the Floxvers of the Caladium pinnatijidum . 89 



open towards mid-day, on the morning of the following day ap-. 

 pear completely decayed, and again inclosed in the colourless 

 spathe. During this period of the flower the elevation of tem- 

 perature falls, and at every other time of the day, the flowers 

 show only the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere ; so 

 that Link, not having been attentive to this circumstance, did 

 not find the above elevation of temperature, having measured 

 the temperature of the flower only at mid-day. Thus far I re- 

 member, in the year 1826, I measured the temperature between 

 six and seven, o'clock in the evening, without, however, being 

 particularly attentive to the period of the flower. 



On the 1st of May this year, at mid-day, I had one of the 

 flowers, which was beginning to burst, cut off* from the plant, 

 and found before and immediately after the separation, that the 

 temperature of the flower was completely the same with the 

 temperature of the air in the hot-house. I took the flower 

 home with me, and placed it with the cut end of the stalk in a 

 glass of water, in order to observe the phenomena during the 

 period of its blooming. The temperature of the room was 13° 

 R. (61°.2 Fahr.), and the flower had likewise the same tempera- 

 ture until about five o'clock in the afternoon. About six o'clock, 

 the flower, which had been previously without any smell, gave 

 out a very powerful odour that reminded me of trying the tem- 

 perature. This had risen 2° ; for that of the flower was 15° 

 R. (65°.l Fahr.) At seven o'clock the temperature had risen 

 to 17° (70°.2 Fahr.) At eight o'clock to 19° (74°.7 Fahr.) ; 

 half-past -eight, 19i° (76° Fahr.) At nine o'clock 20^ (78° 

 Fahr.) At ten o'clock 21 J °(81° Fahr.) ; and this appeared to be 

 the greatest height, since there seemed to be no farther increase 

 up to eleven o'clock. During this elevation of temperature, the 

 disengagement of the odour likewise increased ; this became so 

 powerful that the whole room was impregnated with an am- 

 moniacal vapour. In the morning the temperature of the flower 

 had again fallen to the temperature of the air. During the fol- 

 lowing evening no further elevation of temperature was mani- 

 fested in this same flower. But, on the contrary, with other 

 flowers which bloomed at a later period upon the same plant, 

 there was the same gradual elevation of temperature and disen- 

 gagement of odour, which afterwards, during the evening and 

 night, impregnated almost the whole of the air in the hothouse. 



