BOTANY. 275 



subgroups than in the species. The short, broad ,i;rain seems best suited 

 to a short season, whde the others require a h)ng'er season. 



Tabuhir inforuuition is given regarding the germination and comiiar- 

 ative hardiness and prolificacy under different conditions of spacing 

 and planting. The i>roIiticacy is influenced by the distance of spacing. 

 Most kinds of corn will germinate while in the milk or before the hard- 

 ening of the grains has taken place. The more tlinty the corn the earlier 

 and more certain its germination. 



The various species are describe<l as follows: 



" Zea eveii<(. — The kernel split laterally shows the chit and corneous matter envel- 

 oping; in some cases a tine starchy line. The .small size of the kernel and the 

 pro])erty of 'pop])ing' makes identification certain. 



" Zt'ft indurata. — The split kernel exhibits the chit, starchy matter, and a corueona 

 matter envelopiu<>-. It can not be confounded with any other species except the 

 l)op, from which it is distinguished by the larger kernel and inal)ility to 'pop.' 



"Zea iudentata. — The S])lit kernel exposes the chit, corneous matter at the sides, 

 the starchy matter extending to the summit. 



^'Zea annjiacea. — The split kernel shows only the cliit and starchy matter, corneous 

 matter being entirely absent. 



"Zea saccliai'aia. — The kernel of this species has a semitransparent or translu- 

 cent, horny ai)pearance, and is more or less crinkled, wrinkled, or shriveled. 



"Zca^ amjileofiaccliaratd. — The external appearance of the kernel is that of a sweet, 

 but examination sIio^as that the lower half of the kernel is starchy, the upper half 

 horny and translucent. These varieties had all a wliite cob, the kt^'uels deeper than 

 broad, or belong to subspecies 3. 



"Zea iunicafa. — In this species each kernel is inclosed in a ])od or husk, and the 

 ear thus formed itself inclosed in a husk." 



In addition to the tlescrii)tions copious references to synonomy and 

 history are given. The author thinks Zea fioiieata probably the orig- 

 inal form of maize; Z. crerta, the po}) corns, nearest the i^rimitive 

 form, and Z. amylacea, the soft corns, the most highly developed. 

 Many instances are cited of reversion to jwdded forms among even the 

 more common varieties of ccn-n, tending to prove it the primitive form. 



Numerous references are cited showing the antiquity and universal- 

 ity of cultivation of corn by the early inhabitants of both North and 

 South America. The origin is placed either in Peru or in Mexico. 

 The data are hardly sufficient to settle this question, but from the 

 large number of varieties and the range of species in Peru the author 

 inclines to that as the original habitat. The relation of maiz*^ to its 

 environment has been but little studied. It is stated that corn will 

 germinate at a temperature as low as 41* to 43° F. Corn from Mexico, 

 represented as growing to the height of a man and maturing early, 

 grew in New York to a height of 11 ft., and was just coming into 

 bloom when killed by a frost in October. Moisture seems to develop 

 height, aridity to dwarf. On the other hand, some varieties seem to 

 remain dwarf under all observed conditions, and both the tallest grow- 

 ing and most dwarf forms are reported from hot, moist, tropical regions. 



