Abstract
THESE two parts form the commencement of a work intended to render possible the identification of the liardy species of angiospermous trees and shrubs indigenous to, or cultivated in, Central Europe. Such a work invites comparison with Koehne's well known book on the same subject rather than with the more comprehensive descriptive works by Koch and Dippel. From the first named it differs in the vastly greater number of illustrations, and in the fuller details given regarding the characters of buds and twigs. These additional details contained in Schneider's book go far towards removing the uncertainty of diagnosis involved in the provisional identification by means of the dichotomous keys employed throughout the work. The present Lieferungen, dealing with the Salicaceæ, Myricaceæ, Betulaceæ, Fagaceæ, Ulmaceæ, Moraceæ, Urticaceæ, Santalaceæ, Loranthaceæ, Aristolochiaceæ, Polygonaceæ, Chenopodiaceæ, Phytolaccaceæ, Caryo-phyllaceæ, Trochodendraceæ, Ranunculaceæ, Lardiza-balaceæ, and some species of Berberis, nominally include 197 illustrations, but in reality contain quite 2000 figures of buds, twigs, leaves, inflorescences, flowers, fruits, and their parts. In addition, the free use of abbreviations and of small print has rendered possible the condensation into small compass of much information concerning not only diagnostic characters of species, varieties, and forms, but also concerning their nomenclature, distribution, and phenology. To illustrate the method of treatment adopted by the author, Populus alba may be selected from the twenty-three species of Populus considered in this work. Three varieties of this tree are sufficiently described as regards their distinctive features; figures are given of resting-buds, twigs and their transverse sections, four forms of leaves, flowers, seed, embryo, and seedling; information is tendered as to the times of flowering, of flushing of the vege tative buds, and of fruiting, also as to the germin ation, distribution, and age attained by this species; and finally hybrids including this species are noted. In so thorough a work it is exceedingly difficult to avoid making statements not universally applicable, but the solitary one that the reviewer has observed is to the effect that Carpinus Betulus has a trunk with a light grey coating of cork. The work may be strongly recommended to all engaged in the study of dicotyledonous woody plants growing in the open in this country.
Handbuch der Laubholzkunde.
Charakteristik der in Mitteleuropa heimischen und im Freien angepflanzten angiospermen Gehölz-Arten und Formen mit Ausschluss der Bambuseen und Kakteen. By Camillo Karl Schneider. Erste Lieferung, pp. 160; Zweite Lieferung, pp. 161–304. (Jena: Gustav Fischer, 1904.) Price 4 marks for each Lieferung.
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GROOM, P. Handbuch der Laubholzkunde . Nature 71, 76 (1904). https://doi.org/10.1038/071076a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/071076a0