HOW TO GROW GOOD CLOVER. 157 



its large increase, we remember once seeing a crop 

 of flax grown from Riga seed diminished about 

 one-twentieth by the dodder; but on the seed so 

 produced being sown in another field of the same 

 farm, the crop of flax was well-nigh destroyed. 



Our friend Professor Voelcker had some seed of 

 the flax dodder sent to him for analysis, the reason 

 being that, as his correspondent had separated a 

 great number of bushels of this weed pest from a 

 single crop of flax, he was desirous of ascertaining 

 whether it possessed any feeding properties or the 

 reverse ; and on this head it is satisfactory to learn 

 that it is considered useless, though innocuous. 



It was part of this sample with which we experi- 

 mented on the mode of growth of dodder, which, 

 although being the dodder of the flax or linseed 

 plant, yet its natural history will doubtless be that of 

 the clover dodder j* we shall, therefore, describe the 

 progress of our experiments, and their results. 



Having prepared some finely-sifted soil in a garden 

 saucer, we sowed a small quantity of flax seed with 

 which had been purposely mixed a few of the seeds 

 of flax dodder ; this, on being placed in a hot-house, 

 showed the progress indicated in the diagram. 



A. Seed-covering beneath 

 which radicle or young root 

 is pushing. 



B. Leafless stem or ten- 

 dril growing upwards, bear- 

 ing seed-covering on its apex. 



C Youngtbread-like plant 

 freed from seed-covering, on 

 the look-out for a foster- 

 parent. 



D. Not finding a foster-parent, droops and dies. 



* We are desirous of instituting special experiments on the growth 

 of clover dodder, but have failed to procure ripe seed, the reason 

 being that the seed does not ripen after the clover has been cut down 

 for its first crop. 



O 



