ing will rank, thus characterized : “ § 2. Decussatce. Frútices Antarcticæ v. Australasicæ. Folia crassiuscula,
nitida, glaberrima, decussatim opposita, integerrima v. rarius subserrata, costa valida, venis inconspicuis. Racemi
ad apices ramorum corymboso-congesti, v. rarius in axillis abbreviati, panciflorl. Capsula acuta v. obtusiuscula,
turgida v. parallele compressa.”— Benth. M S S .
2 . V e r o x i c . a Benthami, H o o k . fil. ; fru tico sa , r am u lis ju n io r ib u s bifariam p u b eru lis dem um
g lab r is, fo liis d e cu ssa tis ob lo n g is v . o b lon g o -ob o v a tis v . lin e a r i-o b lo n g is ob tu s is b a si an gu sta tis s e s silib
u s p lan is coriaceis u n in e r v iis lin e a p u b eru la a lba m a rg in a tis in teg e r r im is v . u ltra m ed ium remote
serratis, ra c em is term in a lib u s, floribus in te r bracteas fo liá c ea s b r ev ite r p ed ic e lla tis, c a ly c is la cin iis 5
v a ld e inæ q u a lib u s ob tu s is corollæ tu b o m u lto lo n g io r ib u s, coroUa 5 -p a r tita , c ap su la m a ju scu la late
ovata acuta . (T .\b . XXXIX. & XL.)
H . \ b . L o rd A u ck lan d ’s g ro u p a n d Campbell’s I s la n d ; on ro ck y places on th e hills, a b u n d a n t.
ÍTM/ej erectus, 2 - 4 pedalis, ramosus. Caa/i« brevis, validus, fuscus. Rami patentes, demum ascendentes,
annulati, nudi, cortice fusco, opaco, longitudinaliter corrugato tecti. Ramuli erecti, validi, crassi, interdum
crassitudine pennæ anserinæ, 5 - 7 unc. longi, obscure tetragoni, angulis obtusis, creberrime annulati v. potius
transversim cicatricosi, basi nudi, sursum versus apices tantum foliosi, cortice pallide testaceo. Folia decussata,
imbricata, horizontaliter patentia, inferiora majora, 1 -1^ unc. longa, unc. lata, gradatim minora, sessilia v.
in petiolum brevissimum attenuata, ima basi interdum connata, plana, forma varia, sæpius obovato-oblonga, nunc
elliptica v. oblonga, rarius lineari-oblonga v. angustiora, obtusa, subacuta v. mucrone obtuso, basi semper attenuata,
coriacea, integra v. supra medium remote crenato-serrata ; margine tenuiter recurvo, linea latiuscula,
alba, puberula, subargentea circumdato, versus apicem latiore et interdum plus minusve super paginam supe-
riorem folii extensa, et tomento molli breve ciliata ; supra intense viridia, subnitida, medio canaliculata, avenia ;
subtus pallidiora, subglaucescentia, costa medio prominula, valida; siccitate atro-fusca v. testacea, supra sæpius
transversim corrugata. Racemi elongati, 1^-2^ une. longi, terminales, erecti, validi, bracteis foliaceis tecti,
sæpius simplices, interdum basin versus ramosi, ramis abbreviatis. Rachis tota albido-pubescens v. subtomentosa,
teres, stricta ; fructífera, demum elongata, basi nuda ; anni præteriti persistens, lignosa, ramulo lateralis.
Bracteæ foliaceæ, folia summa omnino simulantes, sed minores, inferiores supremæ L unc. longæ, albido-mar-
ginatæ ut folia caulina, brevissime petiolatæ, petiolis basi distantibus, omnes floriferoe. Flores racemo singulo
circiter 2 0 -3 0 , quorum 6 -8 tantum simul explicant, in axillis bracteanim solitarii, pedicellati, limbo corollæ
exserto, conspicuo. Pedicellik-\ unc. longi, erecti, pubescentes ; fructiferi elongati, validi, lignosi. Calyx protende
quinquepartitus, majusculus, campanulatus v. infundibuliformis, corollæ tubo multo longior, interdum
limbum ejus æquans ; laciniæ 2 exteriores laterales, cæteræ § longiores et bis latiores, obovato-spathulatæ,
obtusæ, foliaceæ, sub 2 lin. longæ, albo marginatæ ; cæteræ subæquales, lineari-spathulatæ, apicibus rotundatis
paululum recuivis. CoroZ/a hypocrateriformis, ampia, ringens v. patens, diametro 5 - 6 lin., intense azurea, venis
riolaceis ; tubus limbo ^ brevior ; laciniæ inter se æquales v. inæquales, plerumque 5, rarius 3 v. 6, nunquam 4
(mihi visæ), obovato-spathulatæ v. late obovatæ, forma variæ, nunc angustiores, nunc latiores. Stamina 2,
rarius 3, fauce corollæ inserta; filamenta brevia, valida, subulata, laciniis sub ^ breviora; antheris majusculis,
purpureis, loculis divaricatis. Ovarium late ovatum, subacutum, compressum, 2-sulcatum, 2-loculare, loculis
pluriovulatis ; ovulis marginibus inflexis dissepimentorum adnexis. Stylus validus, breviusculus, paulo curvatus.
