860 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



apex. The characters of the stern, flower, ovule, and seed are given. 

 Despite the fiery-red colour of the elongated perianth, it is doubtful 

 whether it is (as hitherto supposed) fertilised by humming-birds ; since 

 the pollen is abundant and dusty, the stigma exposed, and anemophily 

 possible, while no bird visits have been observed, and the flowers pro- 

 tected by netting set seed. The fruit is eaten by a thrush-like songbird, 

 which wipes off the viscid seed on the spines of the Cactus, or possibly 

 passes it in its excrement. The germ grows out like a thread by the 

 radicular end from the endosperm, and forms an enlargement, which 

 flattens against the epiderm of the Cactus, and finally grows into its 

 fundamental tissue, where it produces mycelium-like strands, which, how- 

 ever, contain bundles. As the primitive germ-filament withers away it 

 is almost certain that the tufts of parasite are produced by the final 

 outgrowth of these strands. Cuscuta chilensis is itself parasitic on 

 Phrygilanthus. — M. H. 



Phylloelades Of Asparagese. By J. Velenovsky (Bcih. Bot. Cent. 

 xv. pp. 257-268 ; with one plate). — The author has investigated the 

 phylloelades of this group and comes to the conclusion that the flower 

 of Danae has a bract attached to it. The "flat leaf -like organs in the 

 axil of the stem bract is a terminal leaf which ends a short branch, and 

 resembles the basal leaves. The flowering "cladodium" of Buscus 

 consists of a terminal inflorescence, whose first flower resembles that of 

 Danae and of two median bracts. One is large and decurrent on the 

 inflorescence stalk. The other is below the inflorescence. The sterile 

 cladodium of Busctis is a terminal leaf which ends an axillary short shoot. 

 Each of the many inflorescences of Semele corresponds to one of Buscus. 

 Myrsiphyllum has a leaf -like cladode. Asparagus has needle-like cladodes. 

 The flowers are in the axil of two side bracts, of which each becomes 

 abortive.— G. F. S.-E. 



Phyllotaxis, The Principles of. By Arthur H. Church (Ann. 

 Bot. xviii. April 1904, pp. 227-243, 7 figs.). — The conventional method 

 of describing and interpreting the phenomena of phyllotaxis is based 

 upon a mathematical system elaborated by Schimper in 1830. The 

 mathematical conception applied only to adult shoots and adult members 

 of equal volume arranged in spiral sequence. 



The author criticises the present method and states that as the nature 

 of plant apex is graduated, not cylindrical, the fractional expressions do 

 not present an accurate statement of facts. 



The principles of phyllotaxis are then discussed in the light of modern 

 science ; the author suggests the logarithmic spiral theory, and that the 

 nature of the intersection is orthogonal. Various secondary factors come 

 into play : these and other points are dealt with in the remainder of the 

 paper. — A. D. C. 



Phylloxera, A Sketch of the Position of Viticulture in Europe 

 With Respect to. By M. Blunno (Agr* Gaz. N.S.W. pp. 250-256, 

 March 1904 ; and pp. 145-470, May 1904). — The phylloxera question, 

 although some thirty-six years old, is still a burning and vexed one, and, 



