42 



ESTABLISHMENT OF VARIETIES IN COLEUS 



increase of red. If we consider that the abihty to produce yellow and 

 red are the more recently acquired characters of the cells, these data 

 would indicate a tendency toward loss rather than gain of these 

 characters. 



A summary of the data regarding the degree of constancy of the 

 various patterns and the nature of the variations which they exhibit 

 is of further interest in a consideration of the tendencies of the vari- 

 ations. In comparing bud variations which originate in a bud the 

 comparison on the basis of the total buds produced seems quite ade- 

 quate. The comparison of fluctuating variations requires a different 

 treatment. On plants with irregular and mixed patterns it is not 

 practicable, if possible, to attempt a statistical determination of the 

 fluctuating branches. Only in few cases when such changes were 



Table 1 1 . — Summary of changes occurring in the principal patterns. 



Green- Yellow- 

 yellow- green- 

 red red 

 blotched, blotched. 



Green- 

 yellow 



spotted- 

 red 



blotched. 



Plants 



with 



laciniate 



leaves. 



Green- 

 red 

 blotched. 



Total number plants ' 337 



Plants constant for green and yellow. . . 218 



Percentage of constant plants 65 



Changes in yellow: 

 Increase: 



Frequency 7 



Ratio of frequency 9,630 



Decrease : 



Frequency 32 



Ratio of frequency 2,100 



Reversal : j 



Frequency 6 



Ratio of frequency ■ 11,230 



Total frequency 45 



Ratio of frequency for all bud variations . 1 ,490 



41 

 24 

 59 



3 



2,730 



11 



740 



14 

 590 



198 



126 



63 



4 

 9,900 



2 

 19,800 



6 

 0,600 



68 

 

 



1 



13,600 



1 

 13,600 



90 

 31 

 34 



11 

 1,6.30 



2 

 6,800 



11 

 1,630 



Umited to a branch could there by any degree of accuracy. Further- 

 more, fluctuations in number and size of the blotches of epidermal red, 

 although frequent and somewhat persistent, were not recorded. As 

 long as the pattern was blotched the plants were grouped together and 

 changes to solid red or to no-red for considerable areas of a leaf were 

 not considered as a bud variation unless a series of leaves showed that 

 the change was sectorial for a stem. For this reason the data given in 

 table 11 are summarized for fluctuations and bud variations involving 

 yellow and green in patterns with red blotched epidermis. 



The percentage of constant plants for yellow and green given in 

 table 11 is derived by dividing the number of plants which were con- 

 stant by the total grown of the pattern concerned. This gives an 

 index of the constancy of a type, although it does not take into account 

 the varying degrees of the fluctuations which appeared. 



