58 



EXPERIMENTS IN BLUEBERRY CULTURE. 



the axils of the cotyledons, 13 had neither branch so situated, and 

 had 1 branch from a cotyledon axil and 1 from a leaf axil. Of 

 the 4 plants with 3 branches, 3 had all 3 branches in the axils of the 

 cotyledons and the first leaf, 1 had a branch in the axil of a cotyledon 

 and of the first and second leaf. Of the total 111 branches 46 were 

 in the axil of one of the two cotyledons, an average of 23 to each, 30 

 in the axil of the first leaf, 20 the second, 7 the third, and 2 the 

 fourth. In the order of the frequency of production of a basal shoot, 

 therefore, the first leaf stands first, a cotyledon next, then the second, 

 third, and fourth leaves, in order. 



AVTiile the exact location of the basal branches appears to have no 

 special significance, the number of the branches does, for the habit of 

 producing two or more branches is a persistent one and such seedlings 

 tend to produce diffuse plants with many and small stems and small 

 stature, while the plants with the single-branch tendency are taller 

 and have fewer and more robust stems. The differences in general 

 appearance caused by the two types of branching are well illustrated 

 in figures 24 and 25, from photographs of two seedlings of 1907 made 

 at the age of 10 months. 



(23) When the seedlings are about four months old and about three 



INCHES IN height THE GROWTH OF THE ORIGINAL STEM TERMINATES. 



On January 5, 1909, the growing tip on the original stem of one of the 

 plants withered. At that time this stem was about 2.5 inches high, had 



14 leaves, and had 2 vigorous basal shoots about 

 an inch in length. This withering differed in 

 one important respect from the withering due 

 to shock, described on page 56. In that case it 

 was an ordinary leaf rudiment that withered. 

 In the present case the withering was fore- 

 shadowed by the development of a minute bract 

 (fig. 23). This differed from the ordinary leaf 

 rudiment in the absence of the glandular hairs 

 characteristic of young leaves, and it remained 

 small until the leaf next below it had become 

 more than ten times as long. Then the bract 

 Avithered and the growth of the original stem 

 was permanently terminated. The same de- 

 velopment Avent on in the other plants until 

 at the end of a month 65 per cent and in two 

 months 95 per cent of the plants had terminated 

 the growth of their original stems. 



In the individual plant the termination of growth on the original 

 stem took place after the basal shoot or shoots had reached a stage of 



193 



Fig. 23. — Bract and young 

 leaf at the end of the 

 original stem in a blue- 

 berry seedling. (En- 

 larged 4 diameters ; the 

 smaller figure natural 

 size.) 



