‘« TULIP-ROOT.”” 87 
were made to me than commonly occur as to presence of the disease ; 
and it is rather curious that though the Tulip-root form was very 
markedly present, I had not any samples sent me of the other form 
known as ‘“‘ Segging,”’ from the widened form of the leaves with waved 
edges resembling those of Sedges. 
A few other points of interest occurred in connection with some of 
the samples sent. 
The following observation, which was sent me on May 5th, in the 
course of some communication as to Tulip-root in Oats, by Mr. F. R. 
Armytage, from Windsor House, Shrewsbury, is of practical interest 
relatively to the power of these Kelworms of bearing ‘“ desiccation,” 
that is, of being thoroughly dried, and remaining in this state for 
some weeks without any injury beyond loss of power of motion for the 
time being. After some remarks on specimens of Tulip-rooted Oats 
previously sent to him, Mr. Armytage observed :— 
‘It may interest you to know that after placing the worms on a 
slide with a drop of water, I put the slide away for quite six weeks, at 
the end of which period, although the water must have evaporated in 
twenty-four hours, on again applying water to the edge of the covering 
glass with a pipette, the worms were as lively as ever.”’ 
The extraordinary tenacity of life possessed by the Tylenchi (as 
well as by members of a few other genera of Kelworms), which 
enables them to remain for lengthened periods of desiccation as if 
dead, yet still retaining the power of resuming the vitai functions on 
the restoration of requisite moist conditions, was made the subject of 
investigation many years ago—so far back as 1744—especially with 
regard to the Tylenchus tritici, Bastian, which causes the diseased 
gall-like growths known as ‘‘ Har-Cockles,”’ or ‘‘ Purples,” or ‘“ False 
Ergot,” in grains of Wheat, and sometimes also, though more rarely, 
in those of Oats and Rye.* 
But in regard to precise length of time to which it has been proved 
that this drying process may be continued, and its action on the ‘Stem 
Helworm,”’ the T'ylenchus devastatrix, in its different stages of life, full 
information will be found in the report by Dr. J. Ritzema Bos of his 
own more recent observations.t From these it is shown that eggs of 
this species not yet arrived at a moderately advanced stage of develop- 
ment,{ might safely be dried for a period of two months, but if 
allowed to remain dry for a year, only about a third recovered on 
* Vibrio (Muller), Anguillula (Ehrenberg), Rhabditis (Dujardin). See ‘“ Mon. 
on the Anguillulide.’”’ by H. Charlton Bastian, ‘ Trans. Linn. Soe.’ vol. xxv. 
pp. 87, 88. 
t+ See ‘L’Anguillule de la Tige’ (Tylenchus devastatriz, Kuhn), par Dr. J. 
Ritzema Bos. I. Haarlem, 1888. Pp. 86-92. 
t ‘Segmentation of the protoplasm” (J. R. B.). 
