496 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Rhododendron Augustinii (Bot. Mag. tab. 8497).— China. 

 Family Ericaceae, tribe Rhodoreae. Shrub, 3J-5 feet high. Leaves 

 lanceolate, i£-2| inches long. Corolla campanulate, lobes 2 J inches 

 across, pale rose above, white with yellow spots at the base of the 

 tube. — G. H. 



Rhododendron sublaneeolatum {Bot. Mag. tab. 8478). — 

 Japan. Family Ericaceae, tribe Rhodoreae. Shrub. Leaves narrow- 

 elliptic or lanceolate, 1-2 J inches long. Flowers terminal ; corolla 

 2 inches long, crimson-scarlet. — G. H. 



Rhododendron Wightii {Bot. Mag. tab. 8492). — Sikkim Hima- 

 laya. Family Ericaceae, tribe Rhodoreae. Shrub or small tree, 

 Leaves 3J-8 inches long. Inflorescence many-flowered. Corolla 

 campanulate, if inch long, straw-yellow, dotted with deep red. — G. H. 



Rice, A Sclerotial Disease of. By F. J. F. Shaw {Mem. Dep. 

 Agr. India, Bot. Ser. vi. p. 11-23 i July 1913 ; plates). — The fungus 

 Sclerotium Oryzae Catt. has already been found a troublesome parasite 

 in Italy and Japan, and has now been recognized in India. The 

 diseased shoots turn yellow and die, but tillering occurs, and this is 

 probably the most marked symptom of the trouble. The small black 

 sclerotia occur in the interior of the stem, while the hyphae penetrate 

 the walls of the cells and destroy the protoplasm. Cultures were made, 

 but the ascigerous stage of the fungus was not obtained. — F. J. C. 



Root Curvature and Unsymmetrical Growth in Thickness. By 



A. Ursprung {Beih. Bot. Cent. Bd. 29, Abt. 1, Heft 1, pp. 159- 

 218 ; with 1 fig.). — The author found that, of 153 curvatures in roots 

 of Picea excelsa, the resulting growth in thickness occurred in 14S 

 cases on the concave side ; in 155 out of 156 cases in roots of Beech, 

 the growth in thickness was also on the concave side. 



He discusses the connexion between such eccentric growth and 

 the conditions of tension and pressure without arriving at definite 

 conclusions. The increase in growth seems usually (but not always) 

 to be assisted on the side subjected to pressure and hindered on that 

 exposed to tension. The whole subject of the effect of mechanical 

 stress and tension on growth is fully discussed, but reference must be 

 made to the original for details and literature. 



The author points out that, in the most different cases of eccentric 

 growth in thickness, the cross-section becomes elliptic with the 

 major axis in the plane of curvature, with the result that the power 

 of resistance to bending is increased. — G. F. S. E. 



Root Nodules, Royal Palm. By G. L. Fawcett {U.S.A. Exp. 

 Stn. Porto Rico, Ann. Rep., 191 1 ; pp. 38-39). — In the root nodi les of 

 the royal palm of Porto Rico is found a fungus which resembles in some 

 respects that described from the nodules of Podocarpus chinensis, 

 which has been grown for several years with no other nitrogen than 

 that derived from the air. Royal palms grown from disinfected seed 



