The Plant World 



A MONTHLY JOURNAL OF POPULAR BOTANY. 



VoL IV, MARCH, 1901. No. 3. 



THE DURATiON OF CLAYTONiA CHAMISSOl Ledeb. 



By John M. Holzinger. 



IN June, 1889 (June 18 and 19), the writer, in company with Messrs. 

 Grant Van Sant and Glen Morgan, two young student friends, made 

 a botanical trip by rowboat from Winona down the Mississippi as 

 far as La Crosse. The main purpose was to re-discover a small colony 

 of Kentucky coffee trees seen near Dresbach in 1882. These were not 

 found again. Instead, an herbaceous plant was included in the collec- 

 tion which proved to be a curious intruder into the flora of the Mississ- 

 ippi valley — Claytouia Chamissoi In a letter to Dr. .J. M. Coulter dur- 

 ing that season, it was pointed out that this plant seemed to be a peren- 

 nial, but agreed in every other respect with the description of Cham- 

 misso's Claytonia. That distinguished botanist kindly verified the 

 determination. More recently, vv^lien Brittou k Brown's Flora appeared, 

 the plant was still characterized as an annual. Under these circum- 

 stances, it seems proper to put on record a correction, insignificant 

 though it be, and to establish beyond doubt the perennial character of 

 this plant. 



The accompanying figure, representing a luxuriant plant a little 

 past bloom, drawn by my friend, Mr. Frank Eowell, shows from the 

 lowest nodes of the annual stem, the stolons mentioned in Britton & 

 Brown's Flora, It also shows, at the ends of these stolons, as well as 

 on some of their lateral branches, little tubers, f, f, to the number of 

 over a dozen on this one plant. These are firm little organs, of the size 

 of small peas and smaller, yellowish-green or yellowish-red in color, 

 according to the degree of exposure to the sun. After the year's growtli 

 has withered, including the stolons, these tubers sink into the sub- 



