SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE, FEBRUARY 26. 



xxxiii 



tact that it was long ago asserted by Mr. William Masters that a suspen- 

 sion of vitality must take place before a flower is formed, whether single 

 or double ; that mere vegetative vigour is not the cause of doubling, l>ut 

 that when ones the doubling has boon developed, and, as Mr. Masters 

 said, " is constitutional or in the blood," then abundant food will favour 

 the development of double flowers. Mr. Masters gives the following 

 instance in the case of Balsams : " One year we did not pot the plants off 

 from the seed pots for many weeks after they were ready. They were, in 

 fact, starved before being transplanted, and only produced single flowers. 

 I treated them liberally, and they then bore flowers as double as could be 

 wished." Mr. G. Duflfield some years ago produced double Lapagerias, 

 and noticed that both a white and a red-flowering plant, growing side by 

 side, bore double flowers in the same year, and remarked that it seemed 

 curious, as the plants were by no means remarkable for vigour. Tliis, 

 however, was apparently the cause. Mr. Laxton has also observed with 

 regard to double Peas : I am of opinion that a check during the growth 

 of the plant, either from drought, frost, or even injury to the stem, may 

 produce it. Hitherto all the double-flowered forms have been produced 

 later in the season, just as late or second blossoms of Apples and Pears 

 are frequently semi-double, while the early flowers of zonal Pelargoniums 

 have often from six to ten petals." From Goebel's observations, double- 

 flowered Stocks can be raised from seed of single-flowered up to 90 per 

 cent., if the smaller and abnormally formed seeds are selected. Other 

 testimony of a similar kind might be quoted in corroboration. 



Distorted Groicth of Ycics. — Mr. J. W. Odell exhibited specimens, and 

 observed that Yew trees in his district (N.W. Middlesex) are very much 

 disfigured by the formation of cone-like galls. These are due to the 

 gall-fly, Cecidomyia taxi (Inchbald). The specimens were from several 

 trees. On young trees the gall seems to bo more persistent than on 

 older trees. On the former the leaves forming the cones appear to recurve 

 after the pupne escape, assuming a rosette-like appearance, and, beyond 

 the arresting of the growth of the shoots affected, no great harm seems to 

 be done. On the older trees the cones and rosettes drop oft* rather freely, 

 and this often gives a shabby look to the tree, as the shoots die back and 

 decay. 



Crested Ferns, dc. — Mr. C. D. Druery, V.M.H., exhibited the following 

 specimens : 1. Fronds of PJiegopteris hcTaffouojytera tnincata, found by 

 Mr. Maxon (Smithsonian Institute) on the banks of the Potomac in 1900. 

 Living plants are in the exhibitor's possession. All the terminals are 

 abruptly truncated with excurrent midribs like slender thorns. 2. Frond> 

 of a partially bipinnate form of Nephrolcpis cxaltata, from ]\Ir. Roupell. 

 Many of the central pinnjp are much elongated and tlioroughly bipinnate, 

 resembling small fronds. These fronds were taken about three years ago, 

 but Mr. Roupell states that the plant has since resumed its normal 

 pinnate type. Sowing the spores was suggested with a \\qv: to obtaining 

 a decompound strain of this species. 3. Fronds of three distinct varieties 

 of three distinct species, found growing together in one clump in a wood 

 near St. Austell, Cornwall, by ^Ir. Williams. They represent: {a) A 

 small crested form of Lnstrea jjscii lo-mas, and it is worthy of remark 

 that the well-known L. p.-m. crist<(tn (king of male Ferns) was found in 



