440 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [1881. 



not ■wholly new to specialists, did not seem to be generally 

 known. 



The Mistletoe of the Eastern States had a general resemblance 

 to that of Enrope, Viscum album; but the old genus Vincum liad 

 been divided by modern botanists, altliongh the lines of distinc- 

 tion were somewhat artificial. We had two genera, F/ioradendron 

 and Arceiil/iobium. Among the leading distinctions might be 

 mentioned that the European branch of the family, Vificam, as 

 now restricted, had the anther open by three pores on slits, our 

 Phoradendron by two. while the Arceuthobium had but one. 

 There were other slight difterences in pollen grains, cotyledons, 

 and form of the fruits. The Euroi)ean Mistletoe is usually 

 founded on deciduous trees only, an instance being recorded 

 where it had been found on the Scotch pine in Germany, and its 

 American repvesentat'ive, Phoradendron flavescens Nuttall, seemed 

 also confined to deciduous trees and shrubs.^ This extends across 

 the continent, a form being found on the Pacific coast still con- 

 fined to deciduous plants ; while another genus, Arceuthobium, 

 seems wholly confined to the coniferous trees which are mixed 

 with the deciduous ones. The name Arceuthobium is suggestive of 

 this fact, it being derived from two Greek words signifying " living 

 on the juniper." Phoradendron, on the other hand, meaning simply 

 "living on, or stealing from trees." Arceuthobium, however, did 

 not live wholly on junipers. In the herbarium of the Academy was 

 a specimen of A. occidentale, growing on Janiperus occidentalis — 

 these Nevada specimens were on Pin usponderosa. The specimens 

 of Phorade ndron j uniper inum -were growing on Libocedrusdecur- 

 rens, which, by the way, was, he believed, the first time this pretty 

 cupressineous tree had been reported from the State of Nevada. 

 Among the difiierences noted by Engelmann in the botany of 

 California, between Phoradendron and Arceuthobium, was that 

 while the former flowered in February and March, and matured 

 its fruit " next winter," the fruit of the Californian species 

 opened in the summer, and did not mature till the " second 

 autumn." The European Mistletoe was stated by Bentham to 

 open in spring, and perhaps this was so; it was formerly supposed 

 to be the case with the American Phoradendron flavescens, but 

 Mr. Wm. Canby had shown to the Academy recently, that in 

 Delaware the fiowers opened in the fall, and the fruit matured in 

 the autumn of the following year, or just one year afterward. 

 The flowers and fruit were on tlie trees at the same time together*. 

 If this were general with Phoradendron, it still lessened the dis- 

 tinctions between the genera. Usually Phoradendron bore leaves, 

 while Arceuthobium was leafless — but the Libocedrus parasite 

 was as destitute of leaves as an Arceuthobium, and the common 

 observer would see little in their general aspects to distinguis'h 



' Mr. Jos. .Jeanes believes he saw a specimen some years ago on Jbies 

 Canadensis. 



