June, 1901] 
Scha, finer — Tumbleweeds 
129 
OHIO TUMBLEWEEDS. 
John H. Schaffner. 
Tumbleweeds are characteristic of wind-swept plains and dry 
prairies. As the forests are rapidly disappearing, the conditions in 
Ohio are becoming very favorable for the introduction and develop- 
ment of such forms of vegetation. A few species are already abun- 
dant, and some like Amaranthus graecizans appear to flourish 
better than on the prairies of the interior. The past summer a 
number of cornfields about Columbus were covered with very large 
tumbleweeds and during the winter a number of hedgerows were 
filled with them, presenting an appearance quite as striking as any- 
thing the writer lias seen along this line. 
The following is a list of the Ohio plants which may develop as 
tumbleweeds. Those with a question mark have not been seen by 
the writer to act as tumbleweeds and a few are given on the author- 
ity of Dr. W. J. Beal. 
ANNUAL TUMBLEWEEDS. 
1. Cycloloma atriplieifolium (Spreng.) Coult. 
2. Salsola tragus L. 
3. Amaranthus graecizans L. 
4. Lepidium apetalum Willd. Beal. 
5. Trifolium procumbens L. Beal. 
6. Onagra biennis (L.) Scop. Beal. 
TUMBLE-GRASSES. 
7. Panicum capillare L. 
8. Panicum flexile (Gattg.) Scrib. 
9. Eragrostis pectinacea (Mx.) Steudl. 
10. Eragrostis trichodes (Nutt.) Nash. 
11. Eragrostis capillaris (L.) Nees. ? 
12. Eragrostis frankii Steud. ? 
13. Eragrostis purshii Schrad. ? 
14. Agrostis hyemalis (Walt.) B .S. P. 
PERENNIAL TUMBLEWEEDS. 
15. Baptisia tinctoria (L.) It. Br. 
MEETINGS OF THE BIOLOGICAL CLUB. 
May Meeting. 
The Biological Club met in Zoological Lecture Room May 6, 1901. 
Professor Schaftner reported that the committee appointed to con- 
sider the disposition to make of exchanges, had had a meeting and 
appointed Professor Osborn to consider the matter further. 
Professor Laudacre gave a paper entitled A Study of Passalus Cor- 
nutus. He gave the more important conclusions he had arrived at, 
after an extended study of the muscular and skeletal systems of that 
beetle. 
Mr. Griggs read a paper on Vernation in the Willows. 
Moulds and other Fuugi Injurious to Foods was the title of a paper 
given by Miss Mary Dresbach. She gave u list of fuugi found op food 
products. 
