No. 54.] 
[December, 1881. 
dmillta, 
A QUARTERLY RECORD OF CRYPTOGAMIC BOTANF 
AND ITS LITERATURE. 
ON THE RELATIONSHIP OF ^CIDIUM BERBERIDIS, 
Pers., TO PUCCINIA GRAMINIS, Pers. 
By Charles B. Plowright* 
There are not many more important questions in the whole 
range of vegetable physiology, than those connected with the 
entwickelungsgesschichte of the fungus which causes the mildew 
in wheat. The magnitude of the issues at stake have been 
forcibly brought before us, who reside in the large corn growing 
country of Norfolk during the last few weeks, where acres of 
wheat which, within a month or three weeks of harvest gave 
promise of an abundant yield, were in less than a fortnight 
blighted to such an extent that in some instances considerably less 
than half a crop only was produced. 
In the month of May of the present year (1881), I performed 
some experiments with the view of convincing myself one way or 
the other upon the connection said to exist between sdZcidium 
berberidis and Puccinia graminis ; but owing to my non-acquaint- 
ance with the proper method of performing them, they resulted in 
failure. I then wrote to my esteemed friend, M. Max Cornu, who 
immediately, in the most kind manner, gave me full and explicit 
directions as to the proper mode of procedure. On the 18th June 
I commenced a second series of experiments, which have been con- 
tinuously carried on until the end of September, in which 176 
plants of wheat have been employed. I propose laying before you 
a detailed account of each experiment, in order that you may be 
enabled to form your own opinion as to their results. But before 
doing this, I may be allowed to say that they were commenced 
and conducted, as far as it is possible to do so in such cases, with 
my mind unbiassed one way or the other, either for or against the 
theory of heteroecism. For upon the one hand I had a feeling 
that this theory was, to say the least, very remarkable ; while upon 
the other, there was the fact of its acceptance, almost without 
* Read at the Woolhope Fungus Meeting at Hereford, Oct., 1881. 
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