266 



Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society, the- 

 possibility of the bottle not being hermetically sealed 

 was put forward as accounting for the growth, and 

 consequently a thick coating -of sealing-wax was applied 

 over the interstice between the glass stopper and the 

 rim of the bottle. No check, however, resulted, and in 

 the spring of 1908, after the winter rest, growth was 

 resumed as actively as before, and the tronds, now 

 decayed, reached the stopper, as can be seen. Some 

 three months ago the wax was removed, and a neater 

 and more convincing sealing was effected by a coating 

 of fine enamel paint. 



In my opinion, however, there has been all along, a 

 perfect exclusion of air, since had there been any circula- 

 tion owing to leakage, the small amount of water originally 

 present must have been materially reduced, whereas the 

 original condition of saturation appears to be maintained,, 

 despite the absorption by the vegetation. The amount of 

 carbonic acid gas in the small volume of air originally 

 present in the bottle, about 24 cubic inches, would be one 

 •three-thousandth part, equal about -008 of a cubic inch,, 

 and of that minute part only one-third would be carbon, 

 and the questions therefore arise. How have these plants 

 been enabled to fashion so much foliage with so little 

 material, and how is it that growth still continues appar- 

 ently unchecked ? I'^urihermore, there is the question of 

 earthy salts to be considered, the experiment having been 

 started with practically pure quartz sand, while water 

 from the main could only contain an infinitesimal portion. 

 I exhibit this bottle and also that first referred to which 

 was prepared in August last to make it clear how the 

 experiment began. In this case the sand has been boiled 

 and baked, and the water present in it is the boiled water 

 used to sterilise it. The bulbil, however, is developing 

 healthily, most of the growth seen being subsequent to« 

 installation. 



