; S. B. Green, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Minnesota; Luther Burbank, Santa Rosa, Cal.; C. W. Ward, Queens, N. Y.; W. van Fleet, M. D., Little Silver, N. J.; H. J. Webber, and others representing the U. S. Department of Agriculture. The cooperation of the following institutions has already been promised : The Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture Dominion of Canada, Royal Horticultural Society of England, Massachusetts Horticultural Society, Society of American Florists, American Institute of the City of New York, New York Botanical Garden, School of Practical Agriculture and Horticulture, American Pharmacological Society, Torrey Botanical Club, the Colleges and Experiment Stations of the United States. Inquiries relative to the conference should be addressed to LEONARD BARRON, Secretary, 136 Liberty St., New York. 140 A NOTEWORTHY ACCESSION FOR THE CONSERVATORIES. Through an exchange arranged during the past summer with the National Botanic Garden, and the Division of Plant Industry, both of Washington, a valuable collection of plants, embracing many species new to the collections and also better specimens of others which we already had, was secured. They were shipped in a special express car and came through without change in fine condition. From the National Botanic Garden many large specimens were obtained through the courtesy and kindness of Mr. W. R. Smith, who has had charge of the valuable collections at that institution for many years, and has seen many of the plants grow from mere seedlings to their present proportions. The most valuable acquisition from this source was two large palms. One of these is a fine specimen of Martinezia caryotee-folia, a native of South America, about 20 feet high. This was planted out and had to be dug up before shipment. It is recovering rapidly, however, and is sending out new leaves. It has also flowered while with us. The other palm is an equally good, if not better, specimen of Thrinax argentea, about 12 feet high, and is a native of Panama. This, too, is doing well in its new home. Both of these are located in the large palm- house. Among other larger specimens there is an interesting camphor tree, Camphora Camphora, about IO feet high. This is a native of China and Japan, and has been introduced to some extent in Florida. Fiats nymphaeaefolia, at home in tropical America, was represented by a tree about io feet tall, and F. Sycomorus, a native of northern Africa, by a tree about 2 feet taller. Hevea elastica, the South American rubber- tree, came in a well- grown plant about 7 feet tall. A Dracaena new to the collections, D. Boerhaavii, a so- called garden form of D. Draco, the dragon tree, but quite different in appearance, was another welcome addition. Many smaller specimens of other species were acquired, and among them a queer- looking little Ficus, F. quercifolia, its oak- 141 like leaves making very evident the derivation of its specific name. It is a native of India. A number of interesting ferns was no small part of the collection, and among their number was a specimen of a small Adiantum which came under the name A. pubescens. This specimen has branching but ftot forked fronds, so it can hardly belong to that species. Up to the present time we have been unable to satisfactorily place it. Natives of the West Indies are Phyllanthus angustifolia and Pimenta officinalis, both of which were included in the collection, the latter being the source of allspice. Another interesting specimen is Dacrydium cupressimun, one of the coniferous trees of New Zealand. Small, but showy in its foliage, is a Xantherantkemum which was in the collection ; it is related to X. igneum. Several desirable bromeliads were also obtained. From the Division of Plant Industry many interesting things were also secured, largely of an economic nature. Several varieties of the pineapple are included among these ; also 12 varieties of the cultivated olive. A good specimen also represents Pimenta acris, the wild clove, or black cinnamon, a native of the West Indes. The berries are used for culinary purposes, and the leaves, on account of their aromatic and astringent properties, are often used in sauces. In Jamaica an oil is obtained from this source which is used in the manufacture of bay- rum. Chlor-anthus officinalis, of the Malay region, and Glycosmis penta-phylla, of tropical Asia, also find ' a place in the collection. Another interesting addition, especially to the students of the laboratories, is the true sensitive- plant, Mimosa sensitiva. This responds much more slowly to external stimuli than does the humble plant, M. pudica, which has been in the collections for some time. So sensitive is this latter species that it assumes a wilted appearance upon the slightest touch or jar. Both of these may be found in house No. 3, on the north side of the center bench, on the east end. Another plant of economic interest is Castilloa elastica, one of the rubber plants, a native of Mexico. And adding a touch of oddness in its much- cut leaves, and of showiness in its red flowers, is Jatropha multifida, a native of tropical regions. Two plants of this were received. It is 142 related to ova Jatropha stimulosa of Florida, or the white nettle as it is called there. Both Mr. Smith and Mr. Galloway furnished every facility for the proper moving of the plants, and did all in their power to expedite the process, and we feel grateful to them for their help and courtesy. GEORGE V. NASH. NOTES, NEWS AND COMMENT. Professor N. L. Britton, director- in- chief, left for St. Kitts and other of the Windward Islands, on August 30th, accompanied by Mr. John H. Cowell, director of the Buffalo Botanic Garden. The object of their expedition is to obtain living tropical plants and seeds for the conservatory collections, specimens for the public museums, and as complete a collection of herbarium specimens of these islands as can be obtained during a month or six weeks' residence there. This work is in continuation of the botanical exploration of the West Indies and Central America instituted in 1899, when Mr. A. A. Heller and Mr. Samuel Henshaw were sent to Porto Rico by means of funds contributed by Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt, and of Professor Underwood's recent work in Porto Rico made possible by funds contributed by Mr. W. E. Dodge. Professor L. M. Underwood, of the scientific directors, whose trip to Porto Rico was announced in the July issue of the JOURNAL, has returned, bringing with him a nice collection of cacti from the arid southern part of the island, some 75 species of seeds, many of which have already germinated in the propagating houses, a number of museum specimens and about 1,000 specimens for the herbarium. He will present a report on his work in a subsequent issue of the JOURNAL. He will spend a month now in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, continuing