RECORD: Darwin, C. R. 1857.07. Babingtons Manual of Brit. Botany (3d Edition) 1851. List of all the varieties. CUL-DAR16.231d-232. (John van Wyhe ed., 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online, http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
REVISION HISTORY: Transcribed by Christine Chua and John van Wyhe, edited by John van Wyhe 3.2023. RN2
NOTE: See record in the Darwin Online manuscript catalogue, enter its Identifier here. Reproduced with permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library and William Huxley Darwin. The volume CUL-DAR16 contains calculations and tables for Darwin's 'big book' Natural Selection F1583.
(5
I exclude Rubus Rosa, Hieracium Salix & Carex
Babington's Manual of Brit. Botany (3d. Edition) 1851. List of all the varieties marked by Greek Letters. I exclude the very doubtful species in Brackets
Babington
Thalictrum minus |
5 |
|
Ranunculus aquatilis (3) |
19 |
|
― flannula |
|
|
― acris |
|
|
Caltha palustris X |
1 |
|
Papaver Rhaeus (?) |
|
|
Chelidonium majus (?) |
|
|
Fumaria Cephalotis (2) |
5 |
|
Barbarea vulgaris |
3 |
|
Cardamine pratensis |
4 |
|
Brassica campestris |
4 |
|
― morensis |
|
|
Draba verna |
5 |
|
Cochlearea officinalis |
1 |
|
― anglica |
|
|
Thlapsi alpestre |
3 |
|
Viola hirta |
9 |
|
― canina |
|
|
― lutea |
|
|
― tricolor |
|
|
Polygala vulgaris X |
3 |
|
Saponaria officinalis X |
1 |
|
Silene anglica (2) |
8 |
|
― nutans |
|
|
― inflata |
|
|
Sagina procumbens |
7 |
|
nodosa (?) |
|
|
(Alsine) verna |
|
|
― tenuifolia |
|
|
Arenaria serpythifolia |
8 |
|
Stellaria media (?) |
7 |
|
18 genera / 28 species / 33 vars / |
93 |
|
|
|
|
Cerastinum glmeratum |
8 |
|
― trivialis |
|
|
― arvense |
|
|
― latifolium |
|
|
Hypericum dubium |
11 |
|
Geranium sanguineum |
12 |
|
― robertianum (2) |
|
|
Genista tinctoria |
3 |
|
Medicago denticulata |
7 |
|
Trifolium pratense |
19 |
|
― strictum. |
|
|
Lotus corniculatus (3) |
3 |
|
― major |
|
|
― angustifolium |
|
|
Anthyllis X |
1 |
|
Vicia hirsuta |
10 |
|
― sativa (3) |
|
|
Lathyrus maritimus |
7 |
|
― macrorhizus |
|
|
Prunus communis |
4 |
|
Sanguisorba officinalis X |
1 |
|
Alchemilla vulgaris |
3 |
|
Potentilla reptans |
9 |
|
― tormentilla (2) |
|
|
Dryas solipetala X |
|
1 |
Crataegus oxycanth (2) X |
1 |
|
Pyrus malus ✔ |
5 |
|
Epilobium angustifolium |
10 |
|
― parviflorum |
|
|
― mrtimum (3) |
|
|
18 genera / 32 species / 39 vars. / |
115 |
|
(These numbers are from London Catalogue)
This is old list made a year or two ago, but I have marked it. C.D July 1857
(6
Most of the vars. are species of some one author.
