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H a b . Marshy gvouiul, in subalpine situations: Marlborough, Gnnn.— (FL Jan.)
Very similar to A. monogynum, but with more aristate spathes, four flowers, and six to eight ovaries, imbricating
in two series.
3. A le p jrrum M u e lle r i (Hook, fil.) ; foliis capillaribus, spatha inferiore aristata superiore mutica,
floribus 4, gluma 0, ovariis sub-10.—Desvauxia glabra, Mueller, in Herb. Hook. {Gtitm, 2015.)
H a d . Bottom of a lagoon, Macquarrie River, Gunn.— (Fl. Nov.)
D isT raB . Mount Emu Creek, Victoria, Mueller ; South-west Australia, Hrummond.
Laxly tufted, scarcely an inch high. Stem excessively short, with short, white, tufted roots. Leaves rather
flaccid, between subulate and capillary, rather shorter or longer than the scapes. Spaihes about 4 meli long, the
lower with a straight awn. Ovaries imbricated in two series ; the styles more or less combined m Victoria specimens,
more free in Tasmanian.
4. A le p y rum p o ly g y n um (Br. Prodr. 253) -, foliis setaceis culmis rigidis brevioribus, spathis coriaceis
inferiore longe rigide foliaceo-aristata, floribus 1 -2, gluma 0, ovariis 1 0 -20.—Kunth, En. iii. 488;
Nees, in Plant. Preiss. ii. 71. {Gunn, 1436.)
H a b . Near Georgetown, Gunn.— (FL Oct.)
D i s t r ib . Swan Rivet and Victoria.
Remarkable for its profusion of rigid culms, 1-3 inches high, with very short, subulate leaves at the base,
brown, lanceolate spathes, the outer with a long, nearly straight ov curved, green, foliaceous arista, 4 inch long.
Flowers one or two, with ten ovaries.
Genus Restiaceis affine ?—TRITHURIA, Hook. fil.
Capitulum solitarium, terminale, multiflorum, foliolis 4 involucratum. Flores unisexuales, capitulo
sine ordine aggregati, omiiino acLlamydei. M a s c . Stamen solitarium ; filamento elongato ; anthera lineari-
oblonga, 2-Ioculari, basi affixa; polline globoso. Foem. Ovarium pedicellatum, obovatum, membranaceum,
triquetrum, l-loculare; ovulo solitario, pendolo, anatropo; stylis 2 -3 filiformibus. Capsula membranacea,
obovata, triquetra, 3-valvis ; valvis a septis intervalvaribus secernentibus. Semen lineari-oblongum, cylin-
draceum; /es/u membranacea ; cellulosa ; albumine dense carnoso ; minimo, conico, extremitati
radiculari albuminis applicato.— Herba perpusilla, annua, aquatica ; radieibus fibrosis ; foliis subulatis,
subceltulosis ; scapis plurimis, fo liis longioribus v. brevioribus; capitulo 4 - 4 unc. lato; involucri
foliolis ovato-oblongis, obtusis, 2 exterioribus paulo majoribus ; floribus minimis, receptáculo parvo confertis,
foemineis maturis a pedicello persistente solutis.
A singular little plant, of very obscure affinity, discovered by Gunn in Tasmania, and also by Mueller in Southeastern
Australia, who has proposed for it the manuscript name of Juncclla Tasmanica, and placed it in Centro-
lepidece, from which however it differs remarkably in the dehiscence of the capsule, and two-celled anther, which is
inserted by its base on the filament. I have ventured to supersede the name proposed (without description) by
Mueller, both because the plant has no affinity with or resemblance to Juncus, and because it is not confined to
Tasmania, In habit and the involucre it resembles Eriocaulon, but it differs from that genus in the capsule, naked
flowers, and anther.—A minute water-plant, 1-2 inches high, growing at the bottom of fresh-water pools, and
conspicuous (according to Gunn) when in fruit, from the bright-red colour of the minute capitula.— fibrous.
Stem almost none, the subulate, membranous, spreading leaves appearing to rise from the roots. Scopes numerous,
bearing a very small capitulum of minute fiowers, enclosed in an involucre of four ovate-oblong, blunt, membranous
leaves. Male flowers : solitarj’ stamina with long filaments and two-celled anthers, scattered indiscriminately
amongst the female flowers, which consist of minute, trigonous, obovate, stipitate ovaries, with two or three filiform
styles, one cell, and one pendulous, anatropoiis ovule. Capsule jointed on to the pedicel, trigonous, of three mem-
bvaaous valves, which are separated by narrow repla ; in dehiscence tlie valves fall away completely, and the rep!a
separate, whence the capsule appears to be formed of six pieces, of which three are broadly elliptical, and alternate
with as many very narrow ones. Seed cylindric-oblong. (Name from rpets, three, and ivpts, a hole or window; in
allusion to the dehiscence of the capsule.)
1. T r i th u r i a su bm e rs a (Hook, fil.).—Juncella Tasmanica, Mueller, in Herb. Hook., and in Catalogue
o f Fictoria PlanU, sine deseripL). {Gunn, 2014.) (T a b . CXXXVIII. A.)
Hab. Bottom of a lagoon near Macquarrie Harbour, Gunn.—(FI. Nov.)