No: 422.] QUANTITATIVE STUDY OF VARIATION [13 
Stream, one-half mile east of Yellow Springs, and from four 
individuals similarly located in the valley of the Glen Stream 
about forty rods above the point at which it empties into the 
Little Miami River, one mile southeast of Yellow Springs, 
Ohio. | 
The manner of production of annual stems in Aster puniceus L. 
resembles closely that of Aster nove-anglie L. The material 
of Aster puniceus L. used in this study was collected Sept. 25, 
1900. It consisted of 798 capitula from thirteen stems arising 
from three perennial roots growing at the margin of a bog five 
miles west of Yellow Springs, Ohio. These three individuals 
were identieally located, being separated by a space of but a 
few yards. Environmental conditions had, therefore, no known 
influence in oe the differences in the heads from the 
three clumps. 
Aster prenanthoides Muhl. differs from all of the other species 
studied, in the manner in which its annual stems are produced. 
It sends out slender rootstocks, which give rise to new stems 
at a little distance from the old ones, thus forming patches 
with the stems growing singly. 
Eighty-three capitula of Aster prenanthoides Muhl. were col- 
lected Sept. 27, 1900, from seven stems, apparently belonging 
to two individuals. The remaining material of this species, 
making a total of 658 capitula, was all collected from a single 
small plot. Four successive collections were made on Sep- 
tember 27, September 30, October 4, and October 8, 1900. 
All the capitula which were blooming at the time of each col- 
lection were taken, amounting respectively to 117, 143, 139, 
and 176 heads, and comprising all the heads produced by the 
selected plot during the season. The object in collecting in 
this way was to test, at least within narrow limits, the con- 
stancy of the garri « constants " throughout the flowering 
season. 
The plants from which all the material of 4. prenanthoides 
Muhl. was collected grew at the bottom of a small ravine near 
Clifton, Ohio, at the margin of a permanent stream, so that 
heat, light, soil, and moisture conditions were nearly constant 
throughout the growing period. 
