16 



SCIENCE. 



IS. S. Vol. XIX. No. 470. 



nomenclature or certain systems of botan- 

 ical grouping, will give place to natural 

 gardens where may be grouped herbaceous, 

 shrubby and other plants in such a way as 

 to appeal to the mind through the eye. 

 Unquestionably a much greater apprecia- 

 tion of botany and botanical work can be 

 brought about by gardens of this kind, and 

 it is believed that great encouragement will 

 be made in the matter of their development 

 at educational institutions wherever oppor- 

 tunity affords. 



In morphology and physiology we shall 

 expect to see more and more important 

 problems worked out by experimental 

 methods. Less attention will be given to 

 the mere accumulation of facts without 

 proper coordination. The value and im- 

 portance of experimental morphology are 

 already beginning to be realized; that is, 

 experimental morphology from the stand- 

 point of work on plants in their natural 

 environment rather than under laboratory 

 conditions. The same is true of physiol- 

 ogy. In the past our knowledge of plant 

 physiology has been largely based on labo- 

 ratory work and studies of one or more 

 individual plants. From such data broad 

 generalizations have been made, which, as 

 time has shown, have in many cases been 

 erroneous. In other words, it has been 

 found unsafe and unreliable to base gen- 

 eralizations in the matter of the life pro- 

 cesses of plants on laboratory experiments 

 alone. The physiology of the future will 

 undoubtedly pay more heed to the broader 

 questions of plant life in their relation to 

 environment and their adaptation in gen- 

 eral to surrounding conditions. In other 

 words, ecology in its broad sense is to be 

 an important factor in the future study of 

 plants. In the past we have had a school 

 of scientific workers arise and endeavor to 

 demonstrate that the growth of plants is 

 controlled in large measure by the chem- 

 ical properties of the soil. More recently 



another school has developed in which the 

 physical properties of the soil are pointed 

 out as the chief factors in influencing life 

 processes. Those who study plants them- 

 selves can not accept such generalities. It 

 is not safe. Future ecological studies will 

 i;ndoubtedly furnish much new light on the 

 true relationships existing between plants 

 and their environment. These questions 

 must naturally receive a great deal of at- 

 tention for the reason that many of the 

 most important problems in agriculture, 

 horticulture and forestry will be based 

 upon them. 



It is in pathology that we shall expect to 

 see very important advances within the 

 near future. This science is just on the 

 threshold of its development. From the 

 purely utilitai'ian standpoint it will be of 

 vital consequence, and everything in the 

 nature of strengthening it will necessarily 

 need to receive most careful thought. The 

 pathology of the future will have its 

 groundwork in physiology. Less and less 

 attention will undoubtedly be given to the 

 mere question of remedial measures, and 

 more thought will be paid to the causes of 

 plant diseases and the relation of environ- 

 ment to these causes. The highest type of 

 pathological work, in other words, will be 

 in the field of preventive measures, either 

 by the correction of unfavorable conditions 

 or by developing plants in such a way that 

 they can meet conditions which are not 

 favorable. 



In the light of these probable develop- 

 ments, an important question to consider is : 

 Where are the workers to come from and 

 how are they to be trained? Undoubtedly 

 in the future much greater interest will be 

 taken in botanical work in our educational 

 institutions, for the reason that it is grad- 

 ually coming to the knowledge of young 

 men that there is a demand for persons well 

 trained in plant lines. As a matter of fact, 

 during the last few years the supply of 



