Plant Science Bulletin archive

Issue: 1973 v18 No 3 Fall

PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN

A Publication of the Botanical Society of America, Inc.

September 1973 Vol. 19 No. 3

Botany in American and British Chapbooks Before 1860 Emanuel D. Rudolph 34
The W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center   Vernon P. Perry 36
Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation   Abby Levine 38
Publications on Podocarpus   38
Conservation Committee Reports   39
A Note from the Treasurer   39
Botanical Society Endowment Fund Started   40
Membership Votes Dues Change for 1974   40
Editor's Notes   40
Botanical Potpourri   40
Personalia   41
Books Received by PSB for Review   42

Book Reviews
Structure and Function of Chloroplasts, Martin Gibbs (ed.)   43
Alaska Trees and Shrubs, Leslie A. Viereck and Elbert L. Little   44
Shoot Organization in Vascular Plants, K. J. Dormer   44
Floristics and Paleofloristics of Asia and Eastern North America, A. Graham (ed.)   45
Biochemical Applications of Mass Spectrometry, George R. Waller   46
Atlas of United States Trees, Vol. 1. Conifers and Important Hardwoods, Elbert L. Little   46
Diseases of Crop Plants, J. H. Western (ed.)   47
Maize Rough Dwarf, A Planthopper Virus Disease Affecting Maize, Rice, Small Grain and Grasses, Isaac Harpaz   47
Collegiate Dictionary of Botany, Delbert Swartz   48
A Fern is Born. The Hidden Life of Flowers, J. M. Guilcher and R. H. Noailles   48
How to Enjoy your Weeds, Audrey W. Hatfield   48

Botany in American and British Chapbooks Before 1860

Emanuel D. Rudolph
Department of Botany
The Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio

Very popular, cheaply produced, widely disseminated, anonymously authored, small books of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries termed "chapbooks" are a surprising place to find botanical information. One of the major reference works about these books begins this way, "Devils and angels, scoundrels and heroes, love and hate, murders, deathbed statements, witchcraft, riddles, tragedy, romance, song, jests, fairy tales, religion, hymns, speeches, executions, and all that goes to make up life, real and unreal, are reflected in the ephemeral chapbooks that once circulated so freely and are now so scarce." (Weiss, H. B., A Book About Chapbooks; the People's Literature of Bygone Times, Trenton, N.J., The Author, 1942). These books could be sold for a penny or two because they generally were made by folding a single sheet printed on both sides, with a paper cover or none, and were often copied and recopied by local printers. Chap-books were sold by peddlers known as chapmen probably because they sold cheap or "chap" goods.

In addition to the adult fare referred to above, this book format was ideal for low-priced children's books before the period when many children's books were readily available. Less than five percent have been found to be devoted to natural history subjects for children judging from those seen by me or referred to in published works about chapbooks. Most of these are about animals in a format that has a small woodcut, often very crudely done, of an animal on the top of each page followed by a brief description. A very small number, I would estimate less than one percent, of the chapbooks consider plants. These works have become of interest to me in a study of the books that were used to initiate the young to biological information. They were a surprising place to find natural history writing.

As a group, chapbooks have a chatty and informal style that is generally lacking in the more formal books of the period. For example, in one, Book of Fruits (New York, S. M. Crane, n.d. [ca. 1840]), it says, "Was there ever known a little boy or girl who did not jump to take a fine orange, peach, or apple when offered? Or refuse a lemon, tamarind, pineapple, or a bunch of cherries? Very seldom I dare say. Well, here is a short history of those fruits with some others that find their way to our numerous tempting fruit stands that are so profusely dressed off near the Fulton Market, or fine showy fruit stores in Broadway or Chatham-Street. This little book will tell you many things about fruit that will be useful to you to know." This work follows the format with cut and discription for each fruit and has some unusual fruits described — mangostan, guava, and shaddock. Some chapbooks have a distinctively religious overtone, particularly those of later dates. For example, one called The Fairy-craft of Nature (London, Groombridge and Sons, n.d. [ca. 1850]) written in dialogue form contains the following conversation, "Lucilla: `thank you, dear mamma, for your pretty tale.' Mother: `Say rather, my history, for all the changes and all the misfortunes of

Flaxseed have realfy happened as I have related them.' Lucilla: `What! this little seed of flax that I had in my hand just now, may become first a pretty plant, then fine thread, cambric, lint, and even paper at last?' Mother: `Yes, my love: at the command of the Great Being who creates all these wonders, the little seed bursts forth from the ground with its tiny green wings, which quickly expand into stems and leaves, these stems are soon adorned with pretty blue flowers, the flowers pass away ..." Another religious approach is found in My Flower-pot (Concord, N. H., R. Merrill, n.d. [ca. 1840]). "Say, Ma! did God make all the flowers/ That richly bloom today?/And is it he that sends sweet showers/ To make them look so gay?/ Did he make all mountains/ That rear their heads so high?/And all the little fountains/ That glide so gently by?/And does he care for children small?/ Say, Ma! does God love me?/ Has he the guardian care of all/ The various things we see?/ Yes! Yes! my child, he made them all, —/ Flowers, mountains, plants, and tree/No man so great, no child so small,/ That from his eye can flee!"

In the category of strictly instructional chapbooks there are three common types: ABCs, object lessons, and catechisms. The ABC type uses the alphabet to instruct very young children in the letters and in words using them. Grandmamma Easy's Pretty Poetry About Trees, Fruit and Flowers (Boston, Brown, Bazin and Co., n.d. [ca. 1860]) uses plants from A to Z: "The A stands first in Apple Tree,/An Apricot so sweet;/ In Acorn, too, the A you'll see./And Almonds, nice to eat./... The Z is seen in Hazel-tree/ On which nice nuts do grow;/ In Furze, also, the Z you'll see,/And Zephyr winds that blow." Or, in Set of Flowers Alphabetically Arranged for Little Children (New York, S. Wood and Sons; Baltimore, S. S. Wood, 1819) each page has the name of the plant, a capital and small letter, with a picture, and very brief text from A—Aloe to W—Wall-flower, with X, Y, Z on one page having no plants or pictures.

The object lesson books attempt to instruct by telling about familiar objects in common use. In First Steps to Knowledge. Common Things (London, T. J. Allman, 1870, original printing 1854) the following questions and answers are found, "Q. What is cinnamon? A. The dried under bark of a tree. Q. Where are cinnamon trees found? A. In the Island of Ceylon." Quite a number of plant materials and products are considered in this work including fruits, vegetables, spices, and fibers. Rural Scenes or a Peep into the Country for Children (Cooperstown, N. Y., H. and E. Phinney, 1839) tells children that, "Crab-apples grow spontaneously in some of the woods of America, and some apples need no sugar, either in pies or puddings" and that, "Black walnut-tree wood, was once in great request, and much used in clock-cases, looking-glass' frames, drawers, and other house-hold furniture; but now mahogany has driven the walnut-tree almost out of doors, as well as the solid oak." These object lessons tell us not only about how plants were used, but also about what people at that time had as their concerns.

The catechism is a format that required the memorizing of information in set answers to questions. We learn in A. Botanical Catechism: Containing Introductory Lessons for Students in Botany. By a Lady (Northhampton, [Mass.], T. W. Shepard, 1819) that the book is addressed, ". . .to teachers as learners, preparatory to the use of `Eaton's Manual of Botany'." It teaches the Linnaean classification as did Eaton. William Mayor's Catechism of Botany; or, an easy introduction to the Vegetable Kingdom: for the Use of Schools and Families (New York, S. Wood and Sons, 1820) gives the following questions and answers, "Q. Is not the knowledge of plants very useful? A. Without some knowledge of plants, we should not be able to distinguish between such as are noxious and such as are good for food, or for the various purposes of life." and, "Q. How is the knowledge of plants to be acquired? A. By the study of botany, a science which formerly implied an acquaintance with the nature, uses, and cultivation of vegetables, but which, in its modern acceptation, is applied, in the first instance, at least, to the classification of plants, or that systematic arrangement by which, from general marks or characters, the botanist is enabled to refer them to their proper place in the system. Without this, all would be confusion." The catechisms teach the definitions of plant parts and the classification of plants. C. Irving's A Catechism of Botany; Containing a Description of the Most Familiar and Interesting Plants Arranged According to the Linnaean System. With an Appendix on the Formation of an Her-barium. Adapted to the Use of Schools in the United States (3rd Amer. ed., New York, Collins and Hannay,

1829) also says, "Q. What advantages are derived from the study of botany? A. The study of this science as an amusement, is both healthful and pleasing, as it attracts us often into the country, and makes us acquainted with the wonderful works of nature: it also enlarges the mind, by implanting new and useful ideas, and fills it with the most exalted admiration of the great Creator of the Universe." Who then would not want to study botany?

Chapbooks provide windows for us to understand the botanical information that was generally available to large numbers of adults and children during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. They also provide materials for studying the differences between the botany known by the educated and uneducated at that time and how it was presented. In the latter part of the nineteenth century these little works were replaced by more elaborate books that then became available at modest cost. It is now difficult to find these chapbooks which were either worn out or thrown away. The search for them and of their contents is well worth the effort if one is interested in the history of ideas.

