AGRICULTURAL BOTANY. 725 



To dcfiiiitoly di'torniine tlu> effect produced by tlies(> nsencies, experiments 

 were c.irried on with various plants and the leachinj; couducted under different 

 conditions, sinudating rainfall and dew as nearly as possible. Among the 

 plants experimented with were barley, rice, wheat, oats, and potatoes. 



The general conclusions from the investigation show that, on ripening, the 

 salts held in the sap of the plants migrate from the dying toward the living 

 tissues in an upward and not a downward direction, there being little evidence 

 to show excretion through the roots into the soil. The plants were foiuid to 

 exude salts upon their surfaces, and the rain washed these salts back into the 

 soil. As a consequence of this action, analyses of plants for ash ingredients may 

 give misleading results when it is desired to determine the amount of plant 

 food absorbed by or essential to plant growth, unless the leaching action of I'ain 

 and dew be considered. 



The transpiration in young seedlings, J. Y. RERt;i:N (Bot. (laz., J/S (JDOl)), 

 yo. .'/, pp. 27o-2S2, fig. 3). — Investigations on the adaptation of transpiration to 

 changed environment on the part of young seedlings are reported. The studies 

 Avere carried on with a number of species of plants and the transi)iration ratios 

 determined. 



As a result of the experiments it was found that plants growing in a highly 

 humid atmosphere acquired a capacity much greater than normal for transpira- 

 tion in a moderately dry atmospliere. Different families and dllTerent genera 

 of the same family vary in their capacity to acquire a tendency to extremely 

 rapid transpiration. The ratios of transpiration for the same species become 

 noticeably greater as the leaves become fully developed. The transpiration 

 ratios are not necessarily greater when the relative humidity of the air is very 

 low than when it is of medium value. 



Vitality and the transmission of water through the stems of plants, H. H. 

 Dixon (ScL Proc. Rot/. Dublin Soc, n. scr.,12 (1909), No. 3, pp. 21-3^, figs. 3).— 

 A report is given of investigations made to demonsti'ate that the force requii-ed 

 for the transpiration current of plants is not as great as that claimed by some 

 investigators. The author studied the rate of movement of water through 

 stems of Syringa vulgaris. Special precautions were taken for the elimination 

 of error, and after testing two shoots as nearly similar as it was possible to 

 obtain, one was killed by subjecting it to steam or poison and the transfer of 

 water noted. 



The experiments and observations, tlie author believes, indicate that vital 

 actions on the part of the stem are not needed to assist the transpiration cur- 

 rent, and that the anatomical relations of the cells of the stem to the conducting 

 tubes are also not in accord with the view that they can apply any elevating 

 force. 



The absorption of water by seeds, W. R. G. Atkins (Set. Proc. Roy. Dublin 

 Soc, n. scr., 12 {1909), No. //, lu). 35-46, dgms. }). — The author has made an 

 attempt to discover the forces which cause water and salt solutions to enter 

 dried seeds, in oi'der that some light might be thrown on the condition of 

 latent life existing in them. Seeds were immersed in water and various salt 

 solutions and their increase in weight determined. The i)ernieability of the 

 seeds was also investigated. By volumetric methods changes in concentration 

 of the solutions were determined. 



Seeds of beans and sweet peas were used, and the results obtained show that 

 bean seeds whether living or dead take up the same quantity of water in their 

 iiutial stages. The final weight reached by the seeds is independent of the 

 presence of potassium nitrate, except in so far as the salt alters the density 

 of the water. The rate at which distilled water is taken up is no greater than 

 that at which salt solutions are absorbed. Seeds placed in potassium nitrate 



