N a t . O r d . X X . G E R A N IA C EÆ ,.
Geraniaceæ is a very large and widely diffused N a tu ra l Order, b e in g however far more abundant in
South Africa than in any other part o f th e g lo b e . There are few Australian spe c ie s b u t th ose described
below as Tasmanian also.
Gen. I . G E R A N IU M , J im .
Sep a la e t p e ta la 5 , æqaa\ia. 1 0 , fertilia alterna majora, basi glanduHs instructa. Carpellormn
aristæ in tu s glabræ, elastice e basi ad axeos apicem circiuatim revolutæ.— Herbæ v . suffruticuli; foliis
stip u la tis .
A vei^' widely diffused genus, common in all temperate and warm quarters o f the globe, and particularly
abimdant m South Africa. There are very few Australian species, and none that appear to differ remarkably from
the Tasmanian ones. After a very long aud careful study o f the Tasmanian fom s o f tliis genus, I find myself quite
unable to draw up any good specific characters for them; the amoimt and kind o f hairiness o f stem, peduncles,
petioles, and leaves, the uumber, depth, and breadth of the lobes o f the leaf, the number of flowers on each peduncle
(one to three), the size o f the flower, the characters o f the sepals, petMs, and carpels, and, finally, the habit,
all seem to present interminable variations. Under these circumstances I retain the species as hitherto proposed,
and caution the student that they are provisional only. I am much guided in my division by Gnnn’s numbers and
notes.— Mowers regular. Sepals and pe tals five. Stamem ten, five fertÜe ; filaments o f the alternate ones longer,
with glands at the base. Carpels five, their awns rolling back elastically ft-om a central axis, becoming spirally
tudsted, glabrous on the inner face. (Name fi-om ytpapos, a crane ; in allusion to the beak of the carpels.)
1 . Geranium dissectum (Linn. Sp. P I. 9 5 6 ) ; caule decumbente v. suberecto patentim v. retrorsum
piloso rarius glabrato, fo liis rotundatis 5 -7 -p a r titis lobatisve laciniis Hnearibus dissectis obtusis apiculatis
acutisve , p edunculis bifloris, sepaHs p ilo sis aristatis, petalis calyce brevioribus v . rarius longioribus emarginatis,
capsuHs lævibus pilosis, semimbus r eticulatim pu n cta tis.— D?. N . Z eal. i. 3 9 .
Var. p i lo s u m j piHs p atentibus.— Í 7 . K Z ea l. i. 3 9 . G. pilosum, F o rst. F ro d r. 5 3 1 ; B C . P ro d r.
i. 6 4 3 ; Sweet, Geran. ii. 1 1 9 ; Ne es in P la n t. P re iss. Ü. 1 6 2 ; E o o h Journ. B o t. ii. 4 1 5 . [G w in , 2 5 9 ?)
Var. 7 . re tro r sum : robustior, piHs retrorsis.— A7. N . Z eal. i. 3 9 . G. retrorsum, E E & r . M S S . in B C .
P ro d r . i. 6 4 4 . {Gunn, 7 8 9 .)
Var . 8 . g la h ra tum ; fo liis 3 -5 - lo b is , lobis late cuneatis 3 - 5 - f i d i s . - F / . N . Z e a l. I. c.
Hab. Common tHroughout th e Islan d in many situations. Var. 7 . Circular Head, e tc ., Gunn. (El.
aU summer.)
D i s t r ib . Var. 7 , and S. N ew Zealand, N ew Sou th Wales, and South-eastern and We stern A u stralia.
In the New Zealand Flora I have detaüed the differences between the Australian and the European and North
American forms o f this species; it is a veiy common weed, extremely variable in stature and habit, but generally
easüy recognized by the lobed leaves, spreading or recurved hairs, and deep red smaU petals. Var. retrorsum is
coarser and more robust than vars. pilosum or glabratum, and is covered with white retrorse hairs.— 2 - 3
feet high, much hranched. suberect. Leaves 1 - 2 inches across, with sharp lobes, hispid-püose. Peduncles shorter
than the petioles, two-flowered; peduncles and pedicels hispid, with spreading liairs. Sepals ovate-acuminate,
hispid, as are the young caipels. Petals red-purple, scarcely longer than the sepals. Capsules and seeds not
se en ; the latter, in New Zealand specimens, are reticulated with impressed dots.— The var. pilosum ia veiy simüar,
but has fewer and more patent hairs; it is undistinguishahle from some states of G. potentilloides: the lobes of
its leaves are blunt or truncate, rarely acute.