The W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center

Vernon P. Perry
Director, Biomedical Research Institute,
12111 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, Maryland
Executive Director,
American Foundation for Biological Research
of Madison, Wisconsin and
Vice President, Tissue Culture Association

The W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center was established and organized as an operational unit of the Tissue Culture Association, in fulfillment of one of the original goals of the Association. For many years, in fact since 1946, the Tissue Culture Commission which later became known as the Tissue Culture Association recognized the need for courses of instruction in the technics related to the field of cell cultivation. The first such course was given at the Connaught Laboratories in Toronto in 1948 and for several succeeding years at the Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown, New York. Subsequent courses were held in Denver, Colorado and at Madison, Wisconsin. Followng the 1964 course it became necessary to suspend the Annual Course in Tissue Culture because adequate facilities could not be found. The recognition of a need for a permanent Cell Science Center has persisted since 1946. In mid 1964, the realization of such a Center began with a gift of land in Lake Placid, New York by Mrs. Nettie Marie Jones, the widow of W. Alton Jones who was the former Chairman of the Board of Cities Service Company. Coupled with the land gift was a substantial grant from the W. Alton Jones Foundation to construct the Center and to support its early activities.

The functions of the Cell Science Center are threefold: teaching, research and home of the Association.

The W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center is located on a picturesque hilltop on a 34 acre site at the outskirts of the village of Lake Placid. Midway between Albany, New York and Montreal, Quebec, it is directly across Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont. The official dedication of the Center including the George and Margaret Gey Library took place on June 9, 1971, during the Annual Meeting of the Tissue Culture Association.

Originally, the Association sponsored the one annual course on cell and tissue culture. With the establishment of the Center in 1971, a primary objective of the Association was resumed with three courses at Lake Placid; a Vertebrate and Invertebrate course, a Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture course and an Animal Organ Culture course. In addition to these three courses, the Center was host to a course in cell culture for the

Study of Cellular Aging, sponsored by the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development.

The courses administered by the Cell Science Center are designed for scientists holding a doctorate degree and consist of formal lecture presentation, informal discussions and laboratory exercises. In addition to participation by scientists on the staff, a number of out-standing scientists from all over the world are invited to participate as guest lecturers. In 1973 nine courses, including workshops, are being presented at the Center. They are as follows:

Workshop on Contamination in Cell Cultures and Problems of Serum Quality Control. April 25-27.
Workshop on Interferon. May 25-26.
Course: Animal Organ Culture. July 9-20.
Course: Introduction to Vertebrate Cell Culture. July 23-August 3.
Course: Methods and applications of Plant Cell and Tissue Culture. August 6-17.
Course: Principles of Cell Synchronization. September 5-15.
Course: Methods in Medical Virology. October 1-12.
Workshop: Applications of Invertebrate Culture Systems to the Study of Bio-science. 1. Biological Aspects of Aging. October 19-20.
Workshop on Primary Cell Culture. 3 days in November (to be announced).

Plans for the 1974 courses include:

Animal organ culture course.
Introduction to vertebrate cell culture.
Plant cell and tissue culture course.
Methods in medical virology.
Cell culture in aging research.
Workshop on hybridization and chromosome mapping.
Workshop on nerve cell culture.
Workshop on culture of hematopoietic cells.
Workshop on chromosome banding.
Workshop on time lapse cinematography.
Workshop on isolation and cultivation of macrophages.

Readers who might be interested in any of the above courses should contact: The Executive Secretary, W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center, P. O. Box 631, Lake Placid, New York 12946.

Primary responsibility for organizing courses at the Center rests with the Education Committee of the Association, and all courses are developed with the advise and cooperation of the Director of the Center. At the October 1972 meeting of the Council of the Association, the W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center was designated the Continuing Education Center of the Association. As such, the Center will provide a continuing education program for members of the Association and for scientists actively engaged in the tissue culture field.

As the Continuing Education Center for the Association, the Center will provide consultation, advisory and training services for tissue culture workers in their own institutions and laboratories; will provide training courses for scientists unfamiliar with the tissue culture field; will operate an apprenticeship program and certification of tissue culture technologists; and, will use the experience and resources of the Association in assisting in the teaching of cell biology at various levels of education.

The Center also provides facilities for the research of the scientific staff. The facilities are continuously expanding to accommodate a wide variety of research interests. The staff includes a Director, professional associates, a librarian and a supporting staff of research assistants and secretarial and maintenance personnel. At the present time, the staff consists of 26 persons. The Center itself consists of 44,000 square feet, including the library, laboratories and offices. The laboratory spaces are divided into teaching and research facilities.

PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN

ROBERT W. LONG, Editor
Life Science Bldg. 174
University of South Florida
Tampa, Florida 33620

EDITORIAL BOARD
Elwood B. Ehrle, Mankato State College
Adolph Hecht, Washington State University
Donald R. Kaplan, University of California (Berkeley)
Richard M. Klein, University of Vermont
Beryl Simpson, Smithsonian Institutuin

September 1973 Volume Nineteen Number Three

Changes of Address: Notify the Treasurer of the Botanical Society of America, Inc. Dr. C. Ritchie Bell, Department of Botany, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 26614.

Subscriptions for libraries and persons not members of the Botanical Society of America are obtainable at the rate of $4.00 a year. Send orders with checks payable to "Botanical Society of America, Inc." to the Treasurer.

Manuscripts intended for publication in PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN should he addressed to Dr. Robert W. Long, editor, Life Science Bldg: 174, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33620. Announcements, notes, short scientific articles of general interest to the members of the Botanical Society of America and the botanical community at large will he considered for publication to the extent that the limited space of the publication permits. Line illustrations and good, glossy, black and white photographs to accompany such papers are invited. Authors may order extracted reprints without change in pagination at the time proof is submitted.

Material submitted for publication should be typewritten, doublespaced, and sent in duplicate to the Editor. Copy should follow the style of recent issues of the Bulletin. Microfilms of Plant Science Bulletin are available from University Microfilm, 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106.

The Plant Science Bulletin is published quarterly at the University of South Florida, 4202 Fowler Ave., Tampa, Fla. 33620. Second class postage paid at Tampa, Florida.

The lecture and laboratory spaces for teaching are ideally suited to assist both experienced and potential investigators. Twenty four participants can be accommodated per each course. The research facilities include ultra centrifuges, cell counters, laminar flow hoods, sterile rooms, scintillation counters, spectrophotometers, microtomes, incubators, sterilizing equipment and microscopes, both light and electron. Walk-in facilities include cold rooms and incubators for both animal and plant cultures, individual cage rooms for experimental animals, an isotope room for handling radioactive materials, and an animal operating room.

The present scientific staff of the Center consists of Drs. Donald K. Dougall, William H. J. Douglas and M. Edward Kaign. In addition to serving as the Resident Directors for courses administered at the Center, each member is responsible for conducting his own individual research studies. Dr. Dougall is currently interested in the control of morphogenesis by environmental factors especially related to plant tissue cultures; Dr. Douglas on the influence of thyroxine and cortisol on the pulmonary surfactant system of adult rat lungs cultured in vitro; and Dr. Kaign on maintenance of differentiated function by cells in culture. Each member possesses highly specialized knowledge and skills in the field of tissue culture and with the proper blend of each the Center is determined to provide excellence in the courses that are taught and in the research that is conducted. As the number of courses that are administered at the Center increases so will the scientific staff with a view toward achieving the goals of the Association on a sound financial basis. With these thoughts in mind the President of the Association, Dr. Virginia J. Evans of the National Cancer Institute has charged a committee headed by Dr. Edwin H. Lennette, Deputy Director, California State Department of Health, to search for a Director of the Cell Science Center. Until the end of 1972 the Center was directed by Dr. Donald J. Merchant. He was instrumental in establishing the Center from ground breaking to the successful reinstitution of courses administered by the Association. He asked to be relieved of administrative duties associated with the Center, which were and are formidable, to return to an academic career.

In a description of the Cell Science Center, it is important to stress the beauty of its architecture and the blending of the building into its natural surroundings. The coalescence of the native stone and redwood exterior of the Center with the mountain terrain accents the ecological intent of its designers. Built and equipped at a cost slightly over $3 million, the Center is now faced with the problems of developing research and teaching programs that will maintain the operation of the Center in perpetuity.

The Cell Science Center thus emerged as a product of the vision of 33 tissue culturists from several countries gathered at a post war conference in Hershey, Pennsylvania in November 1946. Three of these later became Nobel laureates, another was knighted and others became University Presidents or directors of significant research institutes. With this auspicious background the W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center has now launched itself on a course and sense of direction that will hopefully lead to the development of a center of excellence.

Hunt Institute for
Botanical Documentation

Many scientists disparage the significance of their own work to the history of their science. They mistakenly believe that their correspondence, unpublished research notes, and other personal records are of little value to the history of their discipline and the history of science in general. To the present and future historian of botany and of science, letters, field notes, manuscripts, and journals can be of enormous importance, both in chronicling the development of an aspect of botany and in reconstructing the life of a scientist, the activities of his colleagues, the institutions with which they were associated, and the social and intellectual milieu which both shaped and reflected their work.

This notice is an appeal to individuals working in the plant sciences to preserve such archival materials and ultimately to insure their deposit in some appropriate repository. The Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation serves as such an archives and welcomes inquiries from individuals in the plant sciences whose papers might contain material of historical value.

The archives of the Hunt Institute are open to all researchers and are particularly used by those interested in botanical biography and bibliography, the history of the science, and handwriting identification. Because of the scope of the archival collections and the wide activities of their subjects, there is also much material which could be used by nonbotanical researchers. Topics which have been or could be investigated include travel and exploration in various areas from the 1700s to the present, education in the nineteenth-century United States, United States government-sponsored scientific expeditions, early medicine, social commentary, the sociology of science, and the diffusion of knowledge.

