1898 ] THE GERMINATION OF FERN AND MOSS SPORES 43 
twelve days. Experiments with the spores of Alsophila Loddigesti 
led to the same results. Thus for the species investigated, it can 
be stated as certain, that under ordinary conditions of nourish- 
ment and at a temperature of 19-21° C. the spores are not 
capable of germinating. The effect of a higher temperature was 
then tried for the spores of Ceratopteris, a culture of the spores 
being kept at 32° C. in the dark. After a lapse of sixteen days 
the culture was examined, and it was found that the spores had 
germinated abundantly. The form of growth was that of a cell 
filament, seven or eight cells long, the whole being about 2™™ 
in length (see fig. 5). The basal cell always produced a 
thizoid, and in some cases the end cells of the prothallium 
divided also longitudinally. The comparative size and form of 
a prothallium grown under these conditions and one grown in 
light at the normal temperature is shown in figs. 5 and 7. 
Experiments of a similar nature were also carried out for 
Alsophila Loddigesit. These expetiments are interesting in that 
they show how Borodin and Schmidt, and Géppert and Schelting 
could have obtained such contradictory results. 
4. EQUISETUM SPORES. 
There are no contradictory views in regard to the germina- 
tion of Equisetum spores, both investigations cited admitting 
and establishing the fact that germination occurred in perfect 
darkness. I. have repeated these experiments for spores of 
Equisetum arvense, with the same result. It can then be stated 
with absolute certainty, that Equisetum spores are able to ger- 
Minate under ordinary conditions of nourishment and at a tem- 
perature of 19—21° C., in darkness as well as in light. From 
the foregoing results it seems that light or organic nourishment 
is one of the necessary conditions for the germination of moss 
and liverwort spores, in order that chemical changes may take 
place which will bring the reserve food material into a condi- 
tion in which it can be used in growth. For the ferns, these 
chemical processes may be initiated either by light or a suffi- 
cently high temperature, while in the case of Equisetum these 
