330 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [MAY 
New England coast and the maritime provinces of Canada.3 I 
have not indeed been able to find any typical salt marshes in the 
Naples region, since the beaches are often for long distances walled 
or protected by riprap against the encroachment of the sea, and 
nearly land-locked bodies of salt water such as Lake Lucrinus and 
the Mare Morto are surrounded by vertical stone walls, to admit of 
the utilization of the adjacent land to the water’s edge. 
It would a priori seem probable that the plants of Association A 
would belong to the category of littoral species rather than of genuine 
halophytes, and the results of my cultures confirm this supposition. 
It seemed to the writer that the questions most worthy of investi- 
gation in connection with the association studied were: (1) the rela- 
tive sensitiveness of the species to the effect of sea water or sodium 
chlorid solutions;+ (2) the relative sensitiveness of strand-grown 
and inland-grown specimens of the same species to the effect of such 
solutions. 
Thrifty self-sown seedlings of the species of Euphorbia, Matthiola, 
and Senecio in the list of members of Association A were found in 
great abundance, and therefore special attention was given to these 
species, though larger plants of all the others which could be obtained 
in good condition were also studied. Sea water and pure sodium 
chlorid, in solutions ranging from 1 to 6 per cent. of the salt were 
used for the cultures. The roots of the plants were partially freed 
from adhering sand or earth by careful immersion in a solution of the 
same strength as that employed in the culture, and then the plants. 
were transferred to small tumblers containing the culture solution in 
which the roots were immersed. Each tumbler was covered by a. 
disk of waterproofed pasteboard, fitted around the protruding stems. 
of the seedlings, sufficiently close to prevent much evaporation, but 
not to hinder aeration of the solution. The room temperature 
during the two and a half months devoted to the investigation usually 
ranged between 12° or 15°C. by night and 20° or 22° by day, and. 
the plants were about 1.5™ in front of a south window 2.5™ wide. 
3 See GANONG, W. F., The vegetation of the Bay of F undy salt and diked mani a 
Bot. Gaz. 36:286, 292. 
4 The writer took a eucatS the accuracy of H. Couprn’s statement that the 
fatal effect of sea water upon vegetation is due to its sodium chlorid. See his article: 
Sur la toxicité de chlorure de sodium, etc. Rev. Gén. Botanique 10:177. 1898. 
