1877.] Botany. 113 
. Descrizione di Tre Specie nuove del Genere Atractocerus appartenenti alle Colle- 
zioni Museo Civico di Genova. By R. Gestro. 8vo, pp. 4. 
Osservazioni sopra Alcune Specie Italiane del Genere Cychrus. By R Gestro. 
8vo, pp. 7 
Enumerazione dei Cetonidi, raccolti nell’ Arcipelago Malese e nella Papuasia, dai 
Signori G. Doria, O. Beccari, e L. M. d’Albertis. By R. Gestro. 8vo, pp. 31. 
pendix, pp. 28. ; 
Note sopra Alcuni Coleotteri appartenenti alle Collezione del Museo Civico di 
Genova. By Dr. R. Gestro. 8vo, pp. 13. 
Note sopra Alcuni Coleotteri appartenenti alle Collezione del Museo Civico di 
Geriova. Nuova Specie del Genere Zanthe. By Dr. R. Gestro. 8vo, pp. 8. 
GENERAL NOTES. 
BOTANY.! 
FERTILIZATION or Grentrana ANDREWsII. —Humble-bees are in 
the habit of entering bodily into the flower of this gentian, forcing open 
the mouth of the corolla to do so where this is closed, as it is in the 
absence of sunshine, and the anthers open before the stigmas separate 
to expose the pollen-receiving surface ; so it is evident that cross-fertili- 
zation is provided for. Our correspondent, Mr. M. W. Vandenberg, of 
Fort Edward, N. Y., communicates the result of some observations 
which show that this flower has likewise an arrangement for self-fertili- 
zation. The short tube of cohering and extrorsely opening anthers is 
higher than the stigma when the blossom first opens. The pistil after- 
wards lengthens, so that its apex protrudes; the broad and introrse 
stigmas now separate, at first moderately, but at length they diverge 
strongly and become revolute, so as to bring a portion of the broad 
stigmatic surface into contact with the outer face of the anther tube, 
Which usually is still covered with abundance of pollen. The pollen 
appears to retain its freshness for a long time, and in this slow move- 
ment of revolution of the stigmas they are seen to take up consider- 
able masses of the moist pollen. Those stigmas, therefore, which have 
ailed to receive extraneous pollen from bees during the first day or two 
of anthesis, will afterwards secure it from their own anthers. “ Get 
fertilized, cross-fertilized if you can, self-fertilized if you must, is nature’s 
golden rule for flowers.” — A. Gray. 
RIGIN OF VARIETIES; Two ILLUSTRATIONS. — Eight or ten years 
ago, on a plot of ground where I had grown beet seed of the early 
turnip variety, after the crop had been gathered from the seed that 
had dropped on the ground, there sprang up thousands of young plants. 
A large Proportion of these lived through the winter. It is my im- 
Pression that they had the protection of a thick growth of chick-weed. 
Tn the following spring, when plowing, these. plants were so forward 
left a portion of the piece unplowed, with the view of obtaining a 
> .G. DALE 
ee a Sd Conducted by es G. L. Goo 