The biographical collection currently provides more than 100,000 citations to published and unpublished ac-counts of botanists, horticulturists, and botanical artists; about 10,000 of the accounts cited are in the institute's collection. The iconographical collection holds the portraits of more than 11,000 such persons. The manuscripts collection contains more than 2000 letters by 900 botanists, horticulturists, and naturalists, mainly of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, as well as approximately 180 collections of personal and professional papers of eighteenth-, nineteenth-, and twentieth-century plant scientists of various nationalities. Included in this last category are letters, manuscripts, notes, lectures, and other papers of the French botanist Michel Adanson (1727-1806), author of Families des Plantes, and a volume of botanical letters received between 1797 and 1828 by the German botanist Franz Carl Mertens (1764-1831), written by 155 different contemporary botanists of Europe and America. Among the holdings of more recent origin are research notes used in preparation for books, including

Herbals: Their Origin and Evolution, by the British mor-

phologist, botanical historian, and philospher Agnes Artier (1879-1960), as well as some of her correspondence, and papers documenting the lives and work of plant explorers William Andrew Archer (1894-1973) and Joesph F. Rock (1884-1962) as well as the early life of mycologist and plant physiologist Benjamin M. Duggar (1872-1956), whose later research resulted in the isolation of aureomycin. In addition, the archives include photocopies

of relevant material at a number of European repositories and a series of oral history interviews with botanists.

The institute also has a library of over 19,000 titles, with major strength in works published between 1550 and 1850; conducts extensive bibliographical research on works published in botany and horticulture between 1730 and 1840; has more than 16,000 botanical prints and paintings, which are used for exhibits here and elsewhere; maintains a bindery for the conservation and restoration of books and manuscripts; undertakes publication of a facsimile series and monograph series; and has recently opened its collection of Linnaeana, consisting of all books and papers written and published by the famous Swedish naturalist and physician Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) in every known edition and translation, and the largest known assemblage of books and material concerning him.

Abby Levine, Archivist
Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation
Carnegie-Mellon University
Pittsburgh, Pa.

Publications on Podocarpus

By Netta E. Gray

Netta E. Gray worked and studied with John T. Buchholz at the University of Illinois, completing her Masters degree in Botany. She was particularly interested in the genus Podocarpus. The work she started with Buchholz and later carried on herself was a careful systematic treatment of each of the sections of Podocarpus. She was concerned with the systematic importance of anatomical details, and the geographical distribution and evolution of the genus. As a result of her diligent study of the group she became one of the world's authorities on this genus and had such visitors as R. Florin come to her door.

She lived with her husband Professor Stephen W. Gray near Atlanta, Georgia and taught at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia. She continued an active interest in research and publication about the genus, Podocarpus, as well as the Gymnosperms as a whole, until her death on August 24, 1970.

Her husband has asked me to make available reprints of the published papers of Netta E. Gray to those interested in her work. Listed below are the titles of several papers of which reprints are available. When requesting reprints please list those papers you would like, indicating your interest in Podocarpaceae or the genus Podocarpus. Requests should be addressed to Dr. David L. Dilcher, Department of Plant Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47401, U.S.A.

Reprints are available of the following publications:

Buchholz, J. T. and N. E. Gray. 1947. A Fijian Armopyle. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 28:141-143.
Buchholz, J. T. and N. E. Gray. 1948. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. I. The Sections of the Genus and their Subdivisions with Special Reference to Leaf Anatomy. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 29:46-63.
Buchholz, J. T. and N. N. Gray. 1948. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocapus, II. The American Species of Podocarpus: Section Stachycarpus. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 28:64-76.
Gray, N. E. and J. T. Buchholz. 1948. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. III. The American Species of Podocarpus: Section Polypodiopsis. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 29:117-122.
Buchholz, J. T. and N. E. Gray. 1948. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocwpus. IV. The American Species of Section Eupodocarpus, Sub-Sections C and D. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 28:123-151.
Gray, N. E. and J. T. Buchholz. 1951. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. V. The South Pacific Species of Podocarpus: Section Stachycarpus. VI. The South Pacific Species of Podocarpus: Section Sundacarpus. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 32:82-92.
Gray, N. E. 1953. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. VII. The African Species of Podocarpus: Section Afrocarpus. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 34:67-76.
Gray, N. E. 1953. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. VIII. The African Species of Section Eupodocarpus, Subsections A and E. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 34:163-175.
Gray, N. E. 1955. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. IX. The South Pacific Species of Section Eupodocarpus, Subsection F. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 36:199-206.
Gray, N. E. 1956. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. X. The South Pacific Species of Section Eupodocarpus, Subsection D. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 37:160-172.
Buchholz, J. T. and N. E. Gray, 1957. Contributions to the Flora of Venezuela - IV. Podocarpaceae. Fieldiana: Botany, Vol. 28:759-772.
Gray, N. E. 1958. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. XI. The South Pacific Species of Section .Podocarpus, Subsection B. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 39:427-477.
Gray, N. E. 1960. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. XII. Section Microcarpus. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 41:36-39.
Gray, N. E. 1962. A Taxonomic Revision of Podocarpus. XIII. Section Polypodiopsis in the South Pacific. Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 43:67-79.
Gray, N. E. 1969. An Interpretation of Podocarpus in Time and Space. The Bulletin of Georgia Academy of Science Vol. 27:144-147.

Conservation Committee Reports

The long-quiescent Botanical Society Conservation Committee is beginning to stir. Maybe you didn't even know there was one! Botanists possess an invaluable fund of knowledge about threatened species, endangered habitats, and important natural areas. Many Botanical Society members are working individually and effectively toward conservation of important features of our natural heritage. We hope that the Conservation Committee may become helpful in such endeavors and may encourage still other botanists to assume an active role in conservation matters.

At the June 1973, Council Meeting held at Amherst, Massachusetts, the chairman of the Conservation Committee sought clarification of the Committee's duties, and specific guidelines for its operation with respect to environmental impact statements and hearings on these or other conservation matters of importance to botanists. As a result of Council action on this request the Committee will be able to assist local organizations or individuals in several ways, perhaps the most significant of which is by adding the weight of a national Committee to expert opinions expressed at hearings. So that Society members understand the scope of this activity, let me quote from the official minutes of the Council, of June 17, 1973. "On particular issues it was felt that (a) any member of the Committee was free to speak for himself; (b) if the Committee reached agreement, they could take a particular stand as the Conservation Committee of the Society; and (c) on any matter that the Committee felt it was advisable for the Society as a whole to take a stand, the matter should be submitted to the Council as a recommendation of the Committee for discussion and action." The mechanism the Committee suggests is that members wishing assistance on hearings contact any member of the Committee supplying the specific evidence needed for a statement, which the Committee may supplement if it wishes. If the Committee reaches an agreement to support the project, it will draw up a statement and sign it. Such a statement can then be read at a hearing by a member of the Committee, if feasible, by the initiator of the action at the request of the Committee and/or be filed with the appropriate agency. In cases other than hearings, supporting statements can be prepared by the same mechanism and sent to the agency involved.

There are, of course, many other conservation oriented activities that are of interest and importance. The Committee would like to bring some of these to the attention of botanists through the columns of Plant Science Bulletin. Does your state have a list of endangered plant species? A Natural Areas Act? Are there recently completed conservation projects that deserve mention — any successful project does! Have you found any especially effective way of attracting public support? Do you want to urge widespread suppot of a project? Please send such items to the Chairman of the Committee. Get out and do all you can do on your own, but call us for help if there is need for our support.

E. E. Clebsch
Catherine Keever
Carl D. Monk
Wm. A. Niering
Roger E. Wilson
Elsie Quarterman, Chairman
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee 37235

A Note From the Treasurer

Just a year ago I took over the duties (chores is a better word!) of the treasurership of the Society from Ted Delevoryas with his assurance that "everything is on the computer" and the job "won't take but a few hours a week". At the same time the Journal got a new business manager and the Society put on a most successful fall drive for new members (membership was increased nearly 50% , from about 3000 members to around 4500 members). It was a very poor time to be a new Treasurer!

Despite very close phenetic similarity, the University of North Carolina computer at Chapel Hill did not quite speak the same language as the Yale University computer in New Haven ... and then I found out what I.B.M. really means - Infinitely Better Manually!

With 1,500 new memberships to process (mostly in December) at the same time that dues and dues notices for 1973 were being processed, and with a balky computer program, the print-out performance dropped to about 95% and several hundred valued members have been inconvenienced by having to write and inquire about their status in the Society or about their Journal subscription. To all of these people my sincere apologies for the in-convenience. We now have a new computer program and, hopefully, a nearly correct membership and mailing list. If you know of any member who has any question about their membership status please ask them to drop me a card. We will process it manually.

C. Ritchie Bell University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, N. C.

Just a year ago I took over the duties (chores is better word!) of the treasurership of the Society from Te Delevoryas with his assurance that "everything is on tl, computer" and the job "won't take but a few hours week". At the same time the Journal got a new busine; manager and the Society put on a most successful fa drive for new members (membership was increased near] 50%, from about 3000 members to around 4500 men hers). It was a very poor time to be a new Treasurer

Despite very close phonetic similarity, the Universit of North Carolina computer at Chapel Hill did not quit speak the same language as the Yale University comput( in New Haven ... and then I found out what I.B.M. reall means - Infinitely Better Manually!

