July 3, 1884. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
3 
Utricularia may propagate itself as prodigiously as the *Ana- 
charis Alsinastrum, better known as the American Water Weed, 
we may remark that such an eventuality may be regarded as 
exceedingly problematical. Nay, destructive as it has been 
represented to be by journalists who have risen to the occasion 
and attribut: d to its numerous membranaceous pi’ettily reticu¬ 
lated bladders the character of a vegetable conspirator, as well 
as that of a criminal, it is no new importation, but, on the con¬ 
trary, it can claim the respectability that belongs to antiquity. 
Doubtless it is in its own small way a fish-destroying agency, for 
that much at the present moment in res;.ect to roach can be 
easily demonstrated; but bearing in mind the smallness of the 
most capacious bladders it is capable of developing, it cannot be 
destructive to any but the tiniest fish, and these we should not 
expect to find where the Utricularia is known to luxuriate. It 
may, however, contribute in some degree to keep down the num¬ 
ber of the finny tribe, but it certainly does not appear able to 
establish itself in our streams to an extent that will deprive the 
angler of the riverside recreation he has hitherto enjoyed, nor 
need the latest discovery of its capabilities make its presence 
appalling to the fish themselves. For, as a matter of fact, this 
vegetable phenomenon signally displays its destructive attractive¬ 
ness at a season when the young fish have become sufficiently 
strong, if entrapped, to escape the discomforts attending vesi- 
culai| imprisonment. This is, indeed, fortunate for the fish, 
considering the many vicissitudes they have to endui’e in early 
Fig. 3. , 
A, Utricularia Tu’garis, natural size. 
B, „ „ (a bit) enlarged. 
c, A bladder of Utricularia enlarged. 
D, A section of bladder (near middle), v, valve ; q, quadrifid processes. 
E, Valve, mucb enlarged. 
r, A bit of the inside of the bladder, showing the quadrifid processes. 
life ; the perilous bait of the angler, however, must occasion the 
exercise of their powers of discrimination considerably in their 
riper years. 
It has been asserted in the columns of a daily contemporary 
that “the plant is denied blossoms by Nature;” but this, of 
course, is purely hypothetical, for were it not for the exhibition 
of its racemes of bright yellow red-streaked flowers in many 
instances it would escape detection. The finest specimens that 
we have seen were found a few days since, growing about 3 feet 
from the surface of the water, firmly rooted in a deep deposit of 
decomposed vegetable matter, the terminal shoots being within 
easy distance of the atmosphere, and the plant disposed to be 
erect in growth. When the shojts or portions of them become 
detached they naturally float horizontally in the water, and, 
clothed as they are with beautiful semi-transparent capillary 
branchlets bearing numerous little bladders in all their stages 
of growth and decay, they are wondrously interesting. After 
rising to the surface they become entangled with filmy and other 
floating weeds that may be present, and together drift to the 
margins, where they can be easily captured with the aid of a 
* The Anacharis Alsinastrum, Bab., or Elodea canadensis, Bech., estab¬ 
lished and propagated itself so rapidly in our rivers and canals, that dense 
masses were discovered by Mr. Baxter measuring more than 100 yards from 
one end to the other in places where three or four years previously it was 
unknown ip either a wild or cultivated state. 
walking-stick. It is not from the bank, however, that the 
botanist obtains the best view of its beauty, but from a more 
convenient distance—for instance, from a boat or punt. Under 
such circumstances, provided the water be perfectly clear, the 
Utricularia can be seen in its greatest perfection, and there is 
no prettier plant than this to be found in our ponds. Readers 
who are unacquainted with it will be able to readily identify it 
if they refer to Baxter’s “ British Flowering Plants,” vol. v., 
fol. 319, where it will be found faithfully figured. 
With respect to the bladders, we note that Hayne [Wither¬ 
ing’s Bot., 6 ed., vol. ii, p. 25], who has made observations cf 
them, is of opinion that “ the aperture is closed by a lid that 
only opens outwards;” but Mr. Wilson [Hooker’s Brit. Flor., 
p. 9] observes that “ they have an orifice closed by an elastic 
valve opening inwards.” The correctness of the one or the 
other of these conflicting opinions may soon be determined. 
