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Bulletin 6 



satisfactory answer a person will be obliged to call into use 

 his knowledge of related sciences as well as of the habits of 

 the plants found. 



It may be well to remark before passing on that I am well 

 persuaded of the importance, in such studies as these, of 

 accurate determinations of the plants concerned, and of the 

 deposit of the plants in some accessible collection, should any 

 account be published. 



Turning from these fields of taxonomy and ecology, we 

 may call attention to other possible directions for our energies. 

 For those of us who are the fortunate owner of a microscope 

 an endless new field is opened. Let us remember that the 

 great Hofmeister made his pioneer researches on the morphol- 

 ogy of gymnosperms during the time he snatched from his 

 business as a bookseller. Microscopes have vastly improved 

 since his day, and the technique has recently been enriched 

 by great improvements in the celloidin method of imbedding, 

 so that now all parts of the plant may be examined micro- 

 scopically, including the hardest — even lignum vittz and 

 anthracite coal have at last succumbed to the histologist. In 

 this branch, as in the others, one must specialize in some 

 group or organ or tissue in order to produce results worth 

 while. 



Plant physiology presents a large and largely unexplored 

 field for investigation. Especially in this country are the 

 laborers few. It does not adapt itself well to the independent 

 worker, because of the rather extensive laboratory equipment 

 required. 



The study of genetics has become quite popular during 

 the last few years and threatens to entice some good workers 

 from other departments of our subject. Since Mendel's pains- 

 taking observations — on plants, let us remember — have been 

 rescued from oblivion in 1900, astonishing progress has been 

 made in our knowledge of inheritance in plants and animals. 

 To engage in this work all the equipment which is necessary 

 is a garden or greenhouse, a pair of good eyes and plenty of 

 patience. The bearing of this line of investigation on the 

 concept "species" should be borne in mind. As the idea 

 dawns on us that plants are changing surely if slowly (per- 

 haps rapidly in some cases), we see that type specimens are 



