Clii PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
cup beneath, of a rich chestnut-brown colour edged with yellow 
on both surfaces. Within the calyx are three corollas, two 
fused together, one separate normal in form, but each six-lobed; 
short styled. A form of most remarkable construction, sent 
by Mr. Cannell, and said to be permanent under cultivation. 
From the fact of a truss of three flowers being enclosed within 
one large petaloid calyx, this variety may be recommended not 
only to the curious but also to the lover of ornamental plants. 
Fruit Blossoms and the Frost. —Dr. Masters showed specimens 
of fruit blossoms from Mr, Earley. In the Cherry blossoms 
the petals and stamens were uninjured, but the pistil was com¬ 
pletely blackened and killed. In the case of the Apple blossoms 
the petals were arrested in their growth and distorted, the 
stamens and pistils were uninjured. Mr. Earley, however, 
found the stamens to be injured in some cases, which is re¬ 
markable in so hardy a flower as the Apple. 
Meal on Auricula Leaves. —Dr. M. C. Cooke remarked that 
the nature of the mealy substance which is found so freely on 
the leaves of certain kinds of Auricula having been alluded to 
at the previous meeting, he obtained some of these leaves 
through the courtesy of Mr. Dean, of Ealing, and examined 
them, with the view of ascertaining the nature of the meal. 
Under a low power of the microscope these leaves are seen to 
be regularly sprinkled, at equal distances, all over the surface, 
with uniform white clusters of a mealy looking substance, 
except that all around the margin of the leaf the number of 
these clusters is largely increased, so that in that portion they 
are closely crowded together. The uniformity in size of the 
clusters and their uniform distribution over the surface is very 
marked in character. 
In order to ascertain the nature of this meal, he removed a 
portion and submitted it to examination under a quarter inch 
objective, with a magnifying power of about 400 diameters, and 
found it to consist of short broken needle shaped crystals, 
mixed with small granules; the addition of ordinary spirits of 
wine did not dissolve them, but they were soluble in benzine. 
He did not then endeavour to ascertain if the crystals were 
reformed on the evaporation of the benzine. In the next place 
he removed a strip of the cuticle of the leaf with the mealy 
clusters in situ, and examined this with the same quarter inch 