With 1,500 new memberships to process (mostly i December) at the same time that dues and dues notic( for 1973 were being processed, and with a balky comput( program, the print-out performance dropped to about 959 and several hundred valued members have been it convenienced by having to write and inquire about thee status in the Society or about their Journal subscriptiol To all of these people my sincere apologies for the it convenience. We now have a new computer program an< hopefully, a nearly correct membership and mailing list. you know of any member who has any question abot their membership status please ask them to drop me card. We will process it manually.

C. Ritchie Bell University of North Carotin Chapel Hill_ Iv r

Botanical Society
Endowment Fund Started

At the annual meeting of the Society at Amherst in June, the Council authorized the establishment of an endowment fund, the income of which will be used to subsidize the publication of papers in the American Journal of Botany, and other publications of the Society written and submitted by students.

Immediately upon the establishment of the Endowment Fund a total of $350 was pledged to the fund from among members of the Council. Donations or contributions to the fund are tax deductible and may be made at any time and in any amount from $5.00 upward. For those who may wish to contribute, please make your check payable to the "Botanical Society Endowment Fund" and mail to the Treasurer, C. Ritchie Bell, Department of Botany, Coker Hall, U. N. C., Chapel Hill, N. C. 27514. Your contribution will help the Society help a student to publish a worthy botanical paper.

Membership Votes Dues Change
for 1974

The substantial across-the-board increases in all operating and publication costs over the past few years, coupled with a marked decrease in the amount received from page charges by the Journal, has finally necessitated an increase in most of the Society dues beginning with 1974. Dues for student members have not been increased but will remain at $6.00 per year as long as the Society can afford to do so. By vote of the membership at the annual meeting, the 1974 dues for active members will be $15.00, family membership (one journal) will be $17.50, and dues for retired members (set by our bylaws at '12 the rate for active members) will be $7.50. Life memberships will be $500.00 beginning in 1974.

Since a volume (10 issues) of the A. J. B. today costs over $16.00 to produce and mail, membership in the Society is still a cash bargain as well as a professional bargain, even at the new rates.

Editor's Notes

I am pleased to welcome a new member to the Editorial Board of the Plant Science Bulletin, Dr. Richard M. Klein of the University of Vermont. Dr. Klein, presently chairman of the Developmental Section of the Botanical Society, replaces Dr. Eric Steiner who has completed his term on the Board. For myself and for my predecessor, Dr. Hecht, I want to express our appreciation to Dr. Steiner for his long service to PSB.

One of Dr. Klein's suggestions at the recent meeting of the Council of the Botanical Society was that we have biennial meetings (one every two years) instead of annual meetings. He has agreed to discuss this suggestion in a future issue of the Bulletin. I am sure he would be pleased to hear from any member who has an opinion regarding the frequency of Society meetings.

The Council meeting this year produced a number of items of special interest to the membership, and some of these are discussed in short reports in this issue. The Treasurer, Dr. Bell, calls your attention to the change in dues structure necessitated by ever-rising prices. The Council also voted to return the "professional opportunities" feature to PSB, and beginning with the next issue this service will again be provided to the Society. Anyone wishing to invite applications from botanists may have their notice published in the Bulletin.

Finally, I wish to call to the attention of the membership the listing of titles of books and monographs that have been received recently by PSB for consideration for review. The review activity of PSB has been increasing rapidly over the past two years. It is our policy to review as many books as possible that are of interest to professional botanists, but obviously not all can be reviewed. Perhaps by annual publication of "books received" it may be possible to discharge some of our responsibility in this matter of publications in botany, and make it possible to be more selective regarding those that will be critically reviewed. If you have any opinions on policy regarding book reviews, the editor would like to hear from you.

Botanical Potpourri

THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA and the American Society of Plant Physiologists have appointed a joint committee to arrange for charter flights to the International Botanical Congress in Leningrad which will be held in June, 1975. Announcements soliciting interest and containing detailed information will be mailed to all members at a later date. However, members who wish to inquire may contact the chairman of the committee. The committee consists of Dr. J. W. McClure, Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio; Dr. Graeme Berlyn, Greeley Memorial Laboratory, 370 Prospect Street, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut; Dr. Tom Mabry, Department of Botany, University of Texas, Austin, Texas; Dr. Robert Cleland, Department of Botany, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; and Dr. Joseph Arditti (Chairman), Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, California. A separate committee has been appointed to allocate grants-in-aid for travel.

THE 2ND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION FOR MARINE RESEARCH AND OCEAN UTILIZATION will be held at Duesseldorf, Germany, November 13th - November 18, 1973. This is an International Forum of discussion between industry, government and scientific institutions dealing with the utilization of the oceans; the opportunity to display the newest technological developments, installations and systems for the utilization of the oceans; the trend indicator for all branches of engineering and science dealing with the utilization of the oceans; the opportunity for everyone to be informed about the future perspectives of the vast potential of the oceans.

For details please write to Transcontinental Pressevertrieb, 5300, Bonn 1, W. Germany.

ANNOUNCING AN INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON HAPLOIDS IN HIGHER PLANTS June 10-14, 1974, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada. The symposium, endorsed by the International Genetics Federation, will deal with various methods of producing haploids in higher plants and their utilization in research and plant breeding. Topics will be History and Scope of Haploids, Methods of Producing Haploids (2 days), Utilization of Haploids (2 days).

Persons interested in attending this symposium should write to Dr. K. J. Kaska, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

THE 2ND INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON THE FUNGUS SPORE, Form and Function in the Fungus Spore will be held on July 15 to 20, 1974 in Provo, Utah.

The topics will be dormancy and activation of fungal spores: Ultrastructure of Dormant fungal spores, Lilian Hawker and M. F. Madelin, University of Bristol, England. Inhibition of fungal spore germination, R. C. Staples and B. Macho, Boyce Thompson Institute, Yonkers, New York. Activators of fungal spore germination, A. S. Sussman, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Germination of fungal spores: Biochemical processes during spore germination, Carbohydrate metabolism, David Gottlieb, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois. Lipid metabolism, H. J. Reisener, Rhur University, Querenburg, Germany. Protein metabolism, James S. Lovett, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana. Nucleic acid metabolism, J. L. Van Etten, University of Nebraska (With co-authors John Roeheim and Bob Knight). Ultrastructure of germinating fungal spores, Organelle changed during germination, J. Smith, Strathclyde University, Glasgow, Scotland. Spore wall and germ tube changes during germination, Shigeyasu Akai, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.

Form and function of fungal spores, Myxomycetes, H. C. Aldrich, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida. Chytridiomycetes, E. C. Cantino, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan. Zygomycetes, S. Grove, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida. Oomycetes,

Bartnicki-Garcia and D. Hemmes, University of California, Riverside, California. Basidiomycetes, W. M. Hess and D. J. Weber, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. Ascomycetes, G. Turian and M. Cortat, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland. Deutoermycetes, M. Mangenot and O. Reisinger, University of Nancy, Nancy, France.

THE PALEOBOTANICAL AWARD FOR 1973 was awarded to Mr. Karl J. Niklas for his contribution titled "Protosalvinia from North and South America."

Any member of the Botanical Society of America who wishes to become affiliated with the Paleobotanical Section may do so by contacting the Secretary-Treasurer, Dr.

N. Taylor, Dept. of Botany, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio. In addition to the usual section business that is carried out, the Paleobotanical Section annually publishes the Bibliography of American Paleobotany which is circulated to the section membership.

A LEGACY OF AUST. $2,000.00 has been given to the Botanical Society of America by Dr. Isabel Clifton Cookson.

In her Will, Dr. Cookson provided in favor of the Society "for the general purposes of the Society in appreciation of the honours done to me by my election to Corresponding Membership."

THE AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, PLANT RECORDS CENTER is pleased to announce the availability of a new service to professional horticultural organizations. Utilizing its modern, computerized data files, where more than 200,000 records are maintained representing living plants cultivated within major North American botanic gardens, parks and arboreta, the Plant Records Center is capable of researching its files for in-formation relating to plants cultivated within North America. Generally, if available, the basic information sought regarding any desired taxon — collection(s) where grown, date of acquisition, and original source(s) — can be provided for the minimum service fee of $10.

Though it cannot imply that plants or plant materials may be obtained from these collections, the Plant Records Center can serve to direct professionals to desired living plants. Never before has there been one place for professional horticulturists to refer to in order to locate specific plants.

Additional information regarding this service, estimates for or answers to specific requests will be sup-plied promptly upon request. Address inquiries to Richard A. Brown, Director, American Horticultural Society, Mount Vernon, Virginia 22121.

Personalia

Dr. Donovan Correll has been appointed Taxonomist at the Fairchild Tropical Garden, Coral Gables, Fla. Dr. Correll, formerly Associate Director of the Systematic Biology Program for the National Science Foundation, assumed his new position on September 1, 1973.

Dr. Jack D. Ives, director of the University of Colorado Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, hopes to resolve a century-old controversy while doing research in Norway.

Supported by funds from the CU Council on Research and Creative Work, Ives went to Narvik and the Loften Islands north of the Arctic Circle. There he worked with Scandinavian colleagues on problems of determining the maximum extent of the ice's advance during the last great ice age, and on a controversy about whether plants in the area covered by the ice survived that advance.

Dr. Arthur H. Westing, Professor of Botany and Chairman of the Windham College Science Division, received the honorary degree of Doctor of Science at the college's commencement exercises May 27, 1973, becoming the first member of the Windham faculty to be so honored by his own institution.