the exploration begun by Dr. P. A. Rydberg, whose studies on the botany of that region are published in five numbers of Garden Contributions and in volume I of our Memoirs, preliminary to the publication of his exhaustive Flora of the Northern Rocky 143 Mountains now in preparation. A recent gift from ' Mr. Adrian Iselin has made the extension of the important work possible. Professor D. T. MacDougal, first assistant, who has spent a portion of the summer in Montana in cooperation with a field party and summer school of the University of Montana, will return September 1st to take charge of the Garden during Dr. Brit-ton's absence in the West Indies. Dr. MacDougal was accompanied by Mr. Wilson Harris, as a voluntary assistant, and secured a large number of living plants for the out- door plantations, many kinds of seed for growing additional species, and over 900 numbers of herbarium and museum specimens, collectively including more than 3,000 specimens.. In addition to these a considerable number of duplicates from the collections of the Montana University were obtained. The expenses of the expedition have been paid from funds contributed by Mr. W. E. Dodge of the board of managers. Professor MacDougal attended the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science held at Denver, August 24th to 29th, acting in the important position of secretary of the council of the Association. Mr. Percy Wilson, museum aid, who was sent to the East Indies in March, accompanying Professor Todd, of Amherst College, on the total eclipse of the sun expedition, has returned, bringing with him ten large cases of museum specimens illustrating economic products, a number of living orchids, a collection of seeds for growing in the propagating houses, and a valuable set of books and pamphlets treating" of the botany and agriculture of that region. He visited the botanical gardens at Singapore, and at Buitenzorg, Java, where he was most kindly received, and arranged with these institutions for important exchanges of plants, books and specimens. Our thanks are due to Mr. Fox, of the Singapore garden, and to Professor Treub, of the Buitenzorg institution, for their interest in facilitating Mr. Wilson's work, which will be reported on in detail by him in a subsequent issue of the JOURNAL. The past month has shown extremes in neither temperature nor rain precipitation, although its rainfall of 8.56 inches has 144 been amply sufficient though unevenly distributed. The remarkable feature of the precipitation was the fall of 4 inches, or almost one- half of the total for the month, on the afternoon of Saturday, the 24th, between the hours of 1 and 5. So great and incessant was the downpour that the drains and sewers could not meet the unusual and unprecedented demand upon them, and the flooding of low- lying areas was the result. No damage, however, was done to the plantations, although the roads and paths were much washed in some places. The next greatest rainfall was on the 7th, when 1.17 inches fell. On 16 days out of the 31 there was more or less precipitation, but on no single day, with the exception of the two instances mentioned above, did the rainfall amount to one inch, and frequently it was but a few hundredths of an inch. At no time during the month did the temperature ascend beyond 90 degrees, and the lowest record was 52.5, the fluctuation usually being between 60 and 90, the last three days, however, recording a night temperature of less than 60. A FUND FOR THE PROTECTION AND PRESERVATION OF NATIVE WILD FLOWERS. Miss Olivia E. Phelps Stokes and Miss Caroline Phelps Stokes have contributed jointly to the Garden the sum of three thousand two hundred dollars. Of this amount, two hundred is to be added to the Special Book Fund, and the remaining three thousand is to constitute a new fund, the income of which is to be devoted to the furtherance of such measures and investigations as would aid in the preservation and protection of the plants of the native flora. The establishment of this fund will widen the usefulness of the Garden in a very desirable direction, and its administration will doubtless accomplish much in the promotion of a healthy public sentiment in the matter. / © embers of tbe Corporation. DR. TIMOTHY F. ALLEN, PROF. N. L. BRITTON, HON. ADDISON BROWN, WM. L. BROWN, ANDREW CARNEGIE, PROF. CHAS. F. CHANDLER, WM. G. CHOATE, HON. EDWARD COOPER, CHAS. F. COX, JOHN J. CROOKE, W. BAYARD CUTTING, ROBERT W. DE FOREST, WM. E. DODGE, PROF. SAM'L W. FAIRCHILD, GEN. LOUIS FITZGERALD, RICHARD W. GILDER, HON. THOMAS F. GILROY, PARKE GODWIN, HON. HUGH J. GRANT, HENRY P. HOYT, ADRIAN ISELIN, JR., MORRIS K. JESUP, JOHN I. KANE, EUGENE KELLY- , J R ., PROF. JAMES F. KEMP, JOHN S. KENNEDY, WILLIAM H. HON. SETH Low, DAVID LYDIG, EDGAR L. MARSTON, D. O. MILLS, J. PIERPONT MORGAN, THEO. W. MYERS, HON. MILES M. O'BRIEN, GEO. M. OLCOTT, PROF. HENRY F. OSBORN, GEORGE W. PERKINS, JAMES R. PITCHER, RT. REV. HENRY C. POTTER, PERCY R. PYNE, JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER, WM. ROCKEFELLER, PROF. H. H. RUSBY, WM. C. SCHERMERHORN, JAMES A. SCRYMSER, HENRY' A. SIEBRECHT, SAMUEL SLOAN, WM. D. SLOANE, NELSON SMITH, DR. W. GILMAN THOMPSON, LOUIS C. TIFFANY', SAMUEL THORNE, PROF. L. M. UNDERWOOD, S. WOOD. F X J B L I C J V T I O T S T S The New York Botanical Garden Journal of the N e w York Botanical Garden, monthly, illustrated, containing notes, news and non- technical articles of general interest. Free to all members of the Garden. To others, IO cents a copy; $ 1.00 a year. [ Not offered in exchange.] Vol. I, 1900, viii - f- 213 pp., 5 plates, and 25 figures in text. B u l l e t i n of t h e N e w Y o r k Botanical Garden, containing the annual reports of the Director- in- Chief and other official documents, and technical articles embodying the results of investigations carried out in the Garden. Vol. I, Nos. 1- 5, 449 pp., 3 maps, and 12 plates, 1896- 1900. $ 3.00. No. 6, 232 pp., 20 plates. Free to all members of the Garden ; to others, 50 cents. Memoirs of the N e w York Botanical Garden, Vol. 1. An Annotated Catalogue of the Flora of Montana and the Yellowstone Park, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg, assistant curator of the museums. An arrangement and critical discussion of the Pteridophytes and Phanerogams of the region with notes from the author's field book and including descriptions of 163 new species, ix - f- 492 pp. Roy. Svo, with detailed map. Price to members of the Garden, $ 1.00. To others, $ 2.00. [ Not offered in exchange.] Contributions from the N e w York Botanical Garden. A series of technical papers written by students or members of the staff, and reprinted from journals other than the above. Price, 25 cents each. No. I. Symbiosis and Saprophytism, by Dr. D. T. MacDougal. No. 2. New Species from western United States, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 3. The dichotomous Panicums : some new Species, by Geo. V. Nash. No. 4. Delphinium Carotinianurn and related Species, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 5. