MR. EDITOR:—Who among horticulturists has not heard of the “Strawberry Question”—has not wondered at the opposite opinions held by eminent cultivators, and perhaps like myself has been surprised that the spirit of inquiry has not been more generally diffused concerning a subject of so much importance. Is it because our instructors cannot come to a unanimous conclusion upon it, that we pupils in horticulture have been doubtful about expressing our opinions upon it, or have we never studied the subject for ourselves but left them in their wisdom to decide it for us? I was in this position waiting for their decision, but as it was not likely to be forthcoming, I resolved to study the subject for myself, have done so this season, and will give you my experience in connection with the “Strawberry Question.” The points of difference between a staminate and pistillate strawberry flower are so marked that a very casual observer cannot fail to notice them at once, for in staminate varieties the flowers are lax, the sepals of the calyx appear alternately with the petals of the corolla, the stamens occupy the most prominent place in the flower, rising half their length above the central pistils, are very much swelled at the base, and very large compared with the other parts of the flower, anthers broadly heart shaped, large, and producing abundance of pollen. Pistils, loose, long, and having a barren appearance, which is soon proved by their withering away, and leaving the stamens masters of the field. The embryo receptacle when it does exist at all is very much flattened, and in the most of cases cannot be said to exist at all, the pistils being inserted in the thickened cup of the calyx. All flowers that have this appearance in these varieties, very soon wither away and leave this impression on the mind of the observer, that they were surely staminate varieties. But as all staminate varieties do not thus wither away, but many of them produce fruit, it may be asked are the flowers all the same in appearance. It is here where the peculiarities in this class are met with, for there are few but what produce some fruit, and as real staminate flowers could not produce this fruit, it would readily be seen that staminate varieties produce two sorts of flowers; the one where the organs are unequally balanced which produce no fruit, the other where the flowers are perfect and are fruit bearing. The appearance of the flower that will produce fruit is markedly different from the other—by the shortness of the stamens, the conical shaped receptacle, the pistils stiff and thickly set thereon. The flower is altogether more compact, and is as perfect in its organs as any of the Alpine varieties. The following sorts have proved staminate with me.