20 BOTANICAL BULLETIN. 



also slowly finding u lodo'iuent outside of cultivation. Late in October we hap- 

 pened upon a few bunches of Andrnpofjon furcatus, Muhl., which leads us to think 

 it rare liere. However, if A. furcdtus is rare A. Vinjinicus, L., is niucli more abun- 

 dant than is desirable, being common everywhere. In fact, it and Erigeron avmium, 

 Pers., are tlie enemies of our meadows, as botlj gi-eatly s])oil the ciualitj' of the liay. 

 The only way by whicli tlie farmer can i-id liimself of them seems to be to turn up 

 liis meadow witli his plow, a method frequently resorted to here. — A. H. Young, 

 Hanover, Ind. 



Uromyces Lespedez.e, (Sclnv.) — Many botanists may have noticed the little 

 fungus that grows so plentifully on tlie under surface of the leaves of Lespedeza 

 violacea, Pers. I sent sonie of the fungus-covered leaves to Clias. H. Pecli, Esq., of 

 Albany, N. Y., and I tliink his answer may l)e of interest to other botanists. "The 

 fungus j'ou send oil the leaves of Lespedeza violacea was first described by Schweiu- 

 itz, in his Syn. Fany. Car., No. 498, under the name Fucclnia Lespedezai-poliistachica, 

 but afterwards finding the fungus more abundant on Lespedeza violacea than on L. 

 polijstachia, lie changed its name in his ,S';/«. N. A. Fungi, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc, 

 Neio Series, Vol. IV, p. 29G, to Puccinia Lespedeza-.-riolacea-. It does not belong to 

 the genus Puccinia as now understood, but to the genus Uromyces and the name has 

 generally been written Uromyces Lespedezoe-violacece, Schw., but inasmuch as this 

 name is objectionable botli because of its compound character and because of its 

 implied limitation of tlie habitat of the fungus, which occurs on the leaves of all 

 our species of Lespedeza, it seems to be best to make still another change and write 

 Uromyces Lespedeza', (Schw.) as the name of this fungus. Each black dot on the 

 leaf is made up of a vast number of simple, ovate, pedicellate spores, denselj' 

 crowded together." Mr. Peck also sent a sketcli of a few of tliese spores mag- 

 nified about 400 diameters and colored as they appear under tlie microscope when 

 viewed by transmitted light, which I would like to show bj^ a cut but am unable 

 at present. — Ed. 



An old fkiend put to new uses. -The following item seems to be going the 

 I'ounds of the newspapers, and if true, adds a new interest to a very familiar friend : 



"The Western Tannin Plant, Polyyonum amphibium, L., which grows luxuri- 

 antly in the Missouri Kiver Valley, seems destined to replace oak bark in tanning. 

 It contains 18 per cent, of Tannin, while the best bark contains but 12 per cent., 

 and large estalilishments employing it in Chicago, find that one-third more leather 

 can be obtained with it than witlt-a like quantity of bark. The process of tanning 

 with it is identical with that with bark, but the leather is tougher, finer, and more 

 durable, and I'cceives a finer finish. The plant is an annual and can be mowed, 

 dried, and stacked like hay." If these are facts Polygonum amphibium is destined 

 to become an important product in some sections of our country. — Ed. 



An interesting contribution to Ohio botan.y has been received from Dr. H. C. 

 Beardslee, of Painesville, Ohio. It will be published in part, if not altogether, i^ 

 the next number of the Bulletin. It is a list of the Hepaticai growing in Ohio, 

 numbering some 68 species and based upon Austin's //ej^at. Bor. Amer. 



Contributions of notes are desired from all botanists, and such notes as are ac- 

 cepted will appear in the number of the Bulletin issued immediately after their receijit, 

 as it is not intended to limit the size of the paper to four pages if the amount of 

 matter will justify an enlargement. 



