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Archer Huntington at Redding Ridge, Conn., and on our Hamden 
plantation—there are in all about 1000 hybrids. At least a 
dozen of these have so far resisted inoculation tests with the blight 
fungus and seem, therefore, to be highly resistant; but only a few 
of them have the desired erect habit needed fot a timber tree. 
These 12 trees are mainly crosses of Japanese-American stock 
with the Chinese chestnut and back crosses of Japanese-American 
with resistant Japanese stock. We continue to enjoy the coopera- 
tion of the Division of Forest Pathology of the Bureau of Plant 
Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering, U. S. Department 
of Agriculture. 
RESEARCH ON DISEASE RESISTANCE IN OATS (from the Report of 
George M. Reed, Curator of Plant Pathology): A new race of 
loose smut of oats has been discovered this season. This race has 
the capacity of infecting the oats variety Victoria, which has proved 
highly resistant to most known races of loose and covered smut, 
and has been used extensively in hybridization for the improve- 
ment of oats. Some promising selections from oats crosses 1n- 
volving the variety Victoria, have proved to be resistant, and in 
these cases the other parental variety originally used in crossing 
was resistant to this new race. 
RESEARCH IN PLANT CLASSIFICATION (from the Report of Henry 
K. Svenson): During the spring of 1944 a monographic account 
was completed of the species of water fern (Agolla) in North and 
South America. The first part of this paper, illustrated by three 
plates of photographs and line drawings, is in press (see “publica- 
tions”). Azolla may be seen in the pool which terminates the 
Botanic Garden brook in late summer. These small aquatic ferns 
are so numerous as to completely cover the surface of the water, 
and for this reason have been important as a means of mosquito 
extermination. Five species are represented in North and South 
America, especially in the tropics. 
RESEARCH ON FERNS (Ralph C. Benedict, Resident Investi- 
gator): For Dr. Benedict’s research and related activities, see the 
thirty-third Annual Report issued in January 1944. 
RESEARCH ON DRUG PLANTS (Ralph H. Cheney, Resident In- 
vestigator): During the first six months of 1944, a survey was 
begun to determine the availability of drug plants in the nurseries 

