From J. J. Weir 31 July 1872
6 Haddo Villas | Blackheath SE
31 July 1872
My Dear Sir
I have met with a singular case which illustrates our perfect ignorance of the cause of variegation in the leaves of plants.—
A friend of mine at Eltham Mr. Dobell who lives in the house formerly inhabited by Sherard and Dillenius, has a large Acer pseudoplatanus with variegated leaves, this is an old tree perhaps even, planted by Sherard himself.—1
It seeds every year and an abundance of young trees are produced, but up to 1869 I cannot find that a single variegated leaved one has been found.—
The seed of 1868 however produced in 1869 16 specimens most beautifully variegated, but not one has been found since.—
Did the unusual heat of 1868 produce this effect?2
My friend has lived in the house some 20 years & therefore the observation is trustworthy, & I have personally taken the greatest interest in examing the spot from time to time
Yours very truly | J Jenner Weir
C Darwin Esqr
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Dillenius, Johann Jakob. 1732. Hortus Elthamensis seu plantarum rariorum quas in horto suo Elthami in Cantio coluit vir ornatissimus et praestantissimus Jacobus Sherard. 2 vols. London: the author.
ODNB: Oxford dictionary of national biography: from the earliest times to the year 2000. (Revised edition.) Edited by H. C. G. Matthew and Brian Harrison. 60 vols. and index. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2004.
Post Office directory of the six home counties: Post Office directory of the six home counties, viz., Essex, Herts, Kent, Middlesex, Surrey and Sussex. London: W. Kelly & Co. 1845–78.
Summary
On variegated leaves; a feature not inherited consistently.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-8440
- From
- John Jenner Weir
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Blackheath
- Source of text
- DAR 181: 84
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 8440,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-8440.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 20