Notes on Pollen. By Worthington G. Smith. 13 
The four pollens just referred to may be considered quite typical of 
the Onagracee. ‘The best marked species bear pollen which is 
most constant in form, whilst in the long-cultivated garden plants, 
as the Fuchsia, the pollen is always variable. When Fuchsia pro- 
cumbens was reintroduced to our gardens a year or two ago by 
Mr. F. R. Kinghorn, it was expected that many beautiful and 
curious hybrids would be raised between this plant and some of the 
better known Fuchsias of our gardens; but we pointed out at one 
of the meetings of the Royal Horticultural Society that the pollen 
of Fuchsia procumbens differed from every other Fuchsia pollen 
known to us at that time.* Therefore the production of true 
hybrids appeared to us, if not impossible, at least very improbable. 
The statement of this fact was replied to by a famous horticulturist, 
who said hybrids had already been obtained, and so our hypothesis 
for a time fell to the ground. We waited for two years in doubt 
as to these hybrids, and last July we wrote to Mr. Kinghorn to 
know how they proceeded. In reply, Mr. Kinghorn immediately 
and frankly wrote: “I have not succeeded in raising any hybrids 
between F’. procumbens and the garden sorts, although I have tried 
on a number with the greatest care.” Elsewhere in the same 
letter Mr. Kinghorn remarked—* but I have succeeded in raising 
a few seedlings from Ff. splendens crossed with F’. procumbens, 
really intermediate in character.” Now in F’. splendens, which is 
a good species, it is a singular fact that the pollen is of two forms ; 
about one-third of the pollen is triangular in shape (like that of 
most Fuchsias), whilst at least two-thirds is so exactly like the 
peculiar-shaped pollen of F’. procumbens, that it can hardly be dis- 
tinguished from it. 
Triangular pollens are by no means confined to the Onagraces 
family, as Fig. 5 represents the pollen of the common Honeysuckle, 
Loniecera periclymenum ; Fig. 6 that of Erica tetralix ; and Fig. 7 
that of a Rhododendron, R. Catawbiense. Another member of the 
Erica family, Clethra arborea, Fig. 8, differs from the general 
form. 
Few pollens are more interesting than those belonging to the 
Borage family. All we have seen are small, some quite minute, 
and all are more or less shaped like dumb-bells. Fig. 9 represents 
that of the common Comfrey, Symphytum officinale, Fig. 10 that 
of Cerimthe bicolor, Fig. 11 that of Omphalodes linifolia, and 
Fig. 12 that of Hchiwm vulgare. The latter pollen is remarkable 
on account of its two lobes being always unequal, as shown. 
Some members of the Acanthus family have beautiful pollen 
with peculiar markings. Lbonia floribunda is represented at 
Fig. 13, and Sericographis Ghiesbreghtiana at Fig. 14. One of 
* The pollen of F. procumbens is figured in ‘ Gardeners’ Chronicle, Sept. 5, 
1874, p. 291. 
