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1892.1] Relations of Fall to Spring Blossoming Plants. 3 
the fall owing to the advanced state of development of their 
buds at this season, even before the habit of flowering in the 
fall setin. It was only necessary to secure means of perfect- 
ing their fruit. To illustrate these phenomena the writer has 
chosen the three plants having this habit which are most 
familiar to himself: Hamamelis Virginiana L. of the United 
States, Hedera Helix L.,. and Colchicum autumnale L., of Eu- 
rope, a shrub, a vine and an herbaceous plant respectively, 
belonging to widely different families. 
Hamamelis Virginiana, the witch hazel, usually flowers 
in October or November, but occasionally, after a cold fall, 
not until the ensuing spring. The flower buds appear very 
early, almost simultaneously with the leaves, perhaps, but 
search was not made for them at so early a date. The specimen 
figured was collected early in'July. It will be noticed that the 
flower clusters are axillary (fig. 1.) The clusters consist usually 
of three buds closely arranged around the pointed termination 
of the little axillary stem (fig. 4.) Each bud is subtended by a 
small appressed bract which reaches about the same height 
as the buds; these bracts therefore do not offer full protection 
to the buds within (figs. 2, 3, 4.) Possibly the bracts com-— 
pletely enclosed the clusters formerly, when the witch hazel 
flowered only in spring. The deféct is remedied by the sub- 
coriaceous character of the exposed portions of the calyx, 
and the hairy covering to both the calyx and the subtending 
bracts (figs. 2, 3.) The early development of the flower clus- 
ter, its long period of extremely slow development, the sub- 
coriaceous character of the calyx and of the bracts, the hairy 
covering of the same, all indicate rather a plant which once 
was obliged to protect its blossoms for spring flowering, than 
a fall plant which is developing into a spring blossomer, or a 
summer plant becoming a fall blossomer. The fruit remains 
small during the winter. It is very coriaceous in character, 
and in addition has a protection of closely-fitting hairs. Its 
real development begins first in spring, and the seeds are usu- 
ally not ripened until late summer. 
Hedera Helix, the European ivy, usually flowers in October, 
' but in more southern countries™as early as September. The 
writer has seen no record of its ever blossoming in the spring. 
It may therefore be assumed to be a plant which has entirely 
gone over ftom spring to fall blossoming. The young branches 
of the ivy do not all cease growth at very nearly the same 
