H. BOTANY AND HORTICULTURE? 375 



been uncovered, in which has appeared over a tract of 50,000 

 square meters a luxuriant growth of Glaucium, which is 

 characterized as a new species under the name of G.serpieri, 

 and is unknown elsewhere at the present time. It would ap- 

 pear from the indications that the seeds of this plant must 

 have remained alive during the interval of 1500 or 2000 

 years which have elapsed since the mines were last worked. 

 13 A.March 29, 1875, 295. 



STIMULATING ACTION OF CAMPHOR OX PLANTS. 



Dr. Yogel, of Munich, has repeated the experiments made 

 by others on the stimulating action of camphor upon the 

 growth of plants. He concludes that, except in a few cases, 

 we possess in camphor a stimulant capable of greatly in- 

 creasing the luxuriance and rapidity of the growth of plants. 

 Thus, when branches of seringa in flower were introduced 

 into camphorated water, the drooping of the plant was en- 

 tirely overcome, some blossoms being even developed un- 

 der these circumstances. The seeds of Lopidium sativum, 

 after having been kept dry for three years, were watered 

 with camphorated water, and germinated with remarkable 

 quickness ; while the seeds of Raphanus sativus major, which 

 had been dried for five years, and had refused to germinate 

 in the garden, when treated with camphorated water ger- 

 minated in four davs. Similar interesting results have been 

 obtained with other seeds. Some experiments made with 

 the essence of terebinthine have shown that, while like cam- 

 phor favoring the germinating process, the former arrests 

 the ulterior development of the plant. Bull Hebcl, XVI., 

 46. 



DARWIN ON INSECTIVOROUS PLANTS. 



Mr. Darwin's new work on insectivorous plants has been 

 a great success, 2250 copies of the English edition having 

 been sold in a very short time. The most interesting and 

 novel point which he brings out is the existence in Drosera, 

 Dioncea, and some other plants which come under this des- 

 ignation, of an actual digestive fluid, which in the case of 

 Drosera becomes acid only when the secreting glands are 

 excited by the presence of nitrogenous matter, a substance 

 being formed apparently closely analogous to the pepsin 



