ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 991 



(&) In eacli leaf-axil a bud is placed, which in turn produces other buds 

 in the axils of some of its lower leaves. These, often simultaneously with 

 their mother-bud, are applied to flower-bearing after rest during several 

 years. (Ficus JEtoxhurgliii.) 



(c) In each leaf-axil two or more buds are placed in a row, which, on 

 their part, form other buds in the axils of their leaves, the lower ones 

 placed on the production of the leading shoot, and these buds appear one 

 after another. {Tlieoplirasta, Goethea.) 



(d) In each leaf-iixil a meristem is formed, from wliich, very slowly, it 

 would appear that many bnds are produced in rows, which develope after 

 several years of rest. 



(3) In some cases, not only single inflorescences are produced, but 

 flowering shoots, that continue to blossom for many years. 



Stipules and Petals.* — Observation of the stipules and flowers of the 

 rarely flowering Magnolia Frazeri has confirmed Mr. T. Meehan in the 

 conclusion previously arrived at by him that the petals of most flowers 

 should be considered enlarged stipules, or thinly dilated bases of petioles, 

 rather than modified leaves. This is especially the case with many kinds of 

 rose. In the Magnolia the transition from stipules to petals is very well seen. 



Amyloid Corpuscles in Pollen-grains.f — Investigating the starch-like 

 structures found in the fovilla of pollen-grains, called by Saccardo 

 " somatia," in upwards of two hundred plants, Sig. C. Zatti finds that 

 some of them are coloured blue, others a light yellow by iodine-reagents. 

 To the former, which vary greatly in size and form in different species, he 

 applies the term eusomatic ; to the latter, which are minute and globular, 

 notosomatic. This diff'erence does not correspond closely to any natural 

 system of classification. Thus, among the Eanunculaceje, the Cleraatidete, 

 Anemoneae, and Pjeoniese are notosomatic, while the Eanunculefe are 

 eusomatic. All the species of Malvaceae and Eosaceas are eusomatic ; 

 while, on the other hand, all the Papaveraceee, Cruciferse, and Caryophyl- 

 lacese are notosomatic. 



Forms of Seedlings and the causes to which they are due.t — In the 

 second part of his paper on this subject, Sir John Lubbock continues his 

 phytobiological observations as to the influence of the leaf on the cotyledon. 

 He describes in detail the seedlings of various Onagrarieae, some of which 

 have very curious cotyledons. I'or instance, in CEnothera Bistorta, the 

 cotyledons are long and linear, but suddenly widen at the end into a large 

 orbicular expansion, which gives them a very peculiar appearance. In the 

 case of unequal cotyledons, the instance of Coreopsis Atkinsoniana is well 

 worth a little attention. The seeds are obovate, curved longitudinally, and 

 compressed dorsiventrally, conforming to the interior of the fruit. The 

 embryo is slightly bent, following the direction of the seed. Consequently 

 the one cotyledon occupies the inner, the other the outer side of the curve ; 

 and the outer one is distinctly lai'ger than the other. As to the position of 

 the embryo in the seed, the genus Plantago is noticed, the position varying 

 with the different species. Divided cotyledons are far from frequent ; an 

 instance occurs in the lime {Tilia vulgaris). The author concludes with 

 some remarks on the form of the leaf in the tulip-tree, Liriodendron, which 

 he regards as being determined by the exigencies of the folding up of the 

 lamina and the stipules within the leaf-bud. 



* Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 1887, pp. 155-6. 

 t Bull. Soc. Ven.-Trent. Sci. Nat., iv. (1887) pp. 40-1. 



: Journ. Linn. Soc. Lond.— Bot., xxiv. (1887) pp. 62-87 (42 figs.). Cf. this Journal, 

 ante, p. 112. 



3 T 2 



