Botany. 255 
Art. IX. May not the state of those indigenous plants, 
which blossom late in the season, indicate a late or an ear- 
ly autumn 2 by eae Dewey. 
Tue flowering of plants early or late in the spring, and 
the maturity of fruits early or late in the summer, are ever 
considered proof of an early or late season. The following 
facts give some plausibility to the as that the state of 
the later plants may be some index also to the season of 
autumn. ‘They are the result of observations for the last 
four years. The plants which invariably flower compara- 
tively late in the season, at this place, are several species of 
aster, and solidago, ao gentiana, and hamamelis virginica. 
In all these plants, except hamamelis, whose fruit is ripened 
the succeeding spring and summer, the process of maturing 
their seed seems to proceed rapidly, and the cooler tempe- 
rature of Autumn to be favorable to this process. The sum- 
mers of 1816 and 1817 were considerably colder than those 
of 1818 and 1819. ‘The mean temperature of the three 
summer months was as follows—for 1816, 63° 46 ; 1817, 
64° 41 ; 1818, 68° 57; 1819, 68° 84. The season of 
1816 will long be remembered for its cold. In this year, 
however, hamamelis and some species of solidago, which 
were all I then noticed, blossomed earlier than in either of 
the last two years. And in 1817, several species of the 
above genera flowered from ten to fourteen days earlier than 
in the two following years. But in 1816 and 1817 the au- 
tumn was much earlier, or vegetation was stopped by the 
cold much earlier than in 1518 and 1819. In 1816 the 
_ first severe frost was August 29th, and after September 20th. 
severe frosts were frequent. In 1817 the first severe frost 
was October Ist, and they occurred often after the middle 
of the month. In 1818, except on September 27th, there 
were no frosts of consequence till November. The first 
hard frost was October 6th, in 1819; and again towards the 
end of the month. ‘The above mentioned plants are 
uninjured by frosts which will kill our exotics. They can- 
not, however, endure repeated and severe frosts. So much 
later did these plants blossom in 1818, than in 1817, that 1 
seemed impossible for their seed to be matured, unless the 
severe frosts should be later than in 1817, and I was thence 
