THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



93 



eral carpels ripened from a single flower. The truth of the 

 matter can be ascertained only by a visit to the locality when 

 the plants are in flower, and this must wait for another spring. 

 The locality is so definitely marked, however, that it will be 

 easy to visit again, and we expect to make sure at a later date. 

 In any event, this find carries Gray's observation somewhat 



further, as we now know 

 that the plant not only may 

 have from two to six car- 

 pels in a flower, but, as our 

 illustration shows, several 

 carpels on a single plant 

 may ripen fruits on occasion. 



The several fruited form 

 is apparentlynot an example 

 of mere freakishness on the 

 part of a single specimen for 

 we found a large number of 

 examples in an area several 

 rods square, and assume it 

 to be a common character- 

 istic of the species in the 

 locality. Since the plant 

 spreads rapidly by means of 

 its underground stems or rootstocks, it is possible that all the 

 examples discovered originally came from one aberrant speci- 

 men, but if so, this form must have been growing here for a 

 long time. The greatest number of fruits found on one plant 

 was five, but two and three fruits were common. In cases when 

 more than three were found, one or more of the fruits were 

 usually somewhat dwarfed. We are of the opinion that this 

 multi-fruited form is a true elementary species and if in need 

 of a name might be known in future as Podophylluin peltatum 

 polycarpuui. 