Windham's president, Eugene C. Winslow, cited Westing for his documentation and exposition of the ecological destruction committed in Indochina by the U.S. military, stressing his part in the discontinuation of our chemical defoliant program there.

Dr. C. Hoyt Rogers retired May 31, 1972 as Vice President and Director of Tobacco Breeding and Production with Coker's Pedigreed Seed Company, Hartsville, South Carolina, after 30 years service. Prior to his affiliation with Coker's Pedigreed Seed Company, he was Plant Pathologist with Texas A&M University from 1931 to 1942.

During his 30 years with Coker's, Dr. Rogers was responsible for development of and release of over 20 varieties of flue-cured tobacco. Approximately 90 percent of the flue-cured acreage is planted to these varieties. It is estimated that the value to farmers is from $12-$15 billion. During the first 10 years he was also engaged in cotton breeding and disease evaluation of this and other southern field crops developed and released by Coker.

As of July 1, 1973, Robert Ornduff has assumed the directorship of the University of California Botanical Gar-den in Berkeley, succeeding Watson M. Laetsch. The Gar-den has recently regained possession of the Mather Red-wood Grove, a 5-acre tract of Coast Redwoods planted adjacent to the Garden in the early 1930's to commemorate Stephen Mather, University alumnus and co-founder and first director of the National Park Service. In addition, the Garden is embarking on a fund-raising drive to assist in restoration of areas of the Garden devastated by an unprecedented freeze in early December 1972, and in connection with realization of the master plan for long range development of the Garden. Bruce Bartholomew, who recently received his Ph.D. degree from Stanford University, has joined the Garden staff as Senior Museum Scientist.

Books Received by PSB for Review

ANDERSON, CHRISTIANE A Monograph of the Mexican and Central American Species of Trixis (Compositae) The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, New York.

ANDERSON, WILLIAM R. A Monograph of the Genus Crusea (Rubiaceae) The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, New York pp 1 128.

BARNEBY, R. C. New and Notable Menispermaceae Tribe Tinosporeae The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, New York, pp 137-151.

BLUM, JOHN L. Vaucheriaceae- North American Flora Series II part 8 The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, New York $2.75.

BURNS, GEORGE W. The Science of Genetics Second Edition The Macmillan Company, 1972, New York $9.95.

CLOSE, DOUGLAS —The Complete A-Z of Gardening Lyle Publication 1971, Sussex, England $14.95.

COUNCIL OF BIOLOGY EDITORS CBE Style Manual Third Edition, American Institute of Biological Sciences, 1972, Washington, D.C. $6.00.

CRONQUIST, ARTHUR, Basic Botany Harper and Row Publishers 1973, New York $12.95.

EYRE, S. R. World Vegetation Types Columbia University Press 1971, New York $12.50.

ENTWISTLE, P. F. Pests of Cocoa Longman Group Ltd. 1972, London $49.50.

FEST, C. AND K. L. SCHMIDT The Chemistry of Organophosphorous Pesticides Springer-Verlag, 1973, Berlin $35.20.

FOGG, G. E. Photosynthesis Second Edition American Elsevier Publishing Company, Inc. 1973, New York $3.95.

GLASSMAN, SIDNEY F. A Revision of B. E. Dahlgren's Index of American Palms J. Cramer 1972, Germany $48.30.

HITCHCOCK, C. LEO AND ARTHUR CRONQUIST —Flora of the Pacific Northwest University of Washington Press, 1973, Seattle, Washington $25.00.

HOFF, JOHAN E. AND JULES JANICK Food W. H. Freeman and Company, 1973, San Francisco $11.00.

HORTOBAGYI, T. The Micro flora in the Settling and Subsoil Water Enriching Basins of the Budapest Water-works, Akademiai Kiado, 1973, Budapest $14.00.

HULTEN, ERIC The Amphi-Atlantic Plants and their Phytogeographical Connections Otto Koeltz Antiquariat reprint from 1958, 1973, Koenigsten- Taunus/B.R.D.

KOCH, WILLIAM J. Plants in the Laboratory The Macmillan Co. 1973, New York $5.95.

KULL, ULRICH Wirkungen von Wuchsstoffen auf Spercherung u. Stoffwechsel in vegetativen Pflanzenteilen VEB Gustav Fischer, 197$, jleipzig $18.00.

LARSON, K. L. AND J. D. EASTIN, (editors) Drought Injury and Resistance in Crops Crop Science Society of America 1971, Madison, Wisconsin.

LIBBERT, EIKE Lehrbuch der Planzenphysiologia VEB Gustav Fischer Verlag 1973, Leipzig $16.38.

LINSLEY, E. G., J. W. MACSWAIN, P. H. RAVEN, AND R. W. THORP Comparative Behavior or Bees and Onagraceae Vol. 71 University of California Press, 1973 Berkeley, if, $3.50.

LLERAS, EDUARDO Revision of the Genus Haploclathra (Bonnetiaceae) pp. 129-136. The New York Botanical Garden 1972, New York.

MACSWAIN, J. W., P. H. RAVEN, AND R. W. THORP Comparative Behavior of Bees and Onagraceae Vol. 70 University of California Press, 1973, Berkeley, Calif. $3.00.

MAGUIRE, BASSET AND COLLABORATORS The Botany of the Guayana Highland -part IX The New York Botanical Garden 1972, New York, pp 1-832.

MARKS, G. C. AND T. KIZLOWSKI (editors) Ectomycorrhizae Academic Press 1973, New York, $28.50.

MARTIN, HUBERT The Scientific Principles of Crop Protection Sixth Edition Crane, Russak and Co., Inc. 1973, New York, $37.50.

MEYLAN, B. A. AND B. G. BUTTERFIELD Three-Dimensional Structure of Wood Syracuse University Press 1972, Syracuse, New York, $7.50.

MILLER, LAWRENCE P. (editor) Phytochemistry Vol. III Von Rostrand and Reinhold Company 1973 New York, $24.50.

MUELLER, DALE M. J. The Peristome of Fissidens limbatus Sullivant Vol. 63 University of California Press, 1973, Berkeley, Calif. $4,50.

NORTHEN, HENRY T. AND REBECCA T. NORTHEN Greenhouse Gardening Second Edition The Ronald Press Co. 1973, New York.

PITARD, J. AND L. PROUST Les Iles Canaries - Flore de L'Archipel Otto Koeltz Antiquariat reprint from 1908, 1973, Koenigsten-Ts./B.R.D.

PRESCOTT, G. W., H. T. CROASDALE, AND W. C. VINYARD Desmidiales Part I Saccodermae, Mesotaeniaceae series II part 6 The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, Bronx, N.Y.

PRYOR, L. D. AND L. A. S. JOHNSON A Classification of the Eucalypts. Australian National University 1971 Canberra, Australia, $3.95.

RECHINGER, K. H. Flora Aegaea Otto Koeltz Antiquariat reprint from 1943, 1973, Koenigstein, Ts./B.R.D.

ROBERS, N. B. V. Biology A Functional Approach Ronald Press Company, 1971, New York.

RUDD, VELVA E. Leguminosae-Faboideae-Sophoreae - North American Flora Series II part 7 The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, Bronx, New York.

SAN PIETRO, ANTHONY, MARVIN R. LAMBORG, AND FRANCIS T. KENNEY (editors) Regulatory Mechanisms for Protein Synthesis in Mammalian Cells Academic Press 1968 N.Y. $13.50.

SATTLER, ROLF Organogenesis of Flowers University of Toronto Press, 1973, Toronto, Canada, $27.50.

SMITH, ALEXANDER H. The North American Species of P.sathyrella Vol. 24, The New York Botanical Gar-den, 1972, Bronx, New York $35.00.

SMITINAND, TEM AND LARSEN, KAI (editors) Flora of Thailand Vol. 2 part 2 Applied Scientific Research Corporation of Thailand, 1972, Bangkok, Thailand pp 93-196.

SNUSTAD, D. P. AND D. S. DEAN Genetic Experiments with Bacterial Viruses W. H. Freeman and Company, 1971, San Francisco, Calif. $2.50.

VAN STEENIS, D. G. G. J. The Mountain Flora of Java E. J. Brill, 1972, Leiden, $57.78.

STONE, WITMER The Plants of Southern New Jersey Quarterman Publications, Inc. 1973 Boston, Mass. $25.00.

STEYERMARK, JULIAN A. BASSET MAGUIRE AND COLLABORATORS The Flora of the Meseta Del Cerro Jaua Vol. 23 The New York Botanical Garden, 1972, Bronx, New York pp 833-892.

TAYLOR, STERLING A. AND GAYLEN L. ASH-CROFT (editors) Physical edaphology - The Physics of Irrigated and Nonirrigated Soils W. H. Freeman and Company, 1972, San Francisco, Calif. $17.50.

WALSH, L. M. (editor) Methods for Analysis of Soils and Plant Tissue Soil Science Society of America, Inc. 1971, Madison, Wisconsin.

WARDLAW, C. W. Banana Diseases (including plantain and abaca), Second Edition, Longman Group Ld., 1972, London $32.50.

WEAVER, ROBERT J. Plant Growth Substances in Agriculture W. H. Freeman and Co. 1972, San Francisco, Calif. $19.50.

Book Reviews

GIBBS, MARTIN (ed.), Structure and Function of Chloroplasts, Springer-Verlag, Berlin; New York. 1971. 286 pp. $22.60.

