1915] YASUI—DIOSPYROS KAKI 365 
pollen grains, which germinate well on the stigma and in nutrient 
fluids. 
I have also examined many other specimens, but the main 
results of the investigation were obtained from these five. The 
material of no. 1 was collected in Tokyo, but the others were 
obtained from the experiment station at Okitsu, in Central Japan. 
The material was fixed with Flemming’s weaker solution, and 
chromo-acetic acid mixture was also used, giving better results than 
the former medium. The sections were stained with Flemming’s 
triple stain and Haidenhain’s iron-hematoxylin. 
Development of staminate flower 
The cluster of staminate flowers appears on young shoots in 
early spring. It consists usually of three flowers (fig. 1), but some- 
times includes 7 or more. The very young shoot bends downward, 
and 2-4 of the lower leaves have nectaries on the under surface, 
near the base. The succession of members is strictly centripetal. 
The calyx is valvate, but the four petals are spirally arranged 
(fig. 3). The 16 stamens occur in four cycles (fig. 3), and appear 
in pairs from the earliest stage (fig. 2). The mature stamen has a 
very short filament, and the connective extends above the anther. 
The pistils complete their development very early. A few flowers 
were found which were 5-merous instead of 4-merous. 
Development of perfect flower 
The perfect flower always occurs at the top of the cluster. It 
has the same arrangement of members as the staminate flower 
when young (fig. 4), and the pistils of the perfect flower are smaller 
than those of the pistillate flowers. Occasionally they have less 
than 8 ovules, which is the ordinary number in the pistillate 
flowers, and sometimes they have no ovules. Abnormalities 
occur, not only in the number of ovules, but sometimes in the 
irregular forms of the pistils themselves. The fruit of the perfect 
flower is always smaller than that of the pistillate flower, and usually 
it has no seeds. 
