ee se ee | 
1906] CURRENT LITERATURE cha 305 
Nuclear division in Ascomycetes.—GUILLIERMOND"’ has continued his 
studies on nuclear division in the Ascomycetes, which support in all essentials 
the conclusions of HARPER and contravene those of MAIRE (except as to Gal- 
actinia), though they are perhaps not irreconcilable with them. However, 
his descriptions are not so detailed as those of HARPER in his last paper on Phyl- 
lactinia, especially as it relates to the centers of spindle formation. In this 
r GUILLIERMOND discusses chiefly the mother-cells of the asci and secre- 
tion. The species studied comprise Pustularia vesiculosa, Aleuria cerea, Peziza 
rutilans, P. Catinus, and Galactinia succosa. —B. M. Davis 
Soil waters.—CAMERON and BELL show" that as a rule the various mineral 
constituents of the soil solutions exist in sufficient concentration for the growth 
of crops, and that the magnitude of the concentrations is practically the same for 
all soils, because, generally speaking, soils contain all the common rock forming 
minerals, some of each species presenting its surfaces to the solvent action of 
the soil water; and on account of hydrolysis of the solutes this solvent action 
is continuous. The paper strongly supports the previous work of the Bureau 
of Soils which has been so much criticised, often on a@ priori grounds.—C. R. B. 
Non-infection by rusts.—Erysiphe graminis has a number of biologic forms 
which are confined to special hosts. Thus conidia from the form on wheat 
will not infect barley and that on oats will not infect wheat. SALMon’? has 
recently shown that the reason of the non-infection is not due to inability on 
the part of the conidia to germinate, but because the haustoria cannot establish 
relations with the cells of the host plant.—B. M. Davis. 
Endoparasitic adaptation —SALmoNn’? shows that Erysiphe haar adapts 
itself readily to an endophytic life. When spores are sown on oats 
or barley the mycelium ramifies in the intercellular spaces a haustoria are 
abundantly produced. Conidiophores develop profusely and perfect conidia 
where they arise on a free surface; and they even break through a weak barrier 
when they develop in intercellular spaces.—C. 
Greening of seeds.— Ernst?" finds that during the ripening of the fruit of 
Eriobotrya japonica the seeds become green, quite independent of light, by reason 
of the greening of the amyloplasts. The process begins at the plumule of the 
17 GUILLIERMOND, A., Remarques sur la karyokinése des Ascomycttes. Ann. 
Mycol. witli pls. IO-12. 1905. 
18 CAMERON, F. K., and Bett, J. M., The mineral constituents of soils. U. S. 
Dept. Agric., me Soils Bull 30. pp. 
19 SALMON, E. S., On the stages = paige’ reached by certain biologic 
5 
forms of Erysiphe in cases of non-infection. New Phytol. 4:217. 1905. pl. 
20 SALMON, E. S., On 
under cultural conditi tions. 
21 Ernst, A., Das mesa: der pei yon Eriohbotrya japonica. 
a ce agrees ae by Erysiphe graminis DC. 
hae y. Soc. London B. 198:87~-97. pl. 6. 1905. 
Beihefte Bot. 
a 
Centralbl. r9™: 118-130. pl. 2. 1905. 
