On the Vascular Structure of some Species of 
Gleichenia. 
BY 
L. A. BOODLE, F.L.S., 
AND 
W. E. HILEY, B.A., 1 
Queen's College , Oxford. 
With Plate XXIX, and three Figures in the Text. 
T HE first full account of the anatomy of species of Gleichenia was given 
by Poirault in 1893. All the forms known to him were protostelic, 
and in these he carefully described the curious nodes, and the manner of 
departure of the leaf-trace. More recent observations on the vascular 
structure in this genus have been published by Boodle (’01), Jeffrey (’02), 
and Tansley (’07). In the first of these three papers the most important 
feature was the description of the anatomy of G. pectinata (Willd.), Pr., 
this species being specially interesting, as it differs from all the other 
members of the genus, as far as they are known, in having a solenostelic 
rhizome. The account of G. pectinata, given by Boodle (’01), was naturally 
incomplete, being founded on the examination of a small amount of dried 
material. Through the kindness of the late Mr. G. S. Jenman, who sent 
a supply of rhizomes preserved in spirit from British Guiana, we have been 
able to make a more extended study of the anatomy of this species. The 
results are given in the present paper, together with some observations on 
other species of Gleichenia , 2 which were re-examined for purposes of 
comparison. 
G. PECTINATA. 
G. pectinata is indigenous in tropical America, and appears to be con- 
fined to that region. It has a long trailing rhizome, which is approximately 
cylindrical, and bears the leaves at intervals of from four to six inches on its 
1 From the Jodrell Laboratory, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 
2 G.Jlabellata , R. Br., G. circinnata , Sw., with var. semivestita and G. dicarpa, R. Br. The 
material was obtained from living plants grown at Kew. 
[Annals of Botany, Vol. XXIII. No. XCI. July, 1909.] 
