1866.] 
AMERICAN ACRICULTtTRlST. 
4rSt 
Insects and Plant Fertilization. 
SEVENTH ARTICLE. 
One more arrangement for natural cross-fer¬ 
tilization remains, which we will notice very 
brief!}'. We take as an illustration the Plan¬ 
tain. The common Plantain of door-yards 
would probably be the best example, the flow¬ 
ers being less crowded than in the Eibwort 
Plantain {Plantago lanceolata), which we liave 
actually adopted. All the blossoms are perfect 
and alike, and have four stamens with very 
slender filaments, and one pistil with a slender 
style, the upper part of which is hairy and acts 
as stigma. But when a spike of Plantain comes 
into flower—which it does from below upward— 
we may see, as in fig. 1, only the long stigmas 
protruding, as if 
it were a female 
plant only. Later, 
and after the stig¬ 
ma of these low¬ 
est flowers have 
begun to wither, 
the stamens will 
appear, the an¬ 
thers hanging out 
on the long, deli¬ 
cate filaments. 
And so, as the 
flowering pro¬ 
ceeds u p the spike, 
day after day, the 
stigma will be 
protruded quite in 
advance of the 
stamens, the co¬ 
rolla just opening 
at the tip to let 
it pass through, 
while the anthers, 
as yet on short 
filaments, are 
snugly ensconced 
within. After a 
day or two, the 
four-lobed mouth 
of the corolla 
Fig. 1.—A tpike of the r.ibwort -^vill open, the fila- 
Plantiiin (P/aiitago lanceolata), ■yyip 
Just coming into blossom, the stig¬ 
mas only protruding from the low- denly and greatly 
erflowcrs. Fig. 2 —Another spike, lengthen, and the 
a little later; the stamens of the anthers,which are 
lower flowers now hung out. , 
now discharging 
their pollen, will be hung out in the wind—for 
the Plantain-flowers produce no honey, and are 
neglected by insects. The accompanying figures 
exliibit the whole case; and the explanation,now 
that we understand it, is simple enough. We 
have already seen in dimorphous flowers, also 
hermaphrodite, the stamens and pistils recipro¬ 
cally long in one flower and short in another, oth¬ 
erwise similar; so that the pollen is more or less 
prevented from reaching the stigma of the same 
flower (and sometimes even unable to act upon 
it if it did), but is in the way of being carried 
by insects to the stigma of the other sort, upon 
which it prompily takes effect. In Plantain the 
same end is reached by a different way. Close- 
fertilization is absolutely prevented by the stig¬ 
ma being thrust out of the still closed blossom, 
long before the anthers that surrounded it are 
able to shed a grain of pollen. But this same 
stigma is exposed to the pollen of other flowers, 
belonging either to a lower part of the same 
spike, or to some neighboring plant. By the 
time the stamens of any flower appear, the 
accompanying stigma will probably have been 
acted on by other ijollen, and will be too far 
gone and withering to take any of that same 
flower. So cross-fertilization is here made as 
sure as if the flowers were separated into male 
and female—and with great economy of material. 
This ari'angement in Plantain and some other 
flowers was pointed out by Sprengel, about half 
a century ago; and he gave it the name of di¬ 
chogamy. He saw that it meant cross-fertiliza¬ 
tion. But as neither Sprengel or any one else 
Fig. 3.—Section lengthwise of a spike of the same, enlarged; 
several of tlie flowers witii the stigma projecting, but the 
anther.s still enclosed ; the two lower left-hand flowers witli 
their stigmas withering, and their stamens hung out. 
in those days discovered any particular advan¬ 
tage in tliis crossing, the subject attracted no 
attention, until the sense of it was recently 
brought out by Mr. Darwin. 
