F. H. Herrich — Abnormal Hickory Nuts. 261 



The meat of the first abnormal nut (fig. 1, c) is represented 

 in '^^. 6, as it appears when removed from its inner shelly cov- 

 ering. The fact that the meat was white and fresh, and as 

 already stated, not devoid of taste, after the lapse of twenty- 

 one years, argues well for the density and impenetrability of 

 its shelly coverings. 



The parenchymatous cells near the surface of the cotyledon 

 are smaller than in the normal hickory nut {Gary a sulcata), and 

 abound in starch and oil. In the normal nut the cells are of 

 larger size and contain very much less starch and more oil. 



The second nut (fig. 1, e) which I planted in earth after 

 cracking the inner shell, failed to germinate, though I 

 gave it warmth and moisture for several months. But since 

 some acorns and other nuts which were planted at the same 

 time and in the same pot, died, it is evident that the con- 

 ditions of growth were for some unknown reasons unfavorable, 

 and possibly under better auspices germination might have 

 taken place. 



Sections through the meat show two cotyledons, crumpled 

 and folded upon each other in a very complex manner (figs. 7, 8). 

 The parenchymatous cells appear to be normal. They are 

 packed with minute ovoidal starch grains. 



The origin of the abnormal variety. 



It has been seen that Dr. Kirtland considered this variation 

 in the hickory as a result of hybridism with the oak, the only 

 evidence of this being the peculiar form of the inner nut, 

 resembling indeed an acorn in general appearance, the circum- 

 stances that the hickory was overshadowed by an oak, and the 

 bitterness of the nut. 



The fact that the inner nut resembles an acorn in general 

 appearance, and is attached by a definite stem which ends in an 

 expansion within the endocarp is indeed striking, but I find 

 nothing in the histology of these parts to show that this resem- 

 blance is anything more than superficial. The sclerenchyma 

 of the inner nut is far more like that of the endocarp of the 

 hickory than that of the oak. 



Supposing that hybridism between two such families of 

 plants as the oak and the hickory possible, it could rarely 

 liappen since the oaks of this region flower a week or more in 

 advance of the hickories. So that if hybridism did occur in 

 this instance, the flowering of the one. species must have been 

 abnormally delayed, or that of the other abnormally accelerated. 



On May 15th of this year I gathered some young nuts of the 

 hickory near Cleveland which were perhaps a week old and 

 measured over the exocarp in one case 5x8 millimeters. The 