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— I, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 6. Notes and Descriptions of North American Plants I and I I , by Dr. J. K. Small. No. 7. Vegetative Reproduction and Multiplication in Erythronium, by Frederick H. Blodgett. No. 8. Two new Species of Grimtnia from Montana, by R. S. Williams. No. 9. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— II, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 10. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— III, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 11. Life- history of Schizxa fusilla, by Elizabeth G. Britton and Alexandrina Taylor. No. 12. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— IV, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 13. Further Studies on the Potentilleae, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 14. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— V, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. All subscriptions and remittances should be sent to NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN BRONX PARK, New YORK CITY
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Contributor | New York Botanical Garden |
Date | 1901-09 |
Description-Table Of Contents | Report on Scandinavian Botanical Garden; Second Flowering of the Tulip-Tree; International Conference on Plant Breeding and Hybridization; Noteworthy Accession for the Conservatories; Notes, News and Comment; A Fund for the Preservation of Native Wild Flowers. |
Format | application/pdf |
Format-Extent | 51 v. : ill. ; 25 cm |
Identifier | 0885-4165 |
Language | eng |
Publisher | Bronx : New York Botanical Garden, 1900-1950 |
Relation-Is Part Of | Journal of the New York Botanical Garden : v. 1, no. 1-v. 51, no. 612 |
Relation-IsVersionOfURI | http://opac.nybg.org/record=b1104879 |
Rights | http://www.nybg.org/library/ |
Subject | Plants--Periodicals; Gardening--Periodicals; Plants, Cultivated--Periodicals; New York Botanical Garden--Periodicals. |
Title | Journal of the New York Botanical Garden |
Volume, Number | Vol. 2, no. 21 |
Type | text |
Transcript | Vol, II SEPTEMBER, 1901 No. 21 JOURNAL OF The New York Botanical Garden EDITOR DANIEL TREMBLY MACDOUGAL Director of the Laboratories CONTENTS PAGE Report on Scandinavian Botanical Gardens 139 Second Flowering of the Tulip- Tree 136 International Conference on Plant Breeding and Hybridization 138 Noteworthy Accession for the Conservatories 140 Notes, News and Comment 142 A Fund for the Preservation of Native Wild Flowers 144 PUBLISHED FOR THE GARDEN AT 41 NORTH QUBBN STRBBT, LANCASTER, PA. BY THE NEW ERA PRINTING COMPANY O F F I C E R S , 1 9 0 1. PRESIDENT— D. O. MILLS, VICE- PRESIDENT— ANDREW CARNEGIE, TREASURER— CHARLES F. COX, SECRETARY— N. L. BRITTON. B O A R D O K M A N A O E R S , 1. ELECTED MANAGERS. ANDREW CARNEGIE, J. PIERPONT MORGAN, CHARLES F. COX, GEORGE W. PERKINS, W. BAYARD CUTTING, JAMES A. SCRYMSER, WILLIAM E. DODGE, SAMUEL SLOAN, JOHN I. KANE, W. GILMAN THOMPSON, D. O. MILLS, SAMUEL THORNE. » . E X - O F F I C I O MANAGERS. T H E PRESIDENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC PARKS, HON. GEO. C. CLAUSEN T H E MAYOR OF THE CITY OF N EW YORK, HON. R. A. VAN WYCK. 3. SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR.'. HON. SETH LOW, CHAIRMAN. HON. ADDISON BROWN, HON. MILES M. O'BRIEN, PROF. C. F. CHANDLER, PROF. H. H. RUSBY, PROF. J. F. KEMP, PROF. L. M. UNDERWOOD. G A R D E N S T A F F . DR. N. L. BRITTON, Director- in- Chief. DR. D. T. MACDOUGAL, First Assistant. DR. JOHN K. SMALL, Curator of the Museums. DR. P. A. RYDBERG, Assistant Curator. DR. ARTHUR HOLLICK, Assistant Curator. DR. MARSHALL A. HOWE, Assistant Curator. GEORGE V. NASH, Head Gardener. ANNA MURRAY VAIL, Librarian. DR. H. H. RUSBY, Curator of the Economic Collections. COL. F. A. SCHILLING, Superintendent. JOHN R. BRINLEY, Landscape Engineer. WALTER S. GROESBECK, Clerk and Accountant. CORNELIUS VAN BRUNT, Honorary Floral Photographer. JOURNAL OF The New York Botanical Garden VOL. II. September, 1901. No. 2 t. REPORT OF DR. P. A. RYDBERG, ASSISTANT CURATOR, ON THE SCANDINAVIAN BOTANICAL GARDENS. DR. N. L. BRITTON, Dircctor- in- Chief. Dear Sir: According to your request, I visited during my stay in Scandinavia this summer the botanical gardens at Gothenburg, Lund, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Upsala and Christiania, for the purpose of arranging exchanges between those institutions and the New York Botanical Garden, especially with regard to herbarium specimens, materials for the museums and seeds for the plantations. As the season of the year was inopportunate for exchanges, partly because most plants were then just in bloom, and partly because the officials in charge of the exchange departments were away, either on vacations or in the field, no material results can. as yet be shown from my trip ; but such arrangements have been, made that I hope that the future benefits to our Garden will fully pay for the extension of time given me for those visits. All the institutions mentioned above have promised to send their seed catalogues. These will contain several things of special interest, as for instance that from Lund a collection of the native plants of southern Sweden collected by Dr. Nordstedt, and those from Stockholm and Christiania many from the Scandinavian mountains. The former will probably all prove hardy in our herbaceous garden and the latter will be a valuable acquisition for our future Alpinum. 129 130 As to the museum material, the directors of the gardens have promised to let us have for exchange whatever we want that they can spare. From the Botanical Garden at Copenhagen we may expect collections of Greenland plants, seaweeds and mosses from northern Europe ; from Lund, among other things, a collection from Spitsbergen ; from Stockholm Swedish and Brazilian plants ; from Upsala plants from the mountain regions of Sweden, mosses and seaweeds.; and from Christiania seaweeds and arctic-alpine plants from Norway. When compared with Kew, the botanical gardens of Scandinavia may seem small and unimportant; but remembering that Denmark and Norway each have but little over two millions inhabitants and that Sweden with its five millions supports four botanical gardens, we are surprised at the work that has been done there and the collections that have been brought together. The Botanical Garden at Copenhagen is situated on the site of a part of the old fortifications of the city. The remnants of the old wall have produced the hills and the rockeries, and the lagoons are a part of the old ditch. The garden has a fine laboratory and residence for the director, a spacious conservatory and a museum which