36 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



Februaky 3, 1912 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs. Wolstenholme and Holland, of Liverpool, 

 write as follows, under date December ^0, with reference 

 to tihe sales of West Indian Sea Island cotton : — 



Since our last report, about 250 bales of West Indian Sea 

 Islands have been sold, chiefly St. Vincent and Montserrat, 

 from n^d. to \M., St. Croix at 15'7., and a few St. Vincent 

 at 20rZ. ■ 



The market remains steady, in view of the fact that 

 Carolina Sea Islands are a bad crop this year, both in quantity 

 and quality. 



The report of Messrs. Henry W. Frost & Co., on 

 Sea Island cotton in the Southern States, for the week 

 ending December 30, is as follows: — 



There was a demand for the limited offerings, which 

 consisted principally of cotton more or less off in preparation. 

 The supply of the better grades. Fully Fine and Extra Fine, 

 is very small, and has been largely disposed of 



The crop has been nearly all marketed, therefore the 

 receipts from now on will be very small. 



There is in stock about 1,000 bales old crop cotton, 

 which is being held by the owners in expectation of higher 

 prices later on. 



We quote : — 



Extra Fine .32c. = I8d., c.i.f , »fe 5 per cent. 



"Fine to Fully 2Gc. to 2Sc. = 15(^. to IQd. c.i.f & .5 per cent. 

 Fine to Fully Fine,K ,^ ^^ .^.^ ^ ^^ 



otf in preparation ; -^ 4 >> n n 



of 



ARRANGEMENT OF PARTS IN 



THE COTTON PLANT. 



Bulletin No. 222 of the IJureau of Plant Industry 

 the United States Department of Agriculture 

 has been issued under this title. It contains the 

 results of a study of the way in which the different 

 organs of the cotton plant are arranged: for, as is claim- 

 ed at the coinmencement of the bulletin: ' changes of 

 behaviour that are of serious economic importance may 

 be brought about by changing the number and arrange- 

 ment of the parts of the plants, even without altering 

 the characteristics of the leaves, flowers, or other com- 

 ponent units of the structure.' The following is taken 

 from the conclusions given in the Bulletin : — 



The cotton plant has two kinds of branches, differing in 

 arrangement as well as in other characters. Fruiting 

 branches develop laterally from extra-axillary buds at the 



side of the axillary buds, which produce the limbs. Extra- 

 axillary buds may develop into vegetative branches and 

 replace fruiting branches, liut no normal fruiting branches 

 are produced by axillary buds. 



The leaves of the lirabs and vegetative branches of the 

 cotton plarit have the same spiral arrangement as those of the 

 main stem, though the direction of the spiral on the limbs 

 and vegetative branches may be opposed to that on the main 

 stalk. Each internode of the fruiting branch is twisted in 

 the opposite direction from the one preceding, bringing the 

 leaves to two alternating series along the sides of the Viranch 

 and the flowers into an upright position. 



The involucre of the cotton flower is composed of three 

 bracts, two of equal size and one smaller. The small bract 

 is always on the outer or distal side of the flower, tovrard the 

 end of the branch. Two brsctlets frequently appear on either 

 side of the small bract in the United States upland varieties, 

 while in certain (_'entral American types a complete series of 

 six is sometimes developed, one on either side of the three 

 bracts. The teeth of the bracts when twisted follow the 

 same direction as the overlapping of the petals. 



The calyx of the cotton flower has five lobes distinctly 

 unequal in size, two large, two small, and one intermediate. 

 One of the small lobes stands opposite the small bract of the 

 involucre, between two large lobes. The arrangement of the 

 other lobes varies in relation to that of other parts of the 

 flower. 



Small flap-like organs are often insertt'd between the 

 calyx and the petals, arranged in alternation with the calyx 

 lobes. These intra-calicarj' organs ma}' be considered as 

 supernumerary calyx lobes, or as representing free stipular 

 elements of the calyx lobes. In either case, they support the 

 view that the calyx lobes are homologous with the bracts of 

 the outer involucre. In other words, the calyx of the cotton 

 plant may be looked upon as an inner involucre. 



The petals of the cotton flower are opposite the lobes of 

 the staminal column, and overlap in the .same direction as 

 the stamens are bent. This direction conforms to the twi.sting 

 of the internode of the branch bearing the flower, and is 

 reversed in the flowers at each succeeding node. 



The stamens are arranged on the staminal column in five 

 vertical rowsi', about the pistil, opposite the petals, and turn 

 in the same direction as the overlapping of the petals. The 

 paired positions and frequent branching of the stamens sug- 

 gest the developiuent of the compound staminal column by 

 the subdivision of a few primitive stamens. 



There is a persistent irregularity in the number of car- 

 pels in the flowers and fruits of the same plant The range 

 of normal vafiation is from two to four carpels in the Egyptian 

 cotton, and from three to five carpels in the upland cotton. 

 When the number is five, the stigmas and carpels alternate 

 with the petals and the lobes of the staminal column. 