Circaea intermedia X |
2 |
Montia fontana (2) X |
1 |
Herminia glabra X |
1 |
Lepigonum rubrum (2) X |
2 |
― marinum (2) X |
|
Spergula arvensis (2) X |
1 |
Sedum album |
11 |
― reflexum |
|
Ribes rubrum (2) |
4 |
Saxifraga umbrosa (2) |
14 |
stellaris |
|
arizoides |
|
caespitosa (2) |
|
Hyparides (2) |
|
Heracleum X |
1 |
Sambucus nigra 2 X |
2 |
Galium spurium |
13 |
― millugo 2 |
|
― palustre |
|
Kerautia arvensis X |
1 |
Scabiosa columbaria |
2 |
Erigeron alpinus X |
3 |
Solidago virganum (2) X |
1 |
Bidens tripartite X |
2 |
― cerasum |
|
Artemisia maritima ✔✔ |
4 |
Gnaphalium supinum (3) ✔ |
6 |
Antennaria ✔ X |
4 |
Senecio vulgaris ✔ |
9 |
― sylvaticus |
|
― aquaticus |
|
Carduus arvensis (2) ✔ |
13 |
― acaulis |
|
Myporhaeus glaba ✔ |
3 |
22 gen / 34 spec / 48 vars / |
100 |
|
|
Apexia autumnalis (2) ✔ X |
2 |
✔ Leontodon tenax (4) X |
1 |
✔ Sonchus oleraceus |
4 |
✔ Campanula rotundifolia |
8 |
Calluna vulgaris X |
1 |
✔ Pyrola rotundifolia |
5 |
Fraxinus excelsior X |
1 |
✔ Solanum dulcamara (3) X |
2 |
Hyosciamus X |
1 |
✔ Verbascum nigrum (2) |
6 |
✔ Linaria vulgaris |
7 |
✔ Melampyrum pratense |
4 |
Rhinanthus major (3) X |
1 |
Veronica pubescens |
17 |
― Beccalunga |
|
― officinalis (2) |
|
serphyllifolia 2 |
|
polita |
|
Mentha syvlaticus (3) |
8 |
viridis |
|
✔ proferita |
|
sativa (4) |
|
arvensis (2) |
|
✔ Nepeta glechoma X |
1 |
✔ Galeopsis ladamnus |
4 |
Stachys palustris |
5 |
✔ Ballota foeida X |
1 |
Marrubium vulgare X |
1 |
Primula vulgaris |
5 |
Anagallis arvensis X |
2 |
Anonia maritima (4) X |
2 |
✔ Plantago lanceolata (4) |
5 |
― major |
|
Chenopodium urticum |
11 |
― album |
|
25 gen / 35 spe / 57 vars. / |
105 |
(7
Babingtons Flora Perhaps better not exclude but very few
✔ Atriplex deltoides (3) |
7 |
Rumex sanguineus |
12 |
Polygonum laparillofolium (2) |
13 |
― minus |
|
✔ Mercurialis annua X |
2 |
✔ Callihirta pedunculata |
4 |
✔ Ulmus suberosa 2 X |
2 |
Betula glutinosa X |
2 |
✔ Alnus glutinsa X |
1 |
✔ Quercus rufus (3) X |
1 |
✔ Taxus baccata |
1 |
✔ Orchis latifolia (2) |
11 |
✔ Ophrys aranifera |
3 |
✔ Epipactis media |
7 |
✔ Allium oleraceum |
9 |
✔ ― striangerum |
|
Juncus supinus |
20 |
Alisma plantago |
3 |
― ranunculoides |
|
✔ Zannichellia X |
1 |
✔ Rhynciospora |
2 |
✔ Scirpus savii |
18 |
✔ Eriophorum angustifolia (2) |
4 |
✔ Agrostis vulgaris |
4 |
― alba |
|
✔ Arundo epigrapis |
5 |
✔ Aira caespitosa |
6 |
✔ Arum pratensis (2) |
5 |
Arrhenathrum |
1 |
Catabrosa aquatica |
1 |
✔ Poa arnica |
9 |
― caesia (2) |
|
― nemoralis (3) |
|
― officinalis |
|
― pratensis (2) |
|
27 / 35 / 48 / |
154 |
|
|
✔ Glyceria plicata |
8 |
(Schelarochloa) maritima |
|
― distans |
|
Festuca bromoides (2) |
9 |
― aina (3) |
|
― sylvatica |
|
gigantea |
|
― pratensis |
|
Bromus erectus ✔ ) |
9 |
― diandrus ) |
|
Leontodon secalinus ) |
|
― mollis ) |
|
― racemosus |
|
― connectatus |
|
Brachypodium pinnatum |
2 |
Triticum comarium (2) |
4 |
― repens |
|
Lolium parvum (2) |
2 3 |
― tenuidendron |
|
Hordeum minimum |
4 |
Lepturus increpitus |
1 |
Genera |
Species |
Varieties |
|
9 |
20 |
25 |
40 |
18 |
28 |
33 |
93 |
18 |
30 |
39 |
115 |
22 |
34 |
48 |
100 |
25 |
35 |
57 |
105 |
27 |
35 |
48 |
154 |
119 |
182 |
250 |
607 |
2 not used in London Catalogue |
|
|
|
117 |
182 |
250 |
607 |
607 [÷] 117 [=] 5.28
/over
(8
(Conclusion)
Hence we see under what may be called a Fourth Category, viz forms which are considered even by Babington (3d Edit) as varieties, & distinguished by Greek Letters that there are enumerated 250. But I shd state that genera Rubus, Rosa, Hieracium, Salix & Carex are omitted; & further that a very few varieties have been excluded, these being rather alluded to, than fully admitted by Babington. I say there are 250 varieties belonging to 182 species, belonging to 117 genera as admitted in London Catalogue, which I have taken as standard of comparison to save time.
These 117 )250 genera in the London Catalogue have 607 species, hence each genus on average has 5.18.— Now the standard of comparison, or average in the Loudon Catalogue for all genera (the 5 excluded) we have seen is only 2.63. So that Babington vars. (vars which are or have been species in eyes of some very few Botanists) follow same law & belong on average to the larger genera. —
Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
File last updated 14 December, 2025