is, however, altogether too small for the collections brought together there. It contains a large herbarium and a good economic and ecological collection, the latter probably the result of the work of the present director, Professor Warming. The herbarium contains, among other things, numerous Mexican plants brought together by Liebmann and Oersted, Professor Warming's Brazilian plants and the best Arctic collection in the world. The latter surpasses even considerably that at Kew. I spent two days and a half in looking over their Greenland plants and gathered valuable information concerning our arctic- alpine flora. Nearest the laboratory and director's residence is the experimental garden with small rectangular beds. The systematic plantations are scattered throughout the garden. They consist of beds with herbs or shrubs in the lawn, one for each family or still more often one for each genus. The trees were also scat- 131 tered, but more numerous along the sides of the garden. The greatest drawback to the garden was the circumstance that the garden is situated too near the manufacturing part of the city and suffers a good deal from coal smoke. The arrangement of the plantations in the Botanical Garden at Lund is similar to that at Copenhagen ; but the garden itself is more level. Lund, like Copenhagen, is situated in a flat country. As far as I know, Lund never had any fortifications, and the rockeries are, as at Kew, wholly artificial. The garden at Lund is almost free from smoke and the plantations looked very well. Among c uriosities seen there was a fine specimen of the bald cypress, Taxodium distickum; this tree, native of North America, reaches but the 390 lat. on the lower Delaware, but is perfectly hardy at Lund near the 560 lat. and is also grown, although with more difficulty, at Gothenburg, on the 570 40' lat. Liriodendron, the tulip tree, which reaches the 42 ° lat. with us, is grown at Lund with less success, but fails altogether at Gothenburg. Of course, neither is hardy at Stockholm, Upsala or Christiania. At Lund there are two series of greenhouses and a fine, new laboratory and museum ; the lower story of the old museum is used as a residence for the head- gardener and the upper for the herbarium. When the size of the place ( Lund has only about 15,000 inhabitants) and the facilities of the second university of a small nation are considered, the collection is surprisingly rich. It has been built up by such men as Areschoug, Agardh and the present professor, Berggren. A fine accession to the collection has lately been received, as Professor Agardh has bequeathed his whole herbarium and botanical library to the university. The collection of algological books is probably the largest in the world. The botanical garden at Gothenburg is scarcely a botanical garden in a strict sense. It is a private undertaking, based on shares. The stock, however, pays no dividend and was never intended to do so, but the expenses of the garden have to be defrayed from the sale of plants, flowers and seeds, the lease of the restaurant in the garden and the gate- money ( 2.7 cents in our 132 money per person). The place is therefore more a pleasure resort and ornamental garden, although some part is set aside for purely botanical interests. There is, for instance, a plantation of wild flowers of southern Sweden. It has a good palmhouse and a series of smaller greenhouses ; the former was so full that the director told me that he had to get rid of some specimens, and offered me several big palms and tree- ferns, if we were willing to pay for the transportation. The " Hortus Bergianus" at Stockholm was established through the generosity of a wealthy man in the city, who bequeathed a part of his property for the purpose. The original site within the city limits was sold and a better and more suitable one was bought a short distance outside. It is much better situated than any of the other botanical gardens in Scandinavia, on the shores of a small lake. The land is considerably diversified, comprising rocky hills, lowlands and fertile meadows. It is perhaps less wooded than desirable ; but in a few years this lack will be remedied by the thrifty plantations. Especially interesting was the " Alpinum " on top of the hill behind the director's residence and the littoral garden along the lake. A good deal of blasting had been done in the rocks of the hill mentioned, the holes had been filled with soil and such trees and shrubs as grow in mountain regions had been planted therein. On the north side of the hill I found a group of young trees of the North American conifers, Pinus scopulorum, Pscudotsuga taxifolia, Picea Engelmanni and if I remember right, Abies subalpina, growing in a locality as like as could be some I have seen in the Rocky Mountains. In another part of the garden there is also another interesting tree from North America, Populus trichocarpa from the Columbia Valley region, which, according to Professor Witt-rock, should be the tallest deciduous tree of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching the height of 250 feet; Professor Sargent in his Silva gives its height up to 200 feet. In the garden are many hedges of Norway Spruce ; but these were planted not so much for ornament as for making substantial windbreaks. Professor Wittrock is an enthusiastic " botanical gardener." 133 Although a scientific man of high standing, he lays aside, if not disdains, other scientific work, in order to make his garden a real botanical garden and as he said himself " to study the living things." He spends all the time he can among his plants. It is a pity, however that his health is rather poor and he is often confined to his house. One of the finest sights was his collection of columbines, which he now is studying in the same way as he studied the pansies some years ago. The director's residence contains also his laboratory and library. The former and the halls were ornamented with the portraits of hundreds of botanists from all parts of the world. Many familiar faces from America met me there. The fine, although small, conservatory contained among other things specimens of Victoria. The herbarium is located in the city, at the " Riksmuseum." It is a fine collection, rich especially in Scandinavian and Brazilian plants. Dr. Rignell, a physician who resided for years in Brazil, gave a large fund, the interest of which may be used for the investigation of the flora of Brazil. Two expeditions have been made, and Dr. Malme, who had charge of the preceding expedition, was just ready to start on another trip to the mountains of south central Brazil. I spent a day at the Riksmuseum, studying especially the willow collection of the late Professor Anderson, who published a large monograph, wrote the genus Salix for DeCandolle's Prodromus and helped in preparing the manuscript for Hooker's Flora Boreali- Americana. I took many valuable