somewhat severe in his strictures regarding the activity of taxonomists and the resulting multiplicity of synonyms, suggests that I describe this form as a new species and call it T. paradoxa. However it may be of interest to some to know that Taraxacum taraxacum (L.) Karst. (T. officinale Weber, T. dens-leonis Desv. etc., etc.) does not always have a scape nor is its inflorescence always a single head." The April Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club contains a very interesting article by George E. Stone on the power of growth of ostrich ferns (Onoclea Struthiopteris Hoffm.). Young fronds which forced their way through a concrete (rolled tar and gravel) border, about three inches thick, and so hard that a "heavy stroke from a sledge-hammer makes little or no impression upon it," initiated some experiments to show the great force exerted by the young ferns. A lever, weights, and a round piece of wood "of the same dimensions as the undeveloped cluster of fern fronds" constituted the apparatus. The pressure required to break through the concrete in ten to fifteen days, the time usually required by the ferns was 264 pounds in 10 days and 189 pounds in 13 days, Mr. Stone estimates that the work actually accomplished by the ferns is at least 35 atmospheres, and refers to Pfeffer's corn root record of 24 atmospheres, and Clark's squash experiment where a squash developed under a weight of 5,000 pounds, but which, however, represented a cell pressure of but 2-3 atmospheres. The report of the American Chemical Society, made by the committee appointed to coöperate with the National Conservation Committee, contains some facts of botanical interest, as shown by the following extracts: "In forestry also, the influence of the chemist is distinctly felt. The sprays, used for destroying noxious insects, are chemical preparations. The manufacture of wood alcohol is a chemical process, which may be either wasteful or economical. Turpentine is now produced wastefully, but the waste can be diminished by careful refining, and furthermore, the chemist can aid in discovering substitutes for it. Substitutes for tan bark are also to be sought for by means of chemical investigations. Another distinctly chemical operation is the preparation of wood pulp for paper making, a process which is now wasteful in the highest degree. It is estimated that for every ton of pulp now made by the sulphite process more than a ton of waste material is allowed to drain away into our streams. How to make this material useful is a chemical problem, and so also, in great part, is the investigation of other, now useless fibers, which may replace the more valuable wood. The preservation of wood from decay is still another art in which chemistry is predominant. Salt "In preserving the fertility of our land, chemistry has an im. portant part to play. Our knowledge of fertilizers, of the food on which crops can thrive, is entirely chemical so far as accuracy is concerned, and must be applied in accordance with chemical principles. A fertilizer which is useless, and therefore wasted on one soil, may be needed on another. Certain fertilizers, like the Stassfurt salts, Peruvian guano, the Chilean nitrates, and phosphate rock are limited in quantity, and their future exhaustion must be considered now. What shall replace them in the future? Already processes have been devised for fixing the nitrogen of the atmosphere and rendering it available for plant food. peter and other nitrates can be and long have been made from waste materials such as old mortar and animal refuse. The phosphatic slags have been mentioned in connection with metallurgical processes. These sources of fertility are important, but greater still is the source found in our municipal sewage. The problem of its salvage has been worked out in some localities, but in the United States the people are only beginning to be aroused to its importance. Enormous masses of material, easily available for fertilizing purposes, now drain into our rivers or directly into the sea. Another question, now under investigation, is the possibility of using our common feldspathic rocks in fine powder, to replace the potassium withdrawn by plants from the soil." TORREYA AND NATURE-STUDY REVIEW Special combined price $1.50 for the year 1909 This special offer is good only as long as the publishers of the above journals can supply back numbers of early 1909 issues. In no case will the subscription be extended beyond December of this year. The offer is limited to new subscribers of either journals and also is not open to members of the American Nature-Study Society, of which THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW is the official journal free to members. By later sending 25 cents additional to the Secretary of the Society the subscription on above terms may be credited as member's fee for the American Nature Society for 1909. Correspondence relating to above special offer should be addressed to DR. WILLIAM MANSFIELD College of Pharmacy 115 W. 68th Street New York City OTHER PUBLICATIONS OF THE TORREY BOTANICAL CLUB (1) BULLETIN A monthly journal devoted to general botany, established 1870. Vol. 35 published in 1908, contained 608 pages of text and 40 full-page plates. Price $3.00 per annum. For Europe, 14 shillings. Dulau & Co., 37 Soho Square, London, are agents for England. Of former volumes, only 24-34 can be supplied entire; certain numbers of other volumes are available, but the entire stock of some numbers has been reserved for the completion of sets. Vols. 24-27 are furnished at the published price of two dollars each; Vols. 28-35 three dollars each. Single copies (30 cts.) will be furnished only when not breaking complete volumes. (2) MEMOIRS The MEMOIRS, established 1889, are published at irregular intervals. Volumes I-II and 13 are now completed; Nos. I and 2 of Vol. 12 and No. 1 of Vol. 14 have been issued. The subscription price is fixed at $3.00 per volume in advance. The numbers can also be purchased singly. A list of titles of the individual papers and of prices will be furnished on application. (3) The Preliminary Catalogue of Anthophyta and Pteridophyta reported as growing within one hundred miles of New York, 1888. Price, $1.00. Correspondence relating to the above publications should be addressed to DR. WILLIAM MANSFIELD College of Pharmacy 115 W. 68TH STREET NEW YORK CITY Notes on the Flora of Central and Southern Delaware: C. S. WILLIAMSON...... 160 The Generic Name Wedelia: T. D. A. COCKERELL. 166 Reviews: Wal'on's Wild Flowers and Fruits: JEAN BROADHURST. 167 168 A Notice from the Field Committee: NORMAN TAYLOR. News Items 175 176 PUBLISHED FOR THE CLUB AT 41 NORTH QUEEN STREET, LANCASTER, PA. BY THE NEW ERA PRINTING COMPANY [Entered at the Post Office at Lancaster, Pa., as second-class matter ! |