600 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXVI. No. 931 



rosettes was sent to Washington to be grown 

 there. 



The evening primroses are found all along 

 the river bluffs, often at the very edge of the 

 perpendicular bank, which is some twenty feet 

 higher than the river. In the old cotton fields 

 they evidently find a favorable habitat, as may 

 he concluded from their abundance in even 

 very recently cultivated fields. The two 

 species, CEnothera grandiflora. and (E. Tracyi 

 were found growing together iu all the fields 

 which we studied, including those from which 

 Professor Tracy's seed had been obtained in 

 former years. Eeally pure stands of CE. 

 grandiflora we failed to find either in the old 

 fields or in the woods along the river. Inter- 

 mingled with the most frequent types of CE. 

 grandiflora and (E. Tracyi were numerous less 

 abundant types. This was particularly true 

 in the old fields. It is hardly probable that all 

 of the types which occur at Dixie Landing 

 were observed by us. The following types, 

 designated by letters from a to I, were noted, 

 and of some of them seeds were obtained. Of 

 other types, which were just coming into 

 flower, seeds could not be obtained, biit it is 

 hoped that these will be found in the collec- 

 tion of rosettes which was sent to Washing- 

 ton. 



1. Types like CE. grandiflora, i. e., types 

 having large flowers with the style longer than 

 the stamens: (a) with green, glabrous calyx 

 segments and short capsules; (b) with green, 

 viscid-puberulent calyx segments and short 

 capsules; (c) with red-spotted, glabrous calyx 

 segments and short fruit; {d) with red, glab- 

 rous calyx segments and long capsules; 

 (e) with red-spotted, viscid puberulent calyx 

 segments and short capsules; (/) with red- 

 spotted glabrous calyx segments and petals 

 orange-colored on wilting (all the other types 

 were light yellow on wilting) ; ((/) with red- 

 spotted, glabrous calyx segments and pinnati- 

 fid leaves (all the other types had the leaves 

 merely dentate or subdentate). 



2. Types like (E. Tracyi, i. e., with flowers 

 medium sized and stamens reaching the stig- 

 mas: Qi) with green calyx segments and 

 green, pilose capsules; (z) with green calyx 



segments and green, glabrous capsules; (/) 

 with red-spotted calyx segments and green, 

 pilose capsules; {h) with red-spotted calyx 

 segments and pilose, longitudinally red- 

 striped capsules; (Z) with red calyx segments 

 and green capsules, a beautiful form the col- 

 oration of which suggests that it may be a 

 variant of CE. Tracyi parallel to certain of the 

 Amsterdam mutants of CE. Lamarclciana. 



The classification of the types of CE. grandi- 

 flora does not take into consideration the 

 pubescence of the stem, which varies widely, 

 the shape of the leaves, which is equally vari- 

 able, or the mode of branching, which can not 

 be accurately judged in specimens growing 

 under the diverse conditions afforded by the 

 habitat at Dixie Landing. It should be noted 

 that all of the CEnothera grandiflora types 

 had glabrous, green capsules, that none of 

 them were at all ambiguous with respect to 

 the size and position of the floral parts, and 

 that none of them could be considered at all 

 similar to the CE. Lamarchiana of the Amster- 

 dam cultures. A very few specimens were 

 found of which the broad leaves were some- 

 what crinkled, but so slightly so as to suggest 

 that the variation was merely individual or 

 accidental. 



The classification of the types of CE. Tracyi 

 takes no account of the width of the leaves, 

 or of the degree and kind of pubescence. Of 

 course a more complete analysis of the composi- 

 tion of the CEnothera population at Dixie Land- 

 ing will be made when the rosettes have flowered 

 in Washington and a second generation has 

 been grown from self -pollinated seed of all the 

 forms found in the collection. At the present 

 time it is sufllcient to point out that no CEno- 

 thera from Dixie Landing, however constant 

 it may seem to be when grown generation 

 after generation from self-pollinated seed, can 

 be cleared of the suspicion that it may be of 

 hybrid origin. In other words, the same sus- 

 picion that attaches to so many of the strains 

 of CEnothera Lamarchiana in Europe attaches 

 to any strain of CEnothera grandiflora which 

 is now being used by experimenters. 



It is therefore of some importance to com- 

 pare the conditions under which CE. grandi- 