notes regarding species occurring in this country. The old botanical garden at Upsala was situated on the lowlands along the river and suffered much from frost. Linnaeus therefore removed most of the flowers to his country place, " Ham-marby." After his death and that of his son, the place passed into other hands and the collections were removed to the new botanical garden at Upsala. Lately Hammarby has been bought by an association, somewhat in the same way as Mount Vernon, Washington's home, and has been partly restored to its old conditions. The new garden is situated on a plateau above the University 134 and not far from the Old Castle. The location is not the very best, as the soil is clayey and the land too level. The grant was given under certain stipulations, which make it almost impossible to change the general arrangements of the garden. The systematic portion is broken up into triangular pieces surrounded by hedges of Norway spruce. These tracts are further divided up into small square beds, with sanded paths between. Each square contains but one species ; annual and perennial species being intermixed. The annual species were sown in small rings, which at first looked a little strange to me. The purpose was to facilitate weeding, and where the plants had grown up, the rings had developed into nice, bouquet- like bunches. Under the new directorship of Professor Kjellman, a rearrangement of the systematic order has been begun; the work was in progress when I was there. The sequence is to be that of Engler & Prantl's " Natiir-lichen Pflanzen- Familien," the same as adopted by us. The garden also contains a good conservatory, the residence of the head- gardener and a museum- laboratory. This is a curious old- fashioned TJ shaped building, with the bottom of the LT toward the northeast. The northwestern arm is devoted to laboratories, herbarium rooms and museum ; the southeastern, with glass front on one side, constitutes the temperate house and the winter house for such plants as are put out during the summer. Having too little time, I saw only a very small part of the museum, and could not form any opinion thereof. The herbarium is rich, especially in Scandinavian, Arctic and South American plants. The richest are perhaps the cryptogamic collections, a result principally of the work of the two Fries, father and son. It is hoped that the large collections of the present director, Professor Kjellman, will be secured by the institution in the near future. Unfortunately, Sweden possesses very little of the collections of Linnaeus, which were mostly bought by the Linnaean Society of London. The botanical garden and collections at Christiania, are perhaps the least developed of those in Scandinavia. This is not the fault of the men in charge ; for Professor Wille is indeed an energetic man, and his predecessor, Professor Blytt, was very 135 well known among botanists ; but it depends on very natural conditions. Before 1814, when Norway became united with Sweden, the former had scarcely any national institutions. All educational and scientific work was centered at Copenhagen, and it takes a long time for a small and poor nation to build up institutions of its own. The herbarium is rather small, but the Norwegian collection is in excellent order. The general herbarium is only partly mounted, but the work is progressing as fast as money and help ( both rather limited) permit. The museum contains a rich collection of seeds, drugs and economic plants. I spent fully half a day in the herbarium, studying the alpine- arctic plants, and taking many notes. I also spent half a day at the garden. Even here the plantations are being rearranged ; but the work had to be stopped during the hot spell on account of lack of water. The City of Christiania has not done what it could do for the garden; only the greenhouse and the nearest plantations are supplied with water. The director has not succeeded in getting an extension 01 the pipes from the waterworks to the rest of the garden. The plan of the garden is novel and suggestive. The largest portion of the Arboretum is on the west side, partly in order to serve as windbreaks. The buildings and some older tree- plantations serve for the same purpose on the north. Around the buildings is and will be an ornamental garden ; the rest of the ground is laid out in lawns with sanded walks. Here and there along the walks are the systematic plantations. The plantation of each family ( or in the larger families, each tribe or genus) consists of a series of beds in concentric half circles. The center is at the edge of the walk and bears a wooden label of the family. As the number of plants represented in the family grows, new half circles are added outside. This arrangement is perhaps not so ornamental, but very instructive ; for standing near the center one can at one glance get a view of the different forms of plants belonging to the family. The sequence followed is that of Engler & Prantl. The greenhouses and the workrooms were in the same building, the former having glass only on the south side. Although not spacious, they contain many rare plants. Victoria was on bloom when I was there. 136 I also visited the Royal Botanical Garden at Kew. I spent four days in the herbarium, looking up the types on which Hooker's Flora Boreali- Americana was based. The notes I took will be of great value in my work on the flora of the Rocky Mountains. I also spent a day at the British Museum, trying to find the older types of Pursh's Flora and Nuttall's Genera. Although many of Pursh's and Nuttall's plants were there, I could not find, however, what I most wanted. P. A. RYDBERG, NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN, Assistant Curator. August 20, 1901. SECOND FLOWERING OF THE TULIP- TREE. An interesting illustration of variation in the time of flowering of plants was recently seen in a tulip tree, Liriodendron Julip-ifera, growing in the New York Botanical Garden, near the western end of the Museum Building. This tree flowered abundantly during the latter part of May and on July 6 a few blossoms again appeared. These gradually increased in numbers until the 18th, when the entire tree was well supplied with blossoms. By the 23d but few flowers remained and the period of flowering was at an end. Thus it will be seen that the duration of flowering was practically normal, but the period was two months later than that of spring. The flowers were normal in structure, though rather smaller than the earlier ones. They usually originate in the axils of the first or second leaf of the shoot bearing the spring flower, following the same sequence noticeable when several blossoms are developed from a branch in May. It is difficult to suggest the cause of a variation of this kind, which I believe has not been reported before in the case of Liriodendron. The tree is a perfectly thrifty plant about 20 m. high and 1.2 m. in circumference. It has grown in the open and in consequence lacks the uniform dimensions and column or trunk that characterize the other representatives of this elegant and stately tree which is abundantly represented in the Garden. 