Hill and de Fraine.—On the 
Gnetum. 
The seedlings of Gnetum Gnemon have already been considered by 
Bower, 1 and as our results are in general agreement with his, it is neces¬ 
sary for us only to draw attention to the main features connected with the 
transition-phenomena. Unlike Welwitschia , the seeds of which germinate 
in about two weeks, the seedlings of Gnetum do not appear above ground 
much before three months, at the earliest, after sowing; the majority take 
eight months to a year. 
The general morphology of the seedlings of Gnetum Gnemon , Linn., 
have already been described and illustrated, 2 but for the sake of com¬ 
pleteness the figures referred to are reproduced here. Plate XXIII, Fig. 12, 
shows the split seed-coat and a very short primary root ; the hypo- 
cotyl is seen to be curved with its tip still embedded within the 
prothallus. The hypocotyl soon straightens and is withdrawn from the 
prothallus, but the seed-leaves are still quite small and scale-like, which 
condition they retain for some time: this stage is illustrated in Plate XXIII, 
Fig. 13, in which example the prothallus has been partly cut away in order 
to show the sucker or foot embedded within it. The next figure is that of 
an older seedling, and shows the rod-like foot entirely freed from the tissues 
of reserve ; it will be observed that the cotyledons have increased in size, 
and that a few lateral roots have arisen, but the main root still remains 
stunted, a feature figured by Roxburgh as occurring in Gnetum scandens 
After a time the primary root elongates considerably and the seed- 
leaves increase greatly in size (Plate XXIII, Figs. 15 and 16), and ultimately 
resemble the foliage leaves very closely ; but for some time they are, in 
G. Gnemon , unequal in size, a feature which also obtains in G. scandens . 
The seedling of Gnetum scandens , Roxb., judging from one example, 
very closely resembles G. Gnemon ; on the other hand, that of G. moluccense , 
Karst., the seed of which is much larger than that of either G. scandens or 
G. Gnemon , shows some points of difference. One only of several seeds of 
G. moluccense germinated, and this example, owing to the fact that it was 
planted the wrong way or possibly was disturbed and replaced improperly, 
showed the root and shoot much curved. A lateral view of this seedling is 
illustrated in Plate XXIII, Fig. 18 ; the chief points of interest are the small 
size of the seed-leaves, the early development of a cotyledonary bud, and 
the relatively advanced state of the epicotyl, although the foliage leaves 
are still rudimentary. Fig. 20 is an end-on view of the same seedling, in 
which f indicates the region of insertion of the sucker, and, finally, Fig. 19 
illustrates a dissection which shows the sucker. 
1 Bower: The Germination and Embryology of Gnetum Gnemon (Q.J.M.S., xx, 1882). 
~ Hill, T. G.: The Germination of Gnetum Gnemon (Journ. Roy. Hort. Soc., xxxiv, Pt. 1, 
1908). 
3 See Bower, loc. cit. 