The contents of this excellent collection of review articles deals with a significantly broader range of topics than the title might imply. Only one section, contributed by Kurt Muhlethaler, deals directly with chloroplast structure (in an anatomical sense). If chloroplast function is to be interpreted as its role in photosynthesis, then only two sections are devoted to this topic. One section, contributed by the editor, Martin Gibbs, is a comprehensive discussion of carbohydrate metabolism, and the other, by Mordhay Avron, although entitled "Biochemistry of Photophosphorylation", deals more generally with electron flow in photosynthesis and its relationship both to photophosphorylation and to pyridine nucleotide reduction. The remaining two-thirds of the volume are concerned with other aspects of the chloroplast, namely chloroplast movements by Frank Mayer, plastid genetics by Bjorn Wailes, nucleic acids and information processing by Christopher Woodcock and Lawrence Bogorad, lipid composition by Andrew Benson, and a comprehensive summary of the biosynthetic capacities of chloroplasts contributed by Trevor Goodwin.

One of the more interesting aspects of this volume is the inclusion of a brief summary by Robert Hitt of the history of photosynthesis and the role of the chloroplast in this process. For the young scientist, such as myself, this section puts into clear perspective historical developments in the field of photosynthetic research, including those made over the past two or three decades.

Although Gibbs indicated in the Preface that "the decision was made to sacrifice complete coverage of the field and to indicate general areas of investigation," such a disclaimer is perhaps not necessary. Each section includes a very comprehensive bibliography which is as current as publication deadlines will permit. In addition, although it is true that comprehensive coverage of any one topic cannot be included, it is still true that complete (in the sense of broad) coverage of the area of chloroplast physiology is achieved. Perhaps the only noted absence is the lack of coverage of the strictly photochemical aspects of photosynthesis. Since such coverage is to be found in a host of recent review articles and monographs its absence here is understandable.

It is virtually impossible to find errors in any of the coverage due to the selection of authors who are accepted authorities in the areas they discuss. The one exception which some might note is in the area of the light reactions of photosynthesis covered by Avron. However, the exception does not arise as a fault of the author, who is clearly an acknowledged expert in the field and in addition is a clear and lucid writer. Rather, the exception arises from the current and basic disagreements between investigators regarding the basic features of the light reactions. Clearly, no one author can simultaneously satisfy all sides of such current controversies. Instead, as Avron has clone so well, he should attempt to base his conclusions on those experiments and bits of evidence which are most convincing and most widely accepted.

Some of the sections include rather extensive and useful tabulations of data extracted from the literature. Most notably, for example, Woodcock and Bogorad have tabulated reports of DNA detection in plastids, both in nitro and in situ, and have also tabulated the reported properties of plant DNAs while Goodwin has compiled an impressive summary of known biosynthetic pathways in the chloroplast which should be of great reference value to a teacher and/or a researcher.

This volume should prove to be a valuable addition to the library of anyone who wishes either a comprehensive introduction to the composition, functions and biosynthetic capacities of the chloroplast or a concise review of

the same for reference purposes. The text is particularly suited for an exceptionally advanced undergraduate student, a graduate student, an investigator who is interested in expanding his area of interest and competence, or an instructor who wants a textbook for an advanced course dealing largely with the chloroplast.

Lee H. Pratt Vanderbilt Univ.

VIERECK, LESLIE A. and ELBERT L. LITTLE. Alaska Trees and Shrubs, Agriculture Handbook No. 410, pp. vii + 265, 128 figs, map in pocket. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 1972. $3.25.

Bound in white cloth, with scratch-board drawing of white spruce-paper birch, shrub layer of alder and willow on front cover. Pages iii — viii present a table of contents giving main headings and subheadings, followed by a sequential list of 128 species recognized from within Alaska.

The introduction (pp. 1-23) presents the authors' concepts of the need for this book, statements about previous work of similar nature, the plan and methods utilized, directions for using the book, and acknowledgments. This is followed by a statistical summary showing relative sizes of the larger families in Alaska — with the Salicaceae leading (36 species), followed by Ericaceae (30 species), and Rosaceae (21 species). The authors designate 33 species as trees, the rest as shrubs; some of the latter living in arctic or alpine areas may be less than 10 cm tall. They discuss vegetational zonation, give some attention to the species makeup of each of the eight zones recognized, and list many of the important species living within each zone.

Beginning on page 24 a discussion of criteria used and suggestions for using the keys is helpful. Five pages are devoted to a key based on characters present in the leafless, winter condition of the trees, and thirteen pages give two keys to the shrubs, one for summer when leaves and flowers or fruit are present, another for use when the plants are leafless.

The major portion of the book (pp. 43-253) is devoted to family, generic, and specific keys and descriptions, the latter of which vary in length but are well executed and quite adequate. Descriptions at the specific level are very good, with non-technical terms used to as great an extent as possible. Each species is illustrated by pen-and-ink drawings and is accompanied by a small outline map of Alaska upon which distribution of that species within the state is stippled.

The species coverage is headed by a common name, beneath which appears the technical bi- or trinomial, and often by a short paragraph headed "Other names:" that includes selected synonyms and occasionally by alternate common names. No references to places of publication are provided. Specific descriptions give a good coverage of characters, size measurements in inches and/or fractions, with parenthetical inclusion of the equivalent in the metric system. Within the description, such words as Leaves, Twigs, Winter buds, Bark, Flower, and Fruit, are printed in bold face, making it easy to compare described characters with comparable structures of a specimen in hand or on an herbarium sheet.

Distribution statements conclude the treatment of each species, and give the general range within and out- side Alaska. Several species are reported that have not been recorded from the state before.

Keys are dichotomous, the first "leg" of long keys being preceded by a single letter and by double letters before the second leg of a pair, facilitating quick reference to contrasting characters. Shorter keys involving less than six species dispense with letters.

The illustrations generally are good, often showing a branch in flower, another in fruit, and a third in the win-ter condition. Some drawings show both flower and fruit on a single branch — when both normally occur simultaneously on the same plant. In a few instances among the willows, only one of the two kinds of catkins is illustrated.

The arrangement of families follows the Engler and Prantl sequence; species appear according to no apparent system or order. Species treatments are conservative, are numbered consecutively throughout the book, and the appropriately numbered illustration and map is near the description. The legend for each drawing includes the degree of reduction or enlargement depicted in the printed illustration. Habit and habitat notes of varying lengths are helpful. Some drawings are rather "stiff" apparently owing to inexperience on the part of some artists is visualizing and depicting the natural orientation of leaves when drawings are made from herbarium sheets. The drawings, together with the distribution maps, occupy from one quarter to all of a page.

A bibliography of about 200 selected references, and an index to the common and scientific names occupy pages 245-265. A scale six inches long divided into 1/ l6ths along one side of a central line and centimeters and millimeters along the other, appears on the terminal fly leaf.

A map in the pocket inside the back cover shows the distribution of the eight zones in color. Many place names, elevations of prominent peaks, and courses of major rivers are shown on this map. The pages of the book are 5-3/4 by 9 inches, so it hardly slips into a coat pocket. The paper is smooth but not glossy, of good quality, and the typography is clean and clearcut. Taken in its totality, it is a fine publication that will be helpful to, and welcomed by, anyone interested in the woody plants of Alaska. Its authors have made a substantial contribution to the literature dealing with the botany of the 49th state and deserve much credit for their careful, consistently high quality work.

Ira L. Wiggins Stanford University

DORMER, K. J., Shoot Organization in Vascular Plants. Syracuse University Press, Syracuse, 1972. 240 pp., 127 illus., $13.50.

Dr. Dormer's treatise is a selective, somewhat personalized account of shoot form in higher plants. Its emphasis is on the more quantitative, mathematical analysis of shoot architecture in contrast to the morphogenetic treatments of meristem behavior that have been in vogue in recent times. Rather than attempting to be en-cyclopedic, Dormer has chosen a limited number of investigations for detailed scrutiny and evaluation. The result is that certain major references in some areas have been omitted and many less well known but pertinent citations appear in their place (for example, it is sur-

prising to find in a book which is mathematical in orientation to reference to Otto Schuepp's second edition of his "Meristeme" which is similarly analytically inclined). In addition the book's title is somewhat misleading because it is devoted almost exclusively to the shoots of angiosperms with little or no attention given to the ferns and other vascular plants. Therefore this work cannot be viewed as a comprehensive survey but rather a more aclectic consideration of shoot structure and morphogenesis.

Because of the author's keenly analytical outlook, however, many new approaches to the study of correlations and causal factors of shoot organization are presented and have the potential of stimulating new lines of investigation and evaluation. I believe that they represent the book's most valuable contribution. Dormer's detailed account of phyllotaxis and shoot symmetry are among the most sophisticated presented to date, and his discussion of the role of mechanical factors in the control of shoot morphogenesis should provide new avenues of research for the developmental physiologist. The book is logically organized into a series of topics beginning with a chapter on the initiation of new shoots and proceeding through chapters on the measurement of growth; cell enlargement and cell-division; the succession of parts; symmetry of the shoot; the vascular system; and the shoot system in its environment.