137 Variation in the flowering period of the apple and pear is of common occurrence and usually in such cases an injury or decay of a portion of the stem furnishes a ready explanation of this interrupted periodicity. A noteworthy illustration of this was furnished last year at Tremont. A roadway had been cut through near a chestnut, necessitating the removal of several large roots. This did not interfere with the flowering of the tree or the maturation of the fruit. About the loth of September the tree again budded and later presented the novel sight of a tree in full flower and bearing at the same time mature fruit. In this instance and in the case of injured or decaying trees it is evident that the plant has been able to repair more or less completely the injury by extending the root system, thus supplying the stem with additional food substance. This affects the plant as do the stored foods in the spring when they are released and put into circulation, resulting in renewed growths. In the cace under consideration, however, there were few disturbing conditions. Nearly two years previous a roadway was laid out near the tree but this did not disturb the roots at any point, little more than the turf being removed. At the same time the steam heating conduits were laid down at a distance of 7 m. from the base of the tree. This probably severed a few roots though there was no effect apparent last year. It has been suggested that the warmth from the pipes may have had some effect, and this appears not improbable for it was very noticeable during the winter that the course of these pipes under the lawn could be followed by the greener sward of the turf. It appears reasonable to suppose that a more extended root system resulted by reason of this condition and the additional food supply thus made available resulted in the unusual flowering. Another factor that may have played a role in this variation may be found in the severe climatic conditions that prevailed in the spring and summer. A late, cold spring followed by heat and drought and preceding the second flowering copious rains. The earlier conditions were not sufficiently unfavorable to interfere noticeably with the growth of the tree but the drought and heat later may have acted as an effectual check and with the renewal of favorable conditions the spring • 138 conditions may have been practically repeated. Certainly the most noticeable feature of the tree is the unusual number of vigorous new shoots. Several other trees in the Gardens show this condition in a marked degree— noticeably the plane- tree, Pla-tanus, and the linden, Tilia, also some of the hemlocks, oaks and birches. It is possible that all of these conditions may have had their effect in producing the peculiar growth. An examination of the wood will be made in the fall for the purpose of observing if there is any indication of a second renewal of growth in the annual zone of this year's wood. C. C. CURTIS. THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PLANT BREEDING AND HYBRIDIZATION. As already noted in this JOURNAL, the Horticultural Society of New York, at its June meeting, held at the Garden, took preliminary steps to arrange for an international conference on Plant Breeding and Hybridization, to be held here in the autumn of 1902. The Council of the Society has so far advanced the plans for this important conference as to be able to present the following partial programme: 1. Results of Hybridization and Plant Breeding in Canada ( illustrated by specimens). Wm. Saunders, Director of the Central Experimental Farm, Ottawa, Canada. 2. Notes on Plant Breeding in California. E. J. Wickson, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California. 3. Plant Breeding in New Jersey ( illustrated by specimens). B. D. Halsted, Professor of Botany in Rutgers College, New Brunswick, N. J. 4. Hybrid Plums. F. A. Waugh, Horticulturist, Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station. 5. Variations in Hybrids not Appearing in the First Generation, but Later. E. S. Goff, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Wisconsin. 6. Results in the Breeding of Species of Ricimts. E. Mead Wilcox, Botanist, Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station. 139 y. On Orchid Hybrids ( illustrated by specimens of the parents and progeny). Oakes Ames, Ames Botanical Laboratory, North Easton, Mass. 8. The Wild Hybrids of the North American Flora ( illustrated by specimens of the parents and progeny). David George, Museum Aid, New York Botanical Garden. 9. Hybrid Beans. R. A. Emerson, Horticulturist, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Nebraska. 10. Cytological Aspects of Hybrids. W. A. Cannon, Columbia University, New York City. 11. Correlation Between the Fruit and Other Portions of the Plant in Form, Color and Other Characteristics ( illustrated by specimens). S. A. Beach, Horticulturist, New York State Experiment Station, Geneva. Papers, the titles of which have not yet been communicated, are also promised by the following : Delegates representing the Royal Horticultural Society of England ; K. C. Davis, West Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station ; H. C. Price, Iowa Agricultural Experiment Station ; J. Craig, Cornel! University, Ithaca, N. Y.; J. C. Whitten, Agricultural Experiment Station, Columbia, Mo.; S. B. Green, Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Minnesota; Luther Burbank, Santa Rosa, Cal.; C. W. Ward, Queens, N. Y.; W. van Fleet, M. D., Little Silver, N. J.; H. J. Webber, and others representing the U. S. Department of Agriculture. The cooperation of the following institutions has already been promised : The Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture Dominion of Canada, Royal Horticultural Society of England, Massachusetts Horticultural Society, Society of American Florists, American Institute of the City of New York, New York Botanical Garden, School of Practical Agriculture and Horticulture, American Pharmacological Society, Torrey Botanical Club, the Colleges and Experiment Stations of the United States. Inquiries relative to the conference should be addressed to LEONARD BARRON, Secretary, 136 Liberty St., New York. 140 A NOTEWORTHY ACCESSION FOR THE CONSERVATORIES. Through an exchange arranged during the past summer with the National Botanic Garden, and the Division of Plant Industry, both of Washington, a valuable collection of plants, embracing many species new to the collections and also better specimens of others which we already had, was secured. They were shipped in a special express car and came through without change in fine condition. From the National Botanic Garden many large specimens were obtained through the courtesy and kindness of Mr. W. R. Smith, who has had charge of the valuable collections at that institution for many years, and has seen many of the plants grow from mere seedlings to their present proportions. The most valuable acquisition from this source was two large palms. One of these is a fine specimen of Martinezia caryotee-folia, a native of South America, about 20 feet high. This was planted out and had to be dug up before shipment. It is recovering rapidly, however, and is sending out new leaves. It has also flowered while with us. The other palm is an equally good, if not better, specimen of Thrinax argentea, about 12 feet high, and is a native of Panama. This, too, is doing well in its new home. Both of these are located in the large palm- house. Among other larger specimens there is an interesting camphor tree, Camphora Camphora, about IO feet high. This is a native of China and Japan, and has been introduced to some extent in Florida. Fiats nymphaeaefolia, at home in tropical America, was represented by a tree about io feet tall, and F. Sycomorus, a native of northern Africa, by a tree about 2 feet taller. Hevea elastica, the South American rubber- tree, came in a well- grown plant about 7 feet tall. A Dracaena new to the collections, D. Boerhaavii, a so- called garden form of D. Draco, the dragon tree, but quite different in appearance, was another welcome addition. Many smaller specimens of other species were acquired, and among them a queer- looking little Ficus, F. quercifolia, its oak- 141 like leaves making very evident the derivation of its specific name. It is a native of India. A number of interesting ferns was no small part of the collection, and among their number was a specimen of a small Adiantum which came under the name A. pubescens. This specimen has branching but ftot forked fronds, so it can hardly belong to that species. Up to the present time we have been unable to satisfactorily place it. Natives of the West Indies are Phyllanthus angustifolia and Pimenta officinalis, both of which were included in the collection, the latter being the source of allspice. Another interesting specimen is Dacrydium cupressimun, one of the coniferous trees of New Zealand. Small, but showy in its foliage, is a Xantherantkemum which was in the collection ; it is related to X. igneum. Several desirable bromeliads were also obtained. From the Division of Plant Industry many interesting things were also secured, largely of an economic nature. Several varieties of the pineapple are included among these ; also 12 varieties of the cultivated olive. A good specimen also represents Pimenta acris, the wild clove, or black cinnamon, a native of the West Indes. The berries are used for culinary purposes, and the leaves, on account of their aromatic and astringent properties, are often used in sauces. In Jamaica an oil is obtained from this source which is used in the manufacture of bay- rum. Chlor-anthus officinalis, of the Malay region, and Glycosmis penta-phylla, of tropical Asia, also find ' a place in the collection. Another interesting addition, especially to the students of the laboratories, is the true sensitive- plant, Mimosa sensitiva. This responds much more slowly to external stimuli than does the humble plant, M. pudica, which has been in the collections for some time. So sensitive is this latter species that it assumes a wilted appearance upon the slightest touch or jar. Both of these may be found in house No. 3, on the north side of the center bench, on the east end. Another plant of economic interest is Castilloa elastica, one of the rubber plants, a native of Mexico. And adding a touch of oddness in its much- cut leaves, and of showiness in its red flowers, is Jatropha multifida, a native of tropical regions. Two plants of this were received. It is 142 related to ova Jatropha stimulosa of Florida, or the white nettle as it is called there. Both Mr. Smith and Mr. Galloway furnished every facility for the proper moving of the plants, and did all in their power to expedite the process, and we feel grateful to them for their help and courtesy. GEORGE V. NASH. NOTES, NEWS AND COMMENT. Professor N. L. Britton, director- in- chief, left for St. Kitts and other of the Windward Islands, on August 30th, accompanied by Mr. John H. Cowell, director of the Buffalo Botanic Garden. The object of their expedition is to obtain living tropical plants and seeds for the conservatory collections, specimens for the public museums, and as complete a collection of herbarium specimens of these islands as can be obtained during a month or six weeks' residence there. This work is in continuation of the botanical exploration of the West Indies and Central America instituted in 1899, when Mr. A. A. Heller and Mr. Samuel Henshaw were sent to Porto Rico by means of funds contributed by Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt, and of Professor Underwood's recent work in Porto Rico made possible by funds contributed by Mr. W. E. Dodge. Professor L. M. Underwood, of the scientific directors, whose trip to Porto Rico was announced in the July issue of the JOURNAL, has returned, bringing with him a nice collection of cacti from the arid southern part of the island, some 75 species of seeds, many of which have already germinated in the propagating houses, a number of museum specimens and about 1,000 specimens for the herbarium. He will present a report on his work in a subsequent issue of the JOURNAL. He will spend a month now in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, continuing the exploration begun by Dr. P. A. Rydberg, whose studies on the botany of that region are published in five numbers of Garden Contributions and in volume I of our Memoirs, preliminary to the publication of his exhaustive Flora of the Northern Rocky 143 Mountains now in preparation. A recent gift from ' Mr. Adrian Iselin has made the extension of the important work possible. Professor D. T. MacDougal, first assistant, who has spent a portion of the summer in Montana in cooperation with a field party and summer school of the University of Montana, will return September 1st to take charge of the Garden during Dr. Brit-ton's absence in the West Indies. Dr. MacDougal was accompanied by Mr. Wilson Harris, as a voluntary assistant, and secured a large number of living plants for the out- door plantations, many kinds of seed for growing additional species, and over 900 numbers of herbarium and museum specimens, collectively including more than 3,000 specimens.. In addition to these a considerable number of duplicates from the collections of the Montana University were obtained. The expenses of the expedition have been paid from funds contributed by Mr. W. E. Dodge of the board of managers. Professor MacDougal attended the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science held at