2 . Geranium potentilloides (L’Hé rit. in DC . Prodr. i. 6 3 9 ) ; caule de cumbente ramoso su p em e
p e tio lis pedunculisque appresse rarius patentim p ilosis canisque, fo liis 5 -7 - lo b is partitisve segmentis
cuneatis trifidis acutis, pedunculis 1-floris bibracteolatis, petaHs palHdis, capsulis lævibus parce pilosis
obscure carinatis, seminibus m inute punctulatis.— Eook. Journ. B o t. i. 2 5 2 ; FI. N . Z ea l. i. 4 0 . {Gunn,
2 5 9 , 1 0 3 5 .)
Var. D- p a r v if lo r a : floribus minoribus.— G. parviflorum, W illd . E n . 7 1 6 ; B C . P ro d r . i. 6 4 2 ; Hook.
Journ. B o t. i. 2 5 2 . {Gunn, 6 3 , 4 5 3 .)
I I ab. Abundant thi-oughout th e Colony.— (El. all summer.) {v. v .)
D i s t r ib . South-eastern Australia, N ew South Wales, N ew Zealand, and Auckland Island.
A smaUer, more straggling, slender-stemmed plant than G. dissectum, with smaUer leaves, more glabrous sepals,
and often much larger flowers ; the latter however in var. /3 are quite as small as in G. dissectum.— Stems a foot
and more long, much diffusely branched, weak and prostrate, usually püose or süky, with appressed, rarely patent
hairs. Leaves 4 - 1 inch broad, five- to seven-lobed to the base ; the lobes obeuneate or narrow-oblong, blunt, truncate,
or acute. generally two-sometimes one-flowered. varyingfi:om ¿to -f-in ch across. Sepals
glabrous or püose, or pubescent with appressed hairs. Petals white, pink, or purplish-red, longer than the sepals.
Seeds punctate.
3 . Geranium bre-vicaule (H o ok . J o um . B o t. ii. 2 5 2 ) ; radice crassa, caulibus abbreviatis, pedunculis
petioHsque p ilosis p ilis lo n g is retrorsum appressis patulisve rarius glabratis, foliis 5 -7 -p a r titis
lobatisve, lob is cuneatis trifldis v . inc isis, lobuHs acutis v. obtusis, pedunculis validis 1 -floris infra florem
dense sericeo-barbatis basin versus bibracteolatis, calycibus villosis, petalis paUidis, capsulis p ilosis lævibus,
seminibus lævibus v . minutissime punc tulatis.— FI. N . Zeal. i. 4 0 . {Gunn, 2 5 0 .)
Hab. Alpine districts, elev. 3 0 0 0 - 4 0 0 0 fe e t ; common, Gunn.— (El. Jan.)
D i s t r i b . Mountains o f N ew Zealand.
This appears to me to be probably an alpine state o f G. potentilloides or dissectum, which, owing to the climate
of the regions it inhabits, forms very short stems, or none at aU, and sends its leaves and peduncles up ft'om veiy
near the root. It is stunted in aU its parts, and more viUous in many, especially on the peduncles.— Root veiy
stout and woody, a character no doubt induced by climate.
Gen. I I . P E L A R G O N IUM , E E é r i t .
S epala 5 , supremo in calcar cum peduncolo adnatum p roducto. P e ta la 4 - 5 , inæquaha v . subæquaHa.
S tam m a 4 - 7 fertilia, reliqua steriHa. CarpeUorum rostra in tu s barbata.
A very large and almost exclusively South African genus of excessively variable plants, of w hich there are very
few Australian species. It differs from Geranium in the irregular flowers, in one sepal having a spur wliich is adnate
to the pedicel of the flower, in the irregular, scale-Hke, sterile filaments, and in the beaks o f the carpels being bearded
along the inner face. (Name from nèkapyoi, a sto rk ; in allusion to the beaked carpels.)
1. Pelargonium australe (W illd . Sp. PI. iii. 6 7 5 ) ; foliis late ovato-orbiculatis cordatis sublobatis
crenato-dentatis, peduncuHs multifloris, fructiferis erectis, petahs calyce longior ibus.— B C . P ro d r . i. 6 5 4 .
An P . odoratissimmu, lÁ n n . Sp. P I . ?
Vai’, a . major ; suberecta, patentim pilosa tomentosa v. villosa, sepalis v illosis.— P . australe, Jacq.
Eclog. i. 1 4 9 . t. 1 0 0 . {Gunn, 6 1 , 7 8 7 .)
Var. /3* g la b r a ta ; minor, glabrata, caulibus gracüibus, sepalis pubescentibus rarius villosis. {Gunn,
6 5 8 .)
Hab. Abundant in many parts o f th e Colony, especially near th e sea.— (Elowering th roughout the
summer.) {v. v.)