ARCYRIA VIRESCENS 253 



A. virescens differs from A. glair ca Lister, the only other species 

 of Arcgria with green spores, in the long dark stalks, narrow cups, 

 and stouter capillitium marked with groups of prominent hars, as 

 well as in the yellower shade of both capillitium and spores. 



The elasticity of the capillitium and the ease with which the 

 loose columns separate from the sporangial cups causes rapid disper- 

 sion of the spores, and perfect specimens showing the colour of the 

 spores in mass appear to he seldom found. This probably accounts 

 for the species having been overlooked, and regarded as a faded form 

 of A. nutans. I have certainly made this mistake myself more than 

 once in the past. 



THE FLOWERS OF TEAGOPOGON : 



their Times of Opening- and Shutting. 

 By Miller Christy, F.L.S. 



Everyone is familiar with the fact that the flowers of the Yellow 

 Goats's-beard (Tragopogon pratense) open early in the morning and 

 close about mid-day, a habit which has gained for the plant the 

 popular name of "Jack Go-to-bed-at-Noon." 



This habit has long been known. Over three centuries ago, Gerard 

 (Herball, 595; 1597) wrote that "It shutteth itselfe at twelve of 

 the clocke, and sheweth not his face open untill the next daies sunne 

 do make it flower anew." Linnaeus, too, knew of and made definite 

 observations upon the habit. In his FLorologium Floras, or ' Floral 

 Clock,' he notes (Phil. Pot. 273-5 ; 1751) that, at Upsala 

 (lat. 59° 51' N., long. 17° 37' E.), the flowers of Tragopogon luteum 

 ( = T. pratense) open each morning between 3 and 5 a.m. and 

 close for the day between 8 and 10 a.m., their open hours being 

 earlier than those of any other of the forty-six species of flower on 

 which he had made observations. Since his time, Kerner has made 

 similar observations at Innsbruck (lat. 47° 16' N., long. 11° 24' E.) 

 (see his Nat. Hist, of Plants, ii. 215-221 ; 1902), but unfortunately 

 his list does not include the particular species in question. He notes, 

 however that two nearly-allied species, T. floccosus and T. orientalis, 

 both open there between 6 and 7 a.m. and close between 10 and 11 a.m. 



Yet, apart from this, I have been unable to find that anyone has 

 taken the trouble to observe and to record more precisely the plant's 

 exact hours of opening and closing its flowers. In these circumstances, 

 it may be worth while to place on record a few desultory observations 

 which I have made from time to time on the open-hours of the flowers 

 of both this plant and its near ally the Salsify (T. porrif alius). 



Some of my notes on the subject are of little or no value, as they 

 record no more than the fact that I observed the flowers either open 

 or closed (as the case might be) at some time during its well-known 

 open-hours or the reverse. Yet two such deserve noting, in view of 

 what follows : — On 6th June, 1881, at Roxwell, Essex, I saw several 

 plants with their flowers fully open at about 12 noon, the weather at the 

 time being very dull and overcast. Again, as showing how completely 