Because of its uniquely holistic viewpoint and method of analysis, Dormer's book should receive greater attention from morphologists and physiologists than I think it will. Some of the difficulty may lie with the organization and expression of the book itself. It simply is not an easy book to read; grasping the significance of all that is being said at just one complete reading is difficult. Part of the problem may lie in the author's rather turgid prose which, although stylish, is not always suited to the clearest expression of ideas. The lack of division of each chapter into the appropriate subheadings means that the overall organization of each chapter is not clear to the reader; the major points of significance simply do not stand out in relief as they should. Furthermore, the author's predilection for detailed re-evaluation and quantitative analysis of the work of others dominates certain chapters and obscures the major theme of those chapters. It is therefore easy for the reader to got bogged down in interpretive quibbles (for example, the argument on the concept of foliar versus axial interpretation of bundles in the section on vasculature) and lose the grand line of the section. If less attention had been lavished on the work of a few researchers, then more space could have been devoted to a slightly wider representation of the relevant literature. Also, despite the book's seemingly logical sequence of topics, the linkage between chapters is not always clear; hence the book tends to fragment into a series of isolated essays that do not necessarily form a coherent unit. For example, in spite of a rather extended account of the derivation and evaluation of different growth equations in chapter 2, these equations find little application in the subsequent chapters devoted to shoot organization. One is left with the impression that this detailed treatment was written more for the author's interest than for its relevance to the total text. The height of indulgence however is the chapter entitled "The initiation of new shoots" which is devoted largely to an account of the control on initiation of adventitious, epiphyllous buds and which is therefore hardly representative of the more general title which it has been given.

In summary, despite its somewhat uneven, personalized character, this book provides some unique in-sights into the correlations and possible causal factors in shoot organization. It would be unfortunate if its inherent problems of presentation and eclectic nature were to deter investigators from giving the book the attention it deserves; for there is much to be gained here, even if it requires a good deal of effort on the part of the reader.

Donald R. Kaplan

University of California, Berkeley

GRAHAM, A. (Ed.). Floristics and Paleofloristics of Asia and eastern North America. Elsevier Publishing Co. 1972.

The floristic similarity between eastern Asia and eastern North America is one of the most remarkable on earth, for no other floras of distant regions (these about 6000 miles apart) have such strong affinities. This book, which includes chapters on both recent and fossil floras, is a selection of papers from a symposium of the same title held at the XI International Botanical Congress, Seattle, in 1969, and from a meeting on "Problems in the distribution and differentiation of plant groups common to Japan and North America", held at Corvallis following the Congress. It is concerned with the problems of evolution, migration, geological, climatic, and vegetational history that the disjunct floras invoke. Ten authors have contributed chapters on living floras, seven of these on seed plants and three on cryptogams, and three chapters are devoted to Tertiary floras and their history. The editor, Alan Graham, has contributed an introductory chapter that provides the framework for the individual contributions. He has performed a real service in bringing them together in a single publication.

An earlier concept of massive migration from Asia to eastern North America during the Tertiary with subsequent Pleistocene extinction along the migration route has been questioned more and more frequently as modern studies have reassessed older data and provided new evidence. This simplistic view is convincingly demolished in this book, which places the emphasis on the complexity of the phytogeographic relation and the questions that must be answered before it can be fully understood.

The chapter on the Tertiary floras of Alaska by Jack Wolfe emphasizes the different composition of these floras with changing climates through time. The evidence from present and fossil distributions of the other side of Beringia, analyzed by B. A. Yurtsev, leads to similar conclusions. The detailed information presented by Estella Leopold and Harry MacGinitie on the Tertiary floras of the Rocky Mountain region again emphasizes complexity in the floristic history of that area. All of this evidence is incompatible with the concept of a monolithic Arcto-Tertiary geoflora. The shifting climatic patterns and the corresponding alteration of ranges of species and vegetation provide no grounds for older concepts involving stability.

The heterogeneity of the disjunct living floras is especially recognized by Hui-Lin Li. He distinguishes between a floristic element composed of disjunct genera and one (or more) composed of disjunct and vicarious species. The latter are usually more advanced, while the genera are mostly more primitive forms (at least within their family). In the chapter by Hiroshi Hara, on patterns of differentiation, cytotaxonomic evidence is utilized in a

discussion of the evolution of disjunct taxa. The chapters on non-vascular plants present data from groups frequently neglected in biogeographic studies. Younger and older floristic elements are recognized in the bryophyte floras by Zennoske Iwatsuki, while an arctic origin is postulated for the lichen relationships studied by Syo Kurokawa.

Each of the contributors presents his own subject, thus the book is not a comprehensive coverage of topics relating to the two floras. The problem of long-distance dispersal and migration, for example, is not developed although it merits attention. The book is clearly successful in pointing out that we have reached a new level of understanding of the relationship between these remarkable floras. They will continue to be a rewarding subject for biogeographic study. Rolla Tryon

Harvard University

WALLER, GEORGE R., Biochemical Applications of Mass Spectrometry. Wiley-Interscience, New York, 1972. XIV, 872 pages. $49.95.

It is a difficult task to prepare a volume that is comprehensive and yet presents material useful to non-specialists and specialists alike in a rapidly developing area such as mass spectrometry. Nevertheless, the present rather expensive volume tends to meet these goals and should fill an information gap for several years to come. The authors selected for the subject areas are excellent and their reviews are generally up-to-date with complete bibliographies.

Although the instrumentation section will be of little value to those who have functioning MS systems, it should be useful to beginners in this field. The second section is devoted to all types of approaches for interpreting mass spectra. For example, specialists contemplating a computer matching system for compound identifications will find Chapter 6 especially informative.

The application section which deals with mass spectrometry of the various classes of compounds is likely to be of most widespread use to biologists. All the important classes of biological compounds for which mass spectrographic data are available are covered, often in depth. Of particular interest to plant scientists are the chapters on terpenes and flavon components. The former presents mass spectra and fragmentation mechanisms for monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpene lactones, diterpenes, triterpenoids and carotenoids. The chapter on flavon constituents emphasizes many of the special problems en-countered in this field, including approaches for the isolation and separation of the complex chemical mixtures which constitute flavons. Also of interest to biologists are chapters on such topics as semiochemicals, alkaloids, vitamins and cofactors, antibiotics, tetrapyroles and pesticides.

Most research groups interested in the mass spectrometry of biological compounds will find that at least one copy of this volume should be available as a reference

book. George Vander Velde and
Tom J. Mabry, The University of Texas at Austin

LITTLE, ELBERT L., JR., Atlas of United States Trees. Vol. 1. Conifers and Important Hardwoods. U.S. Dep. Agr. Forest Service Misc. Publ. 1146. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. 1971. $16.75.

Elbert L. Little, Jr. has compiled and produced an atlas consisting of nine pages of text, 300 maps showing the geographical distribution of 203 species of important North American trees and shrubs, and nine translucent overlays showing rivers and natural lakes, land surface form, elevation, plant hardiness zones, length of growing season, precipitation, climate (as related to precipitation effectiveness), maximum extent of the Wisconsin glaciation, and major forest types. Many of the maps have been published before but they are updated and enlarged in this work.

The distribution of 96 coniferous and 107 angiospermous species is shown on three base maps. One covers all of North America at a scale of 1:27,000,000 and is used for those species that extend into Canada and/or Latin America. The other two maps combined, cover the 48 contiguous states of the United States plus small areas of adjacent Canada and Mexico at a scale of 1:10,000,000. These two maps divide the area at about 100° W. longitude and show those species which grow naturally in the 48 contiguous United States. The maps of the United States show county boundaries.

The mapping of the native occurrence of any species could be done by a variety of techniques, none of which would satisfy everyone. The author understands this and has chosen what must of necessity be a compromise approach.

The distribution of each species of tree or shrub is shown by stippling or shading. One species is shown on each map which results in a large amount of space devoted to those species which have restricted distribution. Two or more species could have been shown on some maps without seriously disrupting the alphabetical listing of species. A more professional appearance would have been achieved using other means to prepare the stippling and shading of the original maps for this atlas. Some hand-stippling was done and this contrasts markedly with the more uniform commercially printed stippling on the same page. On some of the original maps, shading was done with a soft lead pencil and this results in a very uneven and grainy appearance. Some smudging on the original maps occurred before reproduction and printing and the result may be distracting to some users of this book.

The nine translucent overlays can be used on the United States maps and allow one to compare each species' distribution with various environmental factors. The overlays showing rivers and lakes and the major forest types are of a slightly different shape and size than the distributional maps and therefore can not be properly oriented. The overlay showing major forest types is frustrating to use because it is difficult to discern the fine differences in green shading used to designate each of the 22 different vegetational areas. The use of a combination of shadings, stippling, cross-hatching, different colors, etc., would have been more useful to those unfamiliar with the native vegetation. Additional overlays showing elevation and rainfall in meters would have made this atlas of more use to many interested people in the rest of the world where the metric system of measurement is standard. Perhaps future volumes will correct these deficiences.

Two indices, one of scientific names and the other of common names are inchided. Only one common name for each species is listed and these names are from Little's 1955 Checklist of Native and Naturalized Trees of the

United States (including Alaska) which may not be available to some users of this atlas.

The criteria for the selection of species to be mapped in the future volumes is not indicated and therefore, unfortunately, leaves us in suspense as to what to expect next.

This atlas embodies the results of endless hours of field work by a vast number of named and unnamed workers. The maps summarize this information and illustrate well the native distribution of these 203 species. The result should be of considerable use to ecologists, foresters, students of plant evolution, taxonomists, horticulturists, as well as to gardners and other interested layment.

Wayne L. Handlos Rutgers University, Newark

WESTERN, J. H. (ed.) Diseases of Crop Plants. Halsted Press Division, John Wiley & Sons, N.Y. 404 p. 1971.

