l^totiotienbron ^ocietp ^otes;. 
one, and in the other two abnormally inflated and tailed seeds, which seemed 
still unripe. On the same day the whole contents of these two Jenkinsii capsules 
were sown, that is to say, were laid, as is usual with Rhododendron seed, on the 
surface of peat soil, the pots being covered with panes of glass. On February 
22nd the contents of one of the Edgeworthii capsules were sown also, and both 
lots were kept under precisely the same conditions in a greenhouse. 
On March 16th the Edgeworthii seeds were seen with the aid of a lens to be 
sprouting, and the radicles to be descending into the soil. On April 28th the 
plumules were distinctly showing, and now, at the end of July, the young plants 
are pricked out, some of them bearing three or four leaves besides the cotyledons. 
Meanwhile the Jenkinsii seeds for seven weeks made no sign ; but, whereas 
the chaff was soon covered with mildew and disappeared, the three seeds retained 
a living, though somewhat rotten appearance. 
On March 22nd two of them were observed to be protruding radicles, and the 
third soon followed suit. Early in April, however, two rotted off without 
further progress, the other living on, but advancing very slowly in growth. 
On May 9th what served for cotyledons was fully expanded, and this proved 
to be a cornucopia-shaped sort of cup, thick and succulent as in some of the 
Hepaticae. The cup lived on to the present time, with little or no apparent 
growth, and without the smallest sign of a plumule ; indeed it seems obvious 
that there is none. I shall continue to guard and watch this abortion, although 
I have not the faintest hope of its further development. I need scarcely add 
that I have repeated the experiment this year with pollen of R. Jenkinsii. 
At the present time I have many well-swelled capsules on two plants of 
R. FORMOSUM, and I await the result with curiosity. 
The above is a very fair example of the disappointment which often awaits 
the hybridiser ; but, let me add, a good illustration also of the very interesting 
phenomena which hybridising enables him to study. The effect of foreign 
pollen on the capsule and seed of the female parent is often remarkable, stimu¬ 
lating one or both up to a certain point, and yet very imperfectly, or not at all, 
effecting fertilization. 
The pollen of R. Falconeri, for instance, has a most astonishing effect on 
some of the other Rhododendrons. For several years I have watched the 
process with increasing wonder. In about half of the time usually required 
the capsules, stimulated by this pollen, swell and continue swelling until they 
have attained a large size. Then they ripen as rapidly as they have swelled, 
but generally contain only chaff, or at best, much chaff mixed with a few perfect 
seeds. Other foreign pollen seems to act in a different way. The capsules 
swell hopefully, but, instead of chaff, the cells contain long leathery bodies, 
which would seem to be abnormally developed placentas, while the ovules have 
not been developed at all, not even into chaff. The effect on the ovules is well 
illustrated by the Jenkinsii cross I have detailed above, and reminds me of 
what I have often seen in the capsules of crossed Lilies—all chaff, with the 
exception of one or two bloated, unripe, and ill-shaped seeds. Your readers are 
probably aware of the many interesting remarks on the subject by Gaertner and 
Pollen of 
Falconeri. 
65 