Stigma capitatum. Capsulæ in spicam v. racemum elongatum, erectum, nudum dispositæ, breviter v. longius
pedicellate, pedicellis nunc 3 -5 lin. longis, majusculæ, erectæ, paulo longiores quam la te , 3 - 4 lin. longæ, cori-
aceæ, late ovate, acutæ, turgidæ, bi- tripartibiles, bi- triloculares, septicide v. rarius loculicide bi- trivalves ;
valvulæ o v a te, acutæ, pallide flavæ v. atræ, dorso ab apice ad medium et antice ad basim fissæ ; placentæ pedicellate,
ab utraque valvula discedentes, pedicellis gracilibus ; rarius, et solummodo ubi capsula trilocularis sit,
semina marginibus connatis dissepimentorum affixa sunt. Semina parva, imbricata, bnmnea, compressa, ala lata,
coriacea, olivaceo-fusca, basi profunde emarginata circumdata. Testa membranacea. Embryo clavmformis,
orthotropus.
This is not only a beautiful, h u t a very remarkable plant, and one of the greatest ornaments to the barren
hills it inhabits, the flowers being nearly as large as those of V. elliptioa. Forst,, and of a most beautiful blue
colour. In the pediceUate flowers, crowded upon an erect, leafy, terminal raceme, a few of which only expand
a t one time, it is more nearly allied to some of the British herbaceous species than to the shrubby group of New
Zealand It may also be remarked, th a t two of the largest-flowered species, whose corollas are of the finest
blue, are more alpine in their habitats than most of their congeners, as is the case with this plant and with the
V. saxtttilis of the European Alps.
In garden specimens of the V. speciosa. R. Cunn. (Bot. Mag. t, 40.57), I have observed the calyx and
corolla to vary in the number of parts, from three to four, hut I am not aware th a t the stamens m any species
except the present ever exceed two, or th a t the corolla is constantly pentamerous. The V. decussata. Ait.
(elliptica, Forst.) is figured and described in the ‘ Botanical Magazine’ by Mr. Curtis (t. 242) as sometimes
having fi’ve parts to the corolla, which is the nearest approach I know of to the present case. I shall however
first point out the remarkable structure of the calyx, before more fully describing the corolla.
The calyx is constantly 5-cleft i the segments verji large and singularly unequal iu size, two being much
larger than the rest, always external and of the form of cauline leaves ; the other three are nearly equal, so that
at first sight the calyx appears 3-cleft, with two lateral bracts on its base ; the large segments are however
remote from the true bract on the base of the pedicel. Neither of these is the posticous lobe, nor is the solitary
smaller one placed between them, which is the lowest; but the two others, one of which is a little larger than
the other, are nearly opposite the back lobe of the corolla.
The corolla is rather variable in form, when regularly developed it is 5-cleft, with rather broad, nearly
equal patent segments, the two lowest being the smallest, the upper the posticous. The segments are however
often so very equal in size, that, from their appearance alone, it is not possible to judge which is the upper one.
The increased number of parts might be supposed to arise from the division of the back lobe, which is m so
many Veronicas the larger, and the stamens would thus be placed one at the outer base of two contiguous
segments. This however is not the ease in any 5-cleft flowers; when diandrous, only one segment separates
them, which I have seen to be the upper when they are equal in size, and it is more evidently so when two of the
lobes are smaller than the rest, which are then placed opposite the two stamens and are the lower. The additional
lobe is formed thus from the division of the lower, or what is generally the smaller, lobe in others of the
genus. Some analogy to this structure may he found in the case of V. nivea, nob. (Icon. Plant, t. 640). which
has the lower lobe truly bifid, as I have proved by an examination of other specimens, and not accidentally, as
suggested in the description of that plant on its first publication. In some spikes all the flowers are ringent,
the tubes of the corollas longer, and the segments narrower than in the normal state of the plant. Of these
some are 6-cleft, of which I found two instances, one diandrous and the other triandrous. In the diandrous
flower the sixth lobe was formed from the division of the upper or posticous lobe into two unequal segments,
and one of the stamens was abortive and inserted lower in the tube of the corolla than the other. In the triandrous
specimen the sixth lobe was due to the splitting of the lower into three. We have here instances
of both the upper and lower segment in this species becoming divided. I never saw any tendency in cither of
the lateral ones to divide, further, than that, in one instance of a 5-lobed corolla, one of these had a large
tooth on its lower margin. Three-lobed corollas are rare ; the two I examined were regular, with the segments
nearly equal and very broad. The genus Veronica is generally described as having the upper or back lobe the
largest; this is not constantly, though often the case, but the lower lobe is generally the smallest, sometimes
remarkably so. In V. nivea, mentioned above, the lateral divisions are much the laigest, as is the case with
V. Cataractee, Forst., and its ally V. diffusa, nob., very distinctly. The V. tetragona. Hook. (Icon. Plant, t. 580) is
figured with the upper lobe bifid; it is probably rarely so, as in all the specimens I examined it was quite entire.
I