Dichogamy occurs in many Grasses, which are 
also fertilized by the wind. But it is not rare in 
flowers which are visited by insects; where the 
arrangement is as effectual as dimorphism in 
securing crossing. It is very common in the 
Umbelliferous family; and is very neatly exhib¬ 
ited in Amorpha or False Indigo, a peculiar ge¬ 
nus of the Leguminous family. Here the sin- 
a guide, we commend the whole subject to the 
observation of the curious, confident ihat many 
interesting facts remain to reward careful obser¬ 
vation, when the proper season returns. A. G. 
Notes on Grapes and Grape Culture. 
The notes prepared for last month were 
crowded out, and now a press of other matter 
compels us to be very brief. 
Cataicba. — Some specimens at Cleveland 
showed what this grand old variety can do 
where circumstances are all favorable. It suc¬ 
ceeds perfectly in a few localities, and wliere it 
does, there is nothing better. 
Iona. —We hope to have more full accounts 
of the behaviour of this, in widely separated lo¬ 
calities, than have yet been supplied. We saw 
about 50 vines in the vineyard of Mr. Onder- 
donk, at Nyack, N. Y., which for health and fruit¬ 
fulness were all that could be desired. In some 
jilaces it has mildewed. It h.as been somewhat 
largely planted at Ilammoiidspo’,, out the vines, 
though vigorous, are not yet old enough to fruit. 
We have no doubt that in Pleasant Valley the 
Iona will attain its highest developement. 
Lydia. —This is a very handsome white grape, 
good sized berries, the clusters are not large, 
though we oidy saw the first fruiting of a vine. 
Probably too late for general culture, as it 
seems to ripen about with the*Catawba. 
Mottled. —This is, we believe, a Kelly’s Island 
seedling. A good sized berry, of a Catawba 
color, mottled with ti lighter shade, which gives 
the fruit a not altogether healthy look. Judg¬ 
ing from the first fruiting of young vines, this 
seems to be a promising variety, and will prob¬ 
ably be valuable as a wine grape. 
Walter. —A seedling by Ferris & Cay wood, 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., claimed to be a cross be¬ 
tween the Delaware and Diana, a claim which 
the fruit seems to sustain. That this is a fruit 
of marked excellence is shown by the award of 
the first prize, “quality to rule,” at the Cleve¬ 
land exhibition. This award created some dis¬ 
cussion, the committee being three for the Wal¬ 
ter and two against. Mr. Mottier expressed his 
dissent froin the award. This grape 
has a remarkably fine flavor, is 
very sweet, but is rather tougher 
than some others. It is claimed 
that the vine is perfectly hardy 
and a rampant grower. The leaf 
is certainly very robust. We shall 
know more about this variety an¬ 
other year. To save answering 
questions we may state that this 
variety is not yet in the market. 
Rodgers' Hybrids. —Though these 
grapes have the endorsement of 
those whose opinion carries weight 
with it, we have nothing to modify 
in our notes given last year. We 
hope some good ones may be 
found among the many numbers, 
FiK. 4.—A piece of the same spike. mor>; mamiirted, with one of tlie earlier and _ 
one of the later flowers remaining, the rest removed. The stigma of the lower I*"*- " ® have yet to see one that IS 
flower, with the stamens oiiMs withering; that of tlie upper, with the antliers not too “foxy” for a table gnipe. 
Still enclosed, is ready to receive pollen. 
gle petal is wrapped around both the stamens 
and the style of the opening flower; but the 
stigma projects a day or two before the anthers 
are disengaged; and a bee, passing as it does 
up the spike, carries off pollen from the lower 
and earlier flowers, deposits some of it upon the 
stigmas of higlicr flowers, and the remainder 
upon those of the next spike or plant visited. 
With these illustrations, which may serve as 
The meeting at Cleveland very 
properly passed a resolution requesting that the 
best of the varieties might be selected and named. 
Norton's Virginia. —Something after the style 
of the Clinton, but with larger berry and bunch. 
The vine is difficult to propagate, and in Mis¬ 
souri it has not this year sustained its former 
reputation. The fruit is only fit for wine, the 
quality of which is alluded to in another article. 
Ives' Seedling.—ThQXQ is a history to this 
