THE STRAWBERRY QUESTION, 



19 



PtTRTHBR NOTES ON THE STRAWBERRY QUESTION. 



BY SENEX, NEW- YORK. 



In your last number you have some remarks 

 from Dr. Valk upon the strawberry ques- 

 tion, by which I find that the Doctor has 

 misunderstood the tenor of the article from 

 me, which you inserted in the Oct. number 

 of the Horticulturist. 



I wrote that article partly with the inten- 

 tion of suggesting what Avas really the 

 cause of the sterility of the strawberry, and 

 partly with the intention of drawing the 

 attention of those who are debating the 

 strawberry question, to the necessity of 

 adhering closely to the strict meaning of 

 the terms they used; for unless they did 

 so, they would only make " confusion worse 

 confoundetl." lam sorry that ro,y remarks 

 have not had the intended effect, especially 

 as they have been misunderstood by a 

 person of such knowledge and extensive 

 reading as Dr. Valk, as his papers on vege- 

 table physiology abundantly prove. I will 

 now, trusting that my present writing may 

 meet with a better reception, explain what 

 appears to be wanting in my former article. 



By the term dmcimis, all botanists un- 

 derstand plants having naturally the fe- 

 male organs on one plant and the male 

 organs on another, and these are never 

 under any circumstances found together in 

 the same flower; by pistillate and stami- 

 nate, (or fertile and sterile, as relates to 

 seedbearing, vyhich are the better terms,) 

 are understood plants which having one of 

 these organs in an imperfect state, or inca- 

 pable of fulfilling its functions from any 

 cause, the other is perfect ; for instance, in 

 the staminate strawberries the receptacle 

 remains with the pistils upon it, but does 

 not always produce fruit, as I believe, owing 



to the plant, through improper soil or culti- 

 vation, not having strength to do so ; some- 

 times the seeds are perfect, bat the recepta- 

 cle is small and deformed. Now, accord- 

 ing to the theory lately started, if the seeds 

 are perfect the receptacle must of necessity 

 be so to: this, as I before said, I do not 

 assent to. Again, in the pistillate flowers, 

 the stamens, or rather filaments, are there, 

 but without anthers ; or if with anthers, 

 they are without pollen. Yet I think in- 

 stances enough could be given, (ma}' have 

 already been given,) of such flowers pro- 

 ducing fine fruit without impregnation. 



The Wood Alpine Strawbeny has perfect 

 flowers under all circumstances, at least, aa 

 far as has been observed, and always pro- 

 daces fruit; now if one of the genera Fra- 

 graria is hermaphrodite and others dicscious, 

 it should, according to the rules of botanical 

 science, be a sufficient reason for making 

 a new genera ; and then Hovey's Seedling 

 might, perhaps, stand as the type of a new 

 genera, to be called ''Hoveya." Would 

 not this be an evident absurdity? I Avould 

 ask Dr. Valk if ever he saw a staminate 

 strawberry wanting the receptacle or pistils 

 in either a more or less perfect state, or 

 whether he ever saw a dioecious plant in 

 which the male flower had the least rudi- 

 ments of the opposite sexual organs, or 

 vice versa 1 Did he ever find a pistil or 

 ovary, or the rudiments of one in the flower 

 of a male willow, Shepherdia, HippopkcB, 

 or poplar? That they are sometimes mo- 

 noecious I admit ; but never hermaphro- 

 dite. 



As to the genus Cliffortia, I find, upon 

 reference to Lindlei/s Natural Sijste7n, that 



