498 



and the granular contents amalgamate, nearly filling up the parent-cell. 

 The result of this conjugation is a large, compound, granular cell. 

 Watching its further progress, we observe the granules becoming more 

 and more distinct and defined, till at length the mother-cell bursts, 

 and the contained cellules escape ; at the same time the ascus gives 

 way, and the cellules are dispersed as spores, to originate new indi- 

 viduals." The paper was concluded by some general remarks on the 

 conjugation of cells, as being in all orders of plants the type of the 

 generative act. 



Dr. Balfour stated that Mr. Allan B. Dick (assistant to Dr. George 

 Wilson) had analyzed the leaf of Livistonia chinensis, Sabal umbracu- 

 lifera, Chamaerops hurailis and arborescens, grown in the Palm House 

 of the Royal Botanic Garden, and had detected a veiy notable 

 quantity of manganese in their composition. He exhibited, on a pla- 

 tina wire, an opaque, bluish green bead, the result of fiising the ashes 

 with carbonate of soda in the outer flame, so as to produce manganate 

 of soda (soda mineral chameleon) ; and a transparent violet bead, ob- 

 tained by heating the ashes with borax and a trace of nitre, so as to 

 produce a glass, coloured like the amethyst, by oxide of manganese. 

 Mr. Dick is now making a complete analysis of the ashes. 



Mr. M'Nab read the following report on the state of vegetation in 

 the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, from the 8th of January till the 11th 

 of February. The communication embraced a register of the periods 

 of flowering of plants in the open air, as compared with the flower- 

 ing of the same species, and as nearly as possible the same individual 



plants, during the two previous years. 



Dates of Flowering. 



Name. 



Rhododendron aU-ovirens . . - 



Garrya elliptica - - - - 



Rhododendron Nobleauum - - - 



Geum pyrenaicuna - - - - 



Erica herbacea - - - - - 



Corylus Avellana - - - - 



Azara dentata . - - - - 



Alnus glutinosa . - - _ 



Galanthus nivalis . - . - 



Knappia agrostidea ... 



Daphne Mezereon . - - _ 



Eranthis hyemalis 



