12 
PROCEEDINGS COTTESWOLD CLUB 
1918 
the problem. The first plant on my list is Ranunculus ficaria, 
which I noted as flowering on April 1st, whereas in Blomefield 
the mean of seventeen yearly observations is February 28th, 
the earliest date for this plant being January 21st, the latest 
March 28th. The extreme lateness of the Celandine was 
doubtless due to the cold Spring of 1917. But what are the 
elements of the problem which fixed on this plant the general 
habit of flowering early in the year ? 
In some cases we can see the advantages in early flowering. 
Thus the average date on which the Hazel comes into bloom is 
January 26th, and this, for a plant of which the pollen is 
distributed by the wind, may be an advantage, since there are 
no leaves to obstruct the dispersal of the pollen grains. 
It may be answered that those Conifers which do not shed 
their leaves in winter, e.g. the Yew or the Scotch Fir, are never- 
theless wind-fertilised. But this, though a point not to be 
forgotten, is no argument against what has been said of the 
Hazel. 
On the whole, however, we are excessively ignorant as to the 
biological meaning of the dates at which plants flower. What 
advantage does the orchis Spiranthes, well called autumnalis, 
gain from flowering in August or September ? Or again, what 
biological characters are there to distinguish the plants flowering 
in June from those which do not show themselves till July? 
It looks, to put the thing fancifully, as if a parliament of plants 
had met and decided that some arrangement must be made 
since the world would be inconveniently full if they all flowered 
at once ; or they may have believed that there were not enough 
insects to fertilise the whole Flora, if all their services were 
needed in one glorious month of crowded life. Therefore it was 
ruled that the months should be portioned among the aspirants, 
some choosing May, others June or July. But it must have 
been difficult to manage, and must have needed an accurate 
knowledge of their own natural history. I must apologise for 
this outbreak, and I will only add that this does seem to me an 
interesting problem, namely what are the elements in the 
struggle for life which fix the dates on which plants habitually 
flower. 
