\\X PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



germinated, some of the seedlings having thrust their way out through 

 the wall of the fruit and become green. The phenomenon is not very 

 uncommon, and examples may at times be found in oranges, lemons, 

 melons, and some other fruits, while in some plants, such as the mangrove, 

 it normally happens that the seed germinates while the fruit containing 

 it is still hanging attached to the plant, and the same thing has been 

 recorded as occurring in Sechium edule. 



Dominance and Reversion in Dendrobium Crosses. — Gurney Wilson, 

 Esq., Haywards Heath, showed pseudo-bulbs of a cross-bred Dendrobium, 

 and of its parents, D. nobile Ballianum $ x D. nobile Murrhinianum $ . 

 The pseudo-bulb of D. nobile Ballianum is straight, while that of the 

 other parent is zigzag in growth, owing to the presence of a very marked 

 projection at the nodes on each side of the pseudo-bulb alternately. Of 

 150 seedlings of this cross all showed in a marked manner in their 

 pseudo-bulbs the zigzag character of the pseudo-bulb of D. nobile 

 Murrliinianum. In both parents the flowers are white, but have a faint 

 purplish spot in the centre of the throat. In all the 150 cross-bred plants 

 the flower has reverted to the typical coloration of the species, the spot 

 in the centre of the throat being dark, and the other perianth pieces being 

 marked with purple. 



Scientific Committee, March 31, 1908. 



Mr. E. A. Bowles, M.A., F.L.S., in the Chair, and twelve members 



present. 



Inheritance of Albinism in Orchids. — Mr. Hurst, F.L.S., sent the 

 following notes in relation to this subject (see p. xxix) : — " Since my last 

 communication I have had an opportunity of examining some plants of 

 Paphiopedilum insigne Sander ae. Much to my surprise, I found distinct 

 traces of purple sap in the basal margins of both the old and the young 

 leaves. The plants were not in flower, but I am told on good authority that 

 some minute spots are also to be found on the dorsal sepal. In view of this 

 it would appear that P. insigne Sanderae, so long regarded as an albino, 

 is in reality a coloured form in which the purple sap is present in minute 

 quantities. In accordance with the provisional scheme suggested in my last 

 note P. insigne Sanderae will therefore be carrying both the colour factors 

 C and V, and when mated with albinos may be expected to give coloured 

 hybrids, as it has done in the case quoted by Mr. Rolfe. It would be 

 interesting to know if the two other yellow forms P. insigne Sanderianum 

 and P. insigne Macfarlanei, recorded as unspotted, are true albinos, and 

 what they produce when crossed. 



"If P, insigne Sanderae is not an albino it must be deleted from my 

 tables of albino crossings (p. xxvi), which will now read as follows : — 



Table A. 



1. /'. callo8im Sanderad (P) x P. callosam Sanderae (P) gives albinos (P P). 



2, /'. Lawrencea/num Hyeawum (P) x P. Lawranccanum ITyeanum (P) gives albinos 

 (M'). 



/'. Lairrnurauuvi Hyeanum (I') x /'. callosum Sanderae (P) gives albinos (P P). 