Dr. J. H. Weston, Professor of Agricultural Botany, The University of Leeds, has edited this volume of 17 chapters, each written by one of more British authorities. Following the editor's introduction, there are chapters on: disease assessment by T. F. Preece; seed pathology by Mary Noble; legislation and crop health by I. W. Prentice; chemical control of air-borne diseases by E. Evans; and breeding for disease resistance by J. D. Hayes and T. D. Johnston. These chapters, well and interestingly written, discuss topics relevant mainly to Britain. However certain general principles of universal interest to plant pathology are stressed.

Remaining chapters on crop diseases are mainly factual and include potato diseases by D. H. Lapwood and G.

Hide; potato viruses in Britain by B. D. Harrison; sugar beet diseases by R. Hull; cereal diseases by J. Colhoun; cereal rusts and smuts by J. G. Manners; grass and herbage legume diseases of cereals and grasses by P. L. Catherall; vegetable diseases by A. G. Channon and R.
Maude; and hop diseases by H. H. Glasscock. Obviously crops and diseases chosen were those of interest and importance to Britain; thus field crops such as cotton, flax, soybean, sugarcane, and tobacco were not included. Among cereals, for example, diseases of maize, rice, and sorghum were omitted from the list of barley, oats, rye, and wheat diseases. On the other hand, diseases covered are of international importance. Each contributor emphasized the diagnosis, cure, and prevention of disease, not only diseases caused by bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and viruses, but those attributable to mineral deficiencies and excesses (but not those due to pollution).

By not taking a strictly textbook approach to the subject, except in a few chapters, there was not the necessity to be comprehensive in treatment. This means fewer diseases were covered but usually covered in greater detail, with accounts not only of etiology but of nature and mechanisms of disease development, often philosophical in treatment. Thus some chapters resemble review articles, others a textbook outline. Another in-consistency is the use of cryptograms for potato viruses but not for cereal, grass, and forage legume viruses.

Fifteen figures, and 16 plates that comprise 64 additional figures (1-8 fig./plate), illustrate selected diseases. Unfortunately, placement of plates is poor; e.g., the 9 plates on potato diseases appear in the chapters on cereal diseases.

Appended to text, is a list of 130 main pathogenic fungi (but not bacteria, nematodes, or viruses) with diagnostic data. Literature citations and references number from 3 to 251 per chapter and total 1334 for the book. Of these 65% are in European journals or works, 28% are in USA publications, 3% in Canadian, and 1% or less each in African, Asian, Australian, and New Zealand publications - again emphasizing the preponderance of European literature and diseases.

The text is relatively free from typographical errors; only a few were spotted, e.g. ribonucleic acid (p. 152) and Gibberellaauenacea(p. 188, 384).

Despite its geographical limitations, this book is highly readable and rich in factual and philosophical material. Teachers and practising plant pathologists of any country would find the book useful and thought provoking. Thor Kommedahl,

University of Minnesota, St. Paul

HARPAZ, ISAAC. Maize Rough Dwarf. A Planthopper Virus Disease affecting Maize, Rice, Small Grain and Grasses. Israel Univ. Press, Jerusalem. 1972.

The author has compiled much information on a little-known virus disease of considerable interest and economic importance - Maize Rough Dwarf Virus (MRDV). He has gathered isolated bits of information from several laboratories around the world and he and his colleagues have expanded that information to produce a useful reference work on several maize viruses and on planthopper-transmitted viruses in general.

The first two chapters of Maize Rough Dwarf are concerned with (1) an "Introduction" that outlines the historical and economic importance of the disease, as well as the geographical distribution and (2) "Symptomatology and Host Range" of the virus on maize, grasses, and other hosts. Chapters 3 and 4 deal with "Mechanical, Graft, Dodder and Seed Transmission" and "Insect Transmission", respectively. Virus-vector relationships are treated in the next two chapters. In chapter 5, the author describes in detail the acquisition and innoculation feeding requirements of the vector, temperature effects on host and vector, relationships between the virus and other vectors, and interactions between the vector planthopper and hosts other than maize. Transovarial transmission is treated in Chapter 6 and the author also discusses the harmful effects of the virus on the planthopper vector. Chapters 7, 8, and 9 deal with virus-host plant interrelationships, purification and properties of the virus, and electron microscopy of the virus in the plant and in the vector, respectively. Chapter 10 contrasts and compares MRDV with other maize viruses and viruslike disorders. Chapter 11 compares MRDV with other planthopper-transmitted viruses. Morphology and biology of vector species are discussed in Chapter 12. The last two chapters are concerned with epiphytology and control of the disease.

The book is an interesting treatise on MRDV and a valuable reference to plant pathologists and biologists interested in plant diseases, vectors, and viruses and their interactions. The book is wordy and could have been edited more enthusiastically. Nevertheless, as a reference work on a complicated plant virus disease, it is a useful addition to personal and biological libraries.

L. Hoefert
U.S.D.A. Research Station
Salinas, Calif.

SWARTZ, DELBERT. Collegiate Dictionary of Botany. The Ronald Press Company, New York. 1971. 520 pp. $10.50.

This book, published five years after the author's death, was completed by the author's wife from his first draft. She acknowledges the assistance of other members of the Department of Botany and of the English Department of the University of Arkansas. Almost 24,000 entries are included, but many of these are only single-line entries. Taxonomic and ecologic terms seems to predominate, yet some terms now in common use in other areas are not included, e.g., sporopollenin, Ubisch bodies or orbicules. Undoubtedly each of the terms listed has occurred at some time in the past, but many, e.g., inequihymeniiferous, scabiosaefolious, eugeopenous, antirrhiniflorous, proshydrotaxis, perhaps had best be forgotten!

A much more useful botanical dictionary could have been patterned after Rieger, Michaelis and Green's, A Glossary of Genetics and Cytogenetics. Springer-Verlag, 1968. This latter book includes only some 2,500 entries, but many are presented with more useful explanations than have been provided in the volume by Swartz. Citations to the original usage of some of the terms, as provided in the Rieger et al volume, would similarly have enhanced the usefulness of the Swartz dictionary.

Meiospore is included, but not the companion term, mitospore. An entry on mitogenetic rays states, "They are emitted by actively growing plant parts." This, of course, has been claimed, but its proof is questionable. The term cra.ssulae is defined correctly as a replacement for bars of Sanio and rims of Sanio, yet the latter two terms are presented as different. The word umbellifer is defined as "a plant bearing umbels." This definition is etymologically correct, but the standard dictionary definition, "a plant of the family Umbelliferae," is, I think, closer to current botanical usage. Some definitions, e.g. of mitochondria and microsomes, are many years behind present knowledge.

An appendix of 13 pages is entitled, "Outline of the Plant Kingdom." Perhaps its principal value stems from a listing of the major orders and families of plants. Since the reader must refer to more complete references in order really to use this classification, it would seem to me that a listing of current pertinent references would have been a much better use of these pages.

Despite the many shortcomings and inaccuracies which are almost inevitable in a compendium of so many entries, the book will undoubtedly prove useful as a source for learning the probable meanings of many terms, however inept, with which some botanists have em-burdened the literature of their science.

Adolph Hecht Washington State University

If you are looking for suggestions for Christmas presents for your bright young relatives, here are three books of interest reviewed by one of our recent botany majors.—ed.

GUILCHER, J. M. and R. H. NOAILLES. A Fern is Born. Sterling Nature Series. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., New York, 1971. $3.50. 94 pp.

GUILCHER, J. M. and R. H. NOAILLES. The Hidden Life of Flowers. Sterling Nature Series. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., New York, 1971. $3.50. 84 pp.

HATFIELD, AUDREY WYNNE. How to Enjoy Your Weeds. Sterling Nature Series. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., New York. $3.95. 192 pp.

For a mystic look at the world of plants, the Sterling Nature Series has come up with "The Hidden Life of Flowers" and "A Fern is Born." Since the authors neglected to use scientific names, a botanist would probably only be interested in them as gifts to a 10 year old child who is developing an interest in botany.

The sections on reproduction of the ferns and flowers are the strong points of the books. They go into about as much detail as a freshman biology course, which of course, puts it at the level of a bright 10 year old. Other than that the pictures (black and white only) are just adequate and the text reminds one of a Sunday school lesson.

"How to Enjoy Your Weeds" is also aimed at the organic gardner type or the person with a casual interest in botany, but it is such a delightful little book that even Ph.D.'s will enjoy it.

The author not only writes with a light sense of humor, she includes the scientific names and families of the common plants she is talking about as well as a history of the name and the plant (including fossil locations). But her real interest is in the uses of common weeds. She quotes often from the old herbalists (not always endorsing their remedies) and lists, among other things, ways to make porridge from stinging nettles (Urtica dioica), wild carrot whisky, and candied rose petals not to mention an incredible variety of salad possibilities and home remedies.

The author includes her own illustrations which are beautifully clear as well as mentioning most common names for the plants along with detailed descriptions to help in identifying the plants. (Here botanical students could learn a lot.)

This book's main appeal should be to those interested in "getting it on" with nature, but it is scientific enough to earn the respect of botanists.

A. I. Cravens Univ. of South Fla.

PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN LIFE SCIENCE BUILDING UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA TAMPA, FLORIDA 33620

Back to overview

Items posted on the Botanical Society of America's website by the author/creator are licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License.
We value sharing, growing and learning together. In the spirit of fairness, we believe in the attribution of materials and ensuring the appropriate voices are in place when considering further use.