FIELD AND FOREST. 95 



May 22nd, (20Sth meciitig.) 



James Greenwood, Jr., was elected a member. 



Dr. Schaeffer read a paper upon the form and size of hailstones in 

 the storm of to-day. 



Gleanings in Foreign Fields. 



The Colors of Spring Flowers. — Some interesting observations 

 on the flowering of spring plants have just been made at the meeting 

 of the Edinburgh Botanical Society by the Vice-president, Mr. Buchan, 

 who, with a view of discovering what may be learned from the bud- 

 ding, leafing, and flowering of plants and trees, has collected the fol- 

 lowing information on the subject : It appears from the result of 

 noting the average dates of flowering of 32 species at the Royal Botani- 

 cal Gardens during 26 years, that the six latest springs were — 1855, 

 when the flowering was 30 clays later than the average; 1870, when 

 flowering was 16 days; 1853, 14 days; 1856, 13 days; 1857 and 1865, 

 each 12 days later. The five earliest springs were 1874, when flower- 

 ing was 23 days earlier than the average date; 1869, when it was 19 

 days ; 1851, 13 days ; and 1858 and 1866, each 11 days earlier. The 

 two extremes show a difference between the dates of flowering in differ- 

 ent years of fifty-three days. The longest deviations from the average 

 were before the equinox. As to the relations which these effects have 

 to temperature, it was found that the mean temperature of Edinburgh 

 fell to its lowest on the nth of January, when it was 34.8°, and from 

 this point it may be assumed that meteorological conditions commence 

 which result in giving vegetation a start. Another question of great 

 interest is the relation of the color of flowers to their date of flowering. 

 Taking 909 species of British flora, 257 were found to have white 

 flowers, 238 yellow, 144 red, 94 purple, 87 blue, the remainder being 

 green and other colors. Of the blue flowers, 16 per cent, bloomed in 

 April ; 14 per cent, of the white flowers bloomed in that month, but 

 only 9 per cent, of the reds, the yellows being very close to the latter. 

 It thus appeared that the blues were far ahead of the reds and yellows, 

 the whites being intermediate, and the purples and greens came in 

 between the blues and the reds. This indicates the existence of some 

 general law which arranges the flowering of plants in ^he British flora 

 according to the colors in the spectrum. 



