ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 
643 
fugal xylem ; while the phloem, which shares the development of tho 
centrifugal xylem in the stalk, becomes reduced and insignificant. 
From these facts Mr. Worsdell draws the conclusion that, in the 
Cycadeae, the sporophyll is probably a more primitive organ than the 
foliage leaf. 
Composition of Pollen.* — In the ash of the pollen of the pine, Herr 
E. Bamann finds the greatly preponderating substances to be salts of 
potassium and of phosphoric acid. After combustion he found in tho 
ash 50*746 per cent, of potassa, and 39*086 per cent, of phosphoric 
acid, the remaining substances being present in much smaller quantities, 
viz. soda 1*958, lime 2*612, magnesia 2*518, manganese oxide 1*119, 
iron oxide 1 * 958 per cent., and a trace of silica. The dried substance 
contained, in 1000 parts, 24*15 of potassa, 18*59 of phosphoric acid, 
4*81 of sulphuric acid, and 43*66 of nitrogen. 
Protection of Fruit against Parasitic Fungi, f — Herr A. Zschokke 
describes the mode in which cultivated fruits, especially species of 
PyruSj Mains , Sorbus , Cydonia, and Mespilus ; as also Cotoneaster , aro 
protected against the attacks of parasitic fungi, the chief of these being 
Monilia frnctigena, JBotrytis cinerea, Penicillium glaucum , P. olivaceum , 
Macor pyriformis, and M. stolonifer. He states that none of these fungi 
can penetrate the uninjured cuticle. The stomates become very sparsely 
distributed by the growth of the fruit, and are ultimately transformed 
into lenticels. There is often a copious local or general formation of 
cork, as in the russet apple. Since it is very rarely that the epiderm 
is not locally injured, the chief protection against fungi is the chemical 
nature of the fruit itself, especially the abundance of tannin and malic 
acid in the peripheral layers of cells. 
Fibrovascular Bundles of Leaves.^ — In completing his review of 
the connection between the number and symmetry of the vascular 
bundles : "in the petiole and the degree of organisation of the plant, 
M. A. Chatin points out that we have in these characters a further 
evidence of the low organisation of Monocotyledons as compared with 
Dicotyledons. There may be a single vascular bundle in the petiole, or 
3, 5, 7, 9-11, or a larger number, but never a single compound bundle 
resulting from the fusion of several. This is clearly connected with the 
almost universal absence of a pinnate venation. The single vascular 
bundle of the stem is often almost entirely destitute of vessels. Tho 
parallel venation of most Monocotyledons implies aQ indefinite number 
of petiolar bundles, while the palmate or pinnate venation, so rare 
among Monocotyledons, implies a limited number of bundles in the 
petiole. 
Hypertrophied Bud-Scales in Pinus.§ — Mr. F. E. Lloyd has observed 
that, in lateral shoots produced by the pruning of staminate shoots in 
Pinus ponderosa , the small triangular scales which subtend the leaves 
* Zeitschr. f. Forst. u. Jagdwesen, xxx. (1898) p. 105. See Bot. Ztg., lvi. (1898) 
2 te Abtli., p. 233. 
f Landwirtli. Jahrb. d. Schweiz, xi. (1897) pp. 153-96 (2 pis.). See Bot. Cen- 
tralbl., lxxv. (1898) p. 217. 
X Comptes Rendus, cxxvii. (1898) pp. 301-7. Bull. Soe. Bot. de France, xlv. 
(1898) pp. 241-8, 310-7. Cf. this Journal, ante, p. 320. 
§ Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., xi. (1898) pp. 45-51 (1 pi.). 
