THE PLANT WOELD 33 



Fertilization of the Closed Gentian by Bumblebees. 



One of the most interesting and convenient subjects for botanical 

 investigation is that of pollination. The innumerable shapes, colors, 

 arrangements and devices of flowers in their relation to insects, and the 

 agency of wind and water in pollen distribution, furnish an inexhaust- 

 ible field for study. 



An instance occurred last fall while a friend and myself were col- 

 lecting closed gentians in low woods near Toledo, Ohio. It had been 

 a question in my mind for several years whether or not this flower with 

 closely plaited and folded corolla would be entered by insects as pol- 

 len carriers to insure the production of the abundant seed. Our good 

 fortune on this occasion proved beyond a doubt that the flowers of G. 

 Andrewsii, at least, are visited by insects. 



A bumblebee alighted on the corolla of a fresh flower, and pried 

 and twisted the folds apart until he succeeded in forcing his body 

 through the aperture, when the tube closed over him without any ap- 

 parent injury. A few seconds later came a disturbance in the flower, 

 the corolla was again forced open and our insect backed out, no doubt 

 covered with pollen to be transferred to another flower. 



Several clusters of old flowers were examined by the same insect, 

 but he passed them by without even alighting. Experience had no 

 doubt taught him to distinguish between the old flowers and the new 

 ones containing the cherished honey. 



Besides this observation, two similar instances have come to notice, 

 and thus still further emphasize the fact that closed gentians are ento- 

 mophilous.— r. H. Burglehaus, Toledo, Ohio. 



The Kudzu Vine, which has become so valuable in rapidly cover- 

 ing trellises, pillars, and buildings, has been esteemed mainly on this 

 account. Its growth of over a hundred feet in a single season is truly 

 amazing. It was distributed as Dolichos Japonlca, though it is now 

 said its proper baptismal name is Pachyrhizns Thunbergkinus, derived 

 from the enormous roots. It appears that where the plant has become 

 strongly established, all the branches of the past year do not die back 

 to the ground. From these enduring stems, spikes of bright purjile, 

 bean-like flowers issue. They are so hidden by the foliage as to be 

 unobserved, but soon make themselves known by a delightful odor that 

 is wafted to long distances around. — lleehans' Blonthly. 