Each of the extended bladders contain a small “bubble of air” 
as well as a fluid, which becomes discoloured, and with the air- 
bubble gets partly discharged, thereby causing the bladder to 
assume a compressed form, somewhat resembling in outline the 
shape of an aphis. The slender fibres attached to the circular 
orifice, of which botanical works state there are three or four, 
are more numerous than have been represented, and are possibly 
sensitive, as their positions vary from a horizontal and spreading 
one to that of an erect and compressed position. 
The plant will not thrive in aquaria unless the base of the 
stems be covered with washed sand or shingle, as if the sand or 
shingle be not washed, and thereby deprived of its floating par¬ 
ticles, the bladders become receptacles of such particles, and then 
lose their attractiveness that makes them so interesting. Even 
then, if exposed to the rays of the sun, the water becomes heated 
to a degree that encourages a rapid growth, and the portions 
that under these circumstances are so quickly developed, as soon 
as they attain the length of Ij or 2 inches more or less become 
detached from the pai’ent plant and continue to grow in their 
separate state, while the parent plant gradually becomes decom¬ 
posed. This has happened invariably w'here selected specimens 
were placed separately in several glass vessels with a view to 
observing their growth. But, on the other hand, a specimen that 
was placed in a cylindrical glass vessel containing shingle ob¬ 
tained from the riverside, in which the base of the stalks were 
inserted to a depth of about 2 inches, has not only retained its 
capillary branchlets, but made a considerable growth, which, 
unlike the other specimens, has not become detached, and at the 
present moment is an object of remarkable beauty, notwithstand¬ 
ing the vehicles being sparsely produced. It should be mentioned 
that in this iiarticular case, during the whole of the time that it 
has been in the vessel, it has not been exposed to the rays of the 
sun, and it is doubtless in great measure owing to this fact that 
it has thriven so well.—S. P. E. S 
[As was recently stated in this Journal (page 426), Mr. G. E. 
Simms of 37, Broad Street, Oxford, has made several observa¬ 
tions upon the carnivorous propensities of Utricularia vulgaris, 
especially in reference to its capture of spawn and young fishes, 
and we understand that he intends to publish the results of his 
investigations shortly. Mr. Darwin examined the vesicles of 
this plant some years ago, but was unable to determine that they 
possessed any power of digestion. It seems, however, from the 
condition of fishes found in them that some such process does 
take place, though, perhaps,' in a less marked degree than with 
the Dionaa and Drosera.] 
“THINKER’S” REMARKS. 
As “ Thinker” accuses me of being one of the causes of his inflicting 
his “thoughts” upon you this week, I may claim the privilege of re¬ 
pudiating the charge. Neither does my correction of his former in¬ 
accuracies constitute me “a man of war” or a breach of the “peace.” 
“ Thinker” was the assailant; not me ; and I am suiqirised at his taking 
refuge in such an excuse. As to the other points he raises he must settle 
them with “ A Kitchen Gardener.” lam obliged to “Thinker” for his 
new fact of the dates of 1870-71. I can quite comprehend any intelligent 
reader of the gardening papers adopting the plan about that time, but 
most credit attaches to the anterior date, so far as “Thinker” is con¬ 
cerned. I cannot, of course, controvert your correspondent’s claim to be 
the repository of Mr. Pearson’s secrets not revealed in his practice or 
book, but I shall adhere to the latter till I have a hetter-vouched-for 
authority.— Non-Believek. 
Vines Bleeding. —“ Justitia ” and “ Non-Believer ” say harsh 
things. Illustrations are called new statements, and so forth. I stated 
strong healthy Vines bleed because they are full of sap, and the roots 
working and imbibing too much moisture. I adhere to excess of water 
being the chief cause of bleeding, and the knife the blood-letter, showing 
where the evil is. I believe pruning is one of the best points in Grade 
