141 

 SOIREES. 



Third. The third meeting was held on 31st .Tanuai-y, and was 

 devoted to the discussion of botanical subjects. 



Mr. Fletcher read the report of the Botanical Section. 



Mr. Ballantyne then gave an interesting account of some observa- 

 tions made on the duration of the leaves on our various species of ever- 

 green trees. With the white pine (Pliius strohus) he had found that as a 

 rale the needles remained on the tree about 18 months. Leaves produced 

 in the spring of one year fell in the summer of the following one, so that 

 the life of a pine needle was two summers and one winter. 



In the Spruces the leaves remained on the trees for a mucli longer 

 period, he considered seven years to be about the length of their dura- 

 tion. The Canadian Balsam Fir not quite so long, four or five years ; 

 and the Hemlock a still shorter time, probably only three years. 



The cedars were rather more difficult to understand. They seemed 

 to drop their foliage thi'oughoub the year and nob at any special season. 

 In this case it was not the separate scales which fell but small twigs 

 dropped off. The Tamarac, another conifer, of course, is deciduous, and 

 drops its leaves every autumn. 



Mr, Fletcher spoke of the length of life of the needles of Picea 

 Sitchensis, the Menzies spruce which he had found on Vancouver Island 

 growing to a height of not less than 40 feet, and still retaining the sharp 

 stiff needles on the stem, so that it was very uncomfortable to climb up 

 it to procure the cones. 



In answer to a question he explained that the cause of the falling 

 of the leaves of deciduous trees was due to the gradual deposition of 

 matter in the passages and the lignification of the petioles so that 

 they could no longer perform their functions, 



Mr. Ballantyne's address was followed by the exhibition of a col- 

 lection of Australian ferns belonging to Mr. R. B. Whyte. Mr. Flet- 

 cher drew attention to several specimens belonging to genera represented 

 in our Canadian flora and showed the advantages of having specimens 

 from all parts of the world, if we wanted to thoroughly understand any 



family of plants. 



A paper by Mr. H. M. Ami was read upon the variety ohtusilohata 

 of Onoclea senaibilis. The writer considered it merely an occasional form 



