169 



Field Trip of Saturday, September 24 



On this afternoon a party of thirty six walked along the base 

 of the Palisades from the Dyckman Street ferry to the Alpine 

 landing. Several species of goldenrods and asters were found, 

 most interesting being the tall seaside goldenrod, Solidago 

 sempervirens, found on and near some of the tidal mud flats. 

 Here it was growing with marsh grass, Spartinia cynosuroides, 

 the halbert leaved orach, A triplex patula, var. hastata and a few 

 other salt marsh plants. The striking diversity in appearance 

 and habit of species of knotweeds was observed with interest. 

 The spreading door weed, Polygonum aviculare, growing in the 

 path, common lady's thumb, P. Persicaria, among the weeds on 

 level ground, water pepper, P. hydropiperoides, and tear thumb, 

 P . sagittatum , beside a brook, Virginia knotweed, P. virginianum, 

 with its fruits that snap away from the stem when touched, 

 growing at the edges of the woods, and the climbing false buck- 

 wheat, P. Scandens, climbing over bushes and rocks presented 

 greater contrasts than can ordinarily be found in one genus. 

 The most unusual find was a seedling fig tree about two feet 

 high growing in an angle between large boulders. 



George T. Hastings 



NEWS NOTES 



Dr. William Trelease, professor emeritus of botany at 

 the University of Illinois, who spent last winter and the early 

 spring in recreation and botanical work in the Canary Islands 

 and the south of Spain, plans a similar expedition this winter to 

 New Zealand. 



(Science) 



Dr. W. W. Robbins, head of the Division of Botany at the 

 Davis Branch of the College of Agriculture of the University 

 of California, will spend six months in Europe where he plans 

 to continue his investigations on sugar beets, weeds and seeds. 



(Science) 



Dr. R. R. Stewart has brought a large collection of plant 

 specimens from northwest Himalayas, the Punjab and Kashmir 

 to the New York Botanical Garden. Dr. Stewart expects to 

 remain at the garden for a year naming the plants. 



