PLANT BEEEDING. 



277 



as this particular plant seemed unable to contend with the meadow 

 grasses. — Richard F. Towndrow. 



Note on Ceiba (see p. 173). — Dr. Prain has called our attention 

 to his paper on the Flora of Narcondam in the Journal of the Asiatic 

 Society of Bemjal, vol. Ixii. (1893), in which he reduces Eriodendron 

 [Ceiba) to Bomhax, and intimates his intention of uniting (Jhorisia, 

 Pachira, and Adansonia with that genus. He points out, from his 

 knowledge of the living plants, that we were in error in following 

 those authors who have united Eriodendron orientate and E. occi- 

 dentale. He states the best one can say of these two species is, that 

 "when dried, their leaves are not very different, and their flowers 

 are very like. Bombax oricntale Spr. is a tree with tapering trunk 

 much buttressed below, with pale grey bark. In Bengal it loses its 

 leaves in January, flowers in February, fruits in March to April, and 

 gets its new leaves towards the end of April. It has small stipules, 

 pale green leaflets, tawny-yellow shaggily hairy petals, fruit shaped 

 like that of a banana, fruiting calyx with an almost even limb. 

 Bomhax occidentale Spr. is a tree with a bulging bole, with green 

 bark. In Bengal it loses its leaves in March, and gets its new ones, 

 flowering at same time, immediately. Indeed, the tree does not stand 

 bare at all, for the new leaves are out on some branches before the old 

 have dropped from them. It has huge stipules, silver-grey velvety 

 hairs on its petals, a fruit shaped somewhat like a pear, and a calyx 

 with sinuate dentate limb." — James Britten ; E. G. Baker. 



Ranunculus tripartitus, DC, in Ireland. — We have received 

 from Mr. R. A. Phillips specimens of Ranuncidus tripartitus, DC, 

 discovered by him on April 3rd of the present year, occurring 

 plentifully in a very small lake, close to the sea, among the moun- 

 tainous chffs to the south of Baltimore, Co. Cork. Mr. Phillips's 

 plant has well-developed capillary submersed leaves, and in all 

 respects closely resembles the plant from the West of France. It 

 is very gratifying to have such good B. tripartitus from the British 

 Isles, as Mr. Tellam's plant from Roche, E. Cornwall, though 

 doubtless best included under this species, is not very satisfactory. 

 — H. & J. Groves. 



NOTICES OF BOOKS. 



Plant Breeding. By L. H. Bailey. London and New York : 



Macmillan & Co. 8vo, pp. 293. 



Prof. L. H. Bailey, the well-known director and experimenta- 

 list of the Cornell University, Ithaca, has elaborated, in the form 

 of a handy and well-printed volume, a series of five lectures on 

 the raising of plants by what is perhaps more conveniently than 

 accurately known as artificial means. " Plant Breeding " is the 

 suggestive title of Prof. Bailey's book, which affords profitable 

 reading to the practical gardener, and more especially to the 

 gardener who has a natural inclination for the selection and 

 '* crossing" one with another various kinds of plants. 



Although botanists have always rent their garments, so to 



