A Classification of the Varieties of Cultivated Oats 115 
at an acute angle, are somewhat appressed, often being in contact with the 
rhachis itself. Varieties with such unilateral panicles are commonly 
termed side, flag, banner, or horsemane oats. 
As between the unilateral and equilateral types, the whorls of branches 
are not different in number; nor is there in this respect any varietal 
distinction within each type, the number of whorls commonly varying 
from five to eight in each variety. Thus the relative compactness of the 
panicles of different varieties depends on the attitude and the number 
of the branches and the length of the internodes, but not on the actual 
number of whorls of branches. The apex of the panicle differs slightly 
among varieties of each type. In some varieties it is straight, erect, and 
short; in others it is longer; somewhat tenuous, and drooping. The 
difference, however, is not well marked, and the two forms are often 
transitional in the same variety. 
The form of the panicle has been used in all previous systems of classifi- 
cation, except that of Atterburg. Nilsson (1901) found among the varie- 
ties at Svalof the following types: 
1. Stiff panicles. 
2. Hanging panicles. 
3. Bushy panicles. 
4. Loose panicles. 
5. Side panicles. 
These were coordinated with light- and dark-colored grains to dis- 
tinguish ten main groups of varieties. Bohmer (1908-09) adopted the 
panicle types employed by Nilsson, and, with modifications in their 
description, used them as the chief distinction of his main classes. 
Kornicke and Werner (1885) made a distinction only between the unilateral 
and equilateral types of panicles, while Denaiffe and Sirodot (1901) used 
the form of panicles only as a descriptive feature and not as a means of 
separating the groups of varieties. 
As may be seen from the descriptions of the panicle types of Nilsson 
and of Bohmer (1908-09:12-15), these authors made several sub- 
divisions of the equilateral, or spreading, form, according to the elongation 
of the rhachis and the angle at which the branches depended from their 
axes. Ulander (1906), Fruwirth (1907), and Broili (1910) have all 
mentioned these types, and Broili has illustrated them, thus indicating 
their appearance in almost any large collection of varieties. And indeed 
