78 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [july 



Elementary species and hybrids of Capsella. — Shull^^ has published an 

 extract from his paper at the recent New York meeting of the American Associ- 

 ation. The raising of over 20,000 ^^pedigreed" specimens demonstrated the 

 presence of at least four elementary species that breed true when self-pollinated or 

 crossed within the limits of the same elementary form. The bearing of these 

 experimental results upon questions of plant-breeding under discussion is com- 

 pactly outlined. — J. M. C. 



Sporogonium of Notothylas. — Lang^^ has made a study of the sporogonium 

 of a Notothylas, presumably N, Breutelii, growing in the Singapore Botanic 

 Gardens. The embryogeny is in no way different from that of the other Antho- 

 cerotales except that more or less of the endothecium is sporogenous. Lang 

 thinks Notothylas is a rather artificial genus which includes a number of forms 

 derived by reduction in size of the sporogonia from one or more Anthoceros-like 

 forms. — W. J. G. Land. 



Sporangium of Equisetum. — Haw^kins^*^ has described a situation in the 

 development of the sporangium of Eqiiisetum hiemale which is hard to understand. 

 The superficial sporangium initial divides periclinally, as usual, but the inner cell 

 is said to be sterile, and the outer to give rise to the sporogenous tissue, which is 

 certainly not the eusporangiate habit. With this interpretation, the sporogenous 

 tissue is superficially exposed and forms the so-called wall-layers. — J. M. C 



Ovules of Juniperus. — Kubart^^ regards the ovulate structures in Juniperus 

 as a single flower and not as an inflorescence, the ovules being simply transformed 

 leaves, and the ovuliferous scale an aril. The ovulate and staminate flowers 

 show a perfectly analogous structure. The paper contains a short discussion 

 of the phylogeny of gymnosperms. — Charles J. Chamberlain. 



Formative substances. — Child^s thorough criticism of the hypotheses of 

 ^'formative substances" as applied to the phenomena of development, regenera- 

 tion, polarity, etc., in animals deserves attention by botanists, since like general 

 assumptions, which involve special assumptions in an endless chain, have some 

 currency in plant physiology.-^^ — C. R. B. 



i 



-54 Shull, George H., Elementary species and hybrids of Bursa. Science N. S. 

 25:590-591- 1907- 



35 Lang, W. H., On the sporogonium of Notothylas. Annals of Botany 21 : 201- 

 210. pi. 21. 1907. 



36 Hawkins, Lon A., The development of the sporangium of Equisetum kyemale. 

 Ohio Nat. 7:122-128. pis. Q-io. 1907, 



. 37 Kubart, Bruxo, Die weiblichc Bluthe von Ju?iiperus communis L. Sitzber. 

 Kais. Akad. Wiss. Wien 114:1-29. pis, 1-2. 1905. 



3^ Child, C. M., Some considerations regarding so-called formative substances. 

 Biol. Bull. 11:165-181, 1906. 



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