158 Jtaz'isni. 



ears (on the 46 first flowerstalks). In tlie next 100 the 

 proportion mounted to 60^/cy and 3-4 partite inflores- 

 cences also occurred. Later on, alxxit the middle of 

 July, the first stalks with five lateral ears appeared, and 

 the number of branched ears gradually increased to 70%, 

 and in August the strongest rosette had 67 ears of which 

 52 were branched, i. e., about 78%. 



A question at one time much discussed was whether 

 adventitious buds had the power to reproduce the varia- 

 tions and anomalies of the parent plant. At that time 

 malformations were not regarded as heritable, but since 

 the inheritance of monstrosities has become generally 

 recognized,-^ it must be considered evident that • adven- 

 titious buds will behave like normal ones ; and the only 

 question that can arise is whether they are more liable 

 to produce bud-variations or not. If they are weak the 

 abnormal character will be less pronounced; but if their 

 strength is equal to that of ordinary buds the abnormal 

 character must be developed to the same extent. It is 

 therefore almost superfluous to lay much stress on the 

 reproduction of the branched ears from tlie radical shoots 

 of our plantain. 



The rest of my experiments deal with divided plants. 

 In the spring of 1893 I selected for this purpose two fine 

 rosettes that had survived the winter and which had 

 proved to be particularly rich in branched ears in the 

 previous year. Both plants were divided as equally as 

 possible into halves. Of the first plants one-half was 

 planted in sand and of the other one-half was ])ut in the 

 shadow of a tree, the control halves of both plants being 

 cultivated under ordinary conditions for the pur]wse of 



"^Erfch'ke Monstrositcitcn, Kruidknndig Jaarboek, Gent. 1897, 

 p. 62. 



