xlviii PEOCEEDINGS OF THE KOYAL HORTI CULTUKAL SOCIETY. 



are these peculiarities so marked ? The plants which were under trial 

 were quite secure from the visits of insects to cross-fertilise the blooms ; 

 and further, even if the flowers were visited by insects, how comes it that 

 the flowers produced on the old plants ' sport ' from their original colour, 

 whereas seedlings from the same plants do not exhibit signs of ' sporting,' 

 but retain the original colour of the seed-bearing plant, unless, of course, 

 the flowers were hybridised ? I am convinced that the peculiarity is due 

 to some changes which take place in the bulb previous to its flowering for 

 the third year, and that it is not effected by the intervention of foreign 

 agencies, such as insects, &c. It must be understood that these pecu- 

 liarities are not exceptional, as some suppose, but rather the reverse ; it is 

 the rule. From about fifty plants grown, I do not notice one that has 

 not ' sported ' ; the white flowers have been spotted with pink, and vice 

 versa ; the red and purple have been distinctly darkened in colour, while 

 the natural-spotted flowers have been changed either into pure white or 

 red, as may be the case — some plants again, as before mentioned, bearing - 

 two flowers of opposite distinct colours. Let us now compare Cyclamen 

 persicum with the hardy species : take any of them, for instance, the C. 

 europium, C. repandum, or any of the others ; have they been known to 

 sport ? No ! and yet these are daily visited by myriads of insects, without 

 apparent results ; this, then, proves that the suggestion which I have put 

 forward is correct, and further that this peculiarity is confined to the 

 Persian Cyclamen alone. As it is not due to the intervention of foreign 

 agencies or external conditions, the sporting element must take place in 

 the bulbous root of the plant. 



" The plants of the order Primulacece are conspicuous in the vegetable 

 kingdom for their sporting peculiarities ; but of the whole order none 

 can possibly excel the Cyclamen in this respect, and in addition to this the 

 flowers are often malformed ; for example, specimens have been seen which, 

 instead of the usual single flower, bore three or four blooms, and a number 

 of foliage leaves on the same stem. 



" After a cursory glance over the former points, we come to the final 

 one : — What steps may be taken to retain the original and distinctive 

 colours of the flowers ? I can see no way out of the difficulty, with the 

 exception of growing none but young plants, and discarding them after 

 they are three or four years old. Could we trace this deficiency to insects, 

 &c, or if we could have any proof that the peculiarities are due to the 

 flowers themselves, then we could possibly find a remedy. But, in spite 

 of all these 1/U8U8 naturce, the point is one which appeals to the scientist 

 more than to the horticulturist." 



Vines. — From Mr. Yeatman came roots dying, it was conjectured, from 

 over-saturation of the soil. 



Eucalyptus cordata. — Dr. Masters showed a flowering specimen of this 

 species growing in the island of Arran, which he had received from the 

 Rev. Dr. Landsborough. 