Denver, August 24th to 29th, acting in the important position of secretary of the council of the Association. Mr. Percy Wilson, museum aid, who was sent to the East Indies in March, accompanying Professor Todd, of Amherst College, on the total eclipse of the sun expedition, has returned, bringing with him ten large cases of museum specimens illustrating economic products, a number of living orchids, a collection of seeds for growing in the propagating houses, and a valuable set of books and pamphlets treating" of the botany and agriculture of that region. He visited the botanical gardens at Singapore, and at Buitenzorg, Java, where he was most kindly received, and arranged with these institutions for important exchanges of plants, books and specimens. Our thanks are due to Mr. Fox, of the Singapore garden, and to Professor Treub, of the Buitenzorg institution, for their interest in facilitating Mr. Wilson's work, which will be reported on in detail by him in a subsequent issue of the JOURNAL. The past month has shown extremes in neither temperature nor rain precipitation, although its rainfall of 8.56 inches has 144 been amply sufficient though unevenly distributed. The remarkable feature of the precipitation was the fall of 4 inches, or almost one- half of the total for the month, on the afternoon of Saturday, the 24th, between the hours of 1 and 5. So great and incessant was the downpour that the drains and sewers could not meet the unusual and unprecedented demand upon them, and the flooding of low- lying areas was the result. No damage, however, was done to the plantations, although the roads and paths were much washed in some places. The next greatest rainfall was on the 7th, when 1.17 inches fell. On 16 days out of the 31 there was more or less precipitation, but on no single day, with the exception of the two instances mentioned above, did the rainfall amount to one inch, and frequently it was but a few hundredths of an inch. At no time during the month did the temperature ascend beyond 90 degrees, and the lowest record was 52.5, the fluctuation usually being between 60 and 90, the last three days, however, recording a night temperature of less than 60. A FUND FOR THE PROTECTION AND PRESERVATION OF NATIVE WILD FLOWERS. Miss Olivia E. Phelps Stokes and Miss Caroline Phelps Stokes have contributed jointly to the Garden the sum of three thousand two hundred dollars. Of this amount, two hundred is to be added to the Special Book Fund, and the remaining three thousand is to constitute a new fund, the income of which is to be devoted to the furtherance of such measures and investigations as would aid in the preservation and protection of the plants of the native flora. The establishment of this fund will widen the usefulness of the Garden in a very desirable direction, and its administration will doubtless accomplish much in the promotion of a healthy public sentiment in the matter. / © embers of tbe Corporation. DR. TIMOTHY F. ALLEN, PROF. N. L. BRITTON, HON. ADDISON BROWN, WM. L. BROWN, ANDREW CARNEGIE, PROF. CHAS. F. CHANDLER, WM. G. CHOATE, HON. EDWARD COOPER, CHAS. F. COX, JOHN J. CROOKE, W. BAYARD CUTTING, ROBERT W. DE FOREST, WM. E. DODGE, PROF. SAM'L W. FAIRCHILD, GEN. LOUIS FITZGERALD, RICHARD W. GILDER, HON. THOMAS F. GILROY, PARKE GODWIN, HON. HUGH J. GRANT, HENRY P. HOYT, ADRIAN ISELIN, JR., MORRIS K. JESUP, JOHN I. KANE, EUGENE KELLY- , J R ., PROF. JAMES F. KEMP, JOHN S. KENNEDY, WILLIAM H. HON. SETH Low, DAVID LYDIG, EDGAR L. MARSTON, D. O. MILLS, J. PIERPONT MORGAN, THEO. W. MYERS, HON. MILES M. O'BRIEN, GEO. M. OLCOTT, PROF. HENRY F. OSBORN, GEORGE W. PERKINS, JAMES R. PITCHER, RT. REV. HENRY C. POTTER, PERCY R. PYNE, JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER, WM. ROCKEFELLER, PROF. H. H. RUSBY, WM. C. SCHERMERHORN, JAMES A. SCRYMSER, HENRY' A. SIEBRECHT, SAMUEL SLOAN, WM. D. SLOANE, NELSON SMITH, DR. W. GILMAN THOMPSON, LOUIS C. TIFFANY', SAMUEL THORNE, PROF. L. M. UNDERWOOD, S. WOOD. F X J B L I C J V T I O T S T S The New York Botanical Garden Journal of the N e w York Botanical Garden, monthly, illustrated, containing notes, news and non- technical articles of general interest. Free to all members of the Garden. To others, IO cents a copy; $ 1.00 a year. [ Not offered in exchange.] Vol. I, 1900, viii - f- 213 pp., 5 plates, and 25 figures in text. B u l l e t i n of t h e N e w Y o r k Botanical Garden, containing the annual reports of the Director- in- Chief and other official documents, and technical articles embodying the results of investigations carried out in the Garden. Vol. I, Nos. 1- 5, 449 pp., 3 maps, and 12 plates, 1896- 1900. $ 3.00. No. 6, 232 pp., 20 plates. Free to all members of the Garden ; to others, 50 cents. Memoirs of the N e w York Botanical Garden, Vol. 1. An Annotated Catalogue of the Flora of Montana and the Yellowstone Park, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg, assistant curator of the museums. An arrangement and critical discussion of the Pteridophytes and Phanerogams of the region with notes from the author's field book and including descriptions of 163 new species, ix - f- 492 pp. Roy. Svo, with detailed map. Price to members of the Garden, $ 1.00. To others, $ 2.00. [ Not offered in exchange.] Contributions from the N e w York Botanical Garden. A series of technical papers written by students or members of the staff, and reprinted from journals other than the above. Price, 25 cents each. No. I. Symbiosis and Saprophytism, by Dr. D. T. MacDougal. No. 2. New Species from western United States, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 3. The dichotomous Panicums : some new Species, by Geo. V. Nash. No. 4. Delphinium Carotinianurn and related Species, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 5. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— I, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 6. Notes and Descriptions of North American Plants I and I I , by Dr. J. K. Small. No. 7. Vegetative Reproduction and Multiplication in Erythronium, by Frederick H. Blodgett. No. 8. Two new Species of Grimtnia from Montana, by R. S. Williams. No. 9. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— II, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 10. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— III, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 11. Life- history of Schizxa fusilla, by Elizabeth G. Britton and Alexandrina Taylor. No. 12. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— IV, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 13. Further Studies on the Potentilleae, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. No. 14. Studies on the Rocky Mountain Flora— V, by Dr. Per Axel Rydberg. All subscriptions and remittances should be sent to NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN BRONX PARK, New YORK CITY |
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