A CONSIDERATION OF THE SPECIES PLANTARUM OF 
LINNAEUS AS A BASIS FOR THE STARTING 
POINT OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF 
CRYPTOGAMS. 
W. G. FARLOW. 
At the Congress held in Vienna in 1905 it was voted to adopt Lin- 
naeus’ Species Plantarum, 1753, as the starting point of the nomen- 
clature of flowering plants and the question of the starting point for 
that of cryptogams was referred to the Congress to be held at Brussels 
in May, 1910. The adoption of the Species Plantarum was endorsed 
practically by so large a proportion of phaenogamic botanists that its 
acceptance came as near being universal as could ever be expected in 
such a case. It may be assumed therefore that the Species Plantarum 
is well adapted to serve as a basis for the nomenclature of phaenogams. 
Were it true that it is as well, or nearly as well, adapted to serve as a 
basis for the nomenclature of cryptogams, there would be no hesitation 
on the part of cryptogamists in adopting it also. If it is not, there is 
no reason why they should feel under any obligation, for the sake of a 
merely formal uniformity in nomenclature, to follow in the steps of 
other botanists. 
In the first place we may ask why it is that the Species Plantarum 
should be considered to be well adapted to the requirements of phaeno- 
gamic botanists. The fact that it was the first work in which the 
binomial nomenclature was methodically applied is a sufficient reason 
why no work issued prior to 1753 should have been adopted as a basis 
of nomenclature but that fact alone is not a sufficient reason for the 
adoption of the Species Plantarum itself. An examination of that 
work shows also other merits which should recommend it. It is an 
admirable summary by the leading systematist of his day of several 
hundred genera and some thousands of species found not only in 
Europe but also in North America and other more remote parts of the 
world. In fact on glancing over its pages one is surprised at the large 
field covered by Linnaeus and the large number of exotic species which 
are included in the work. In the numerous editions of the Species 
issued at intervals of a few years until as late as 1830, some under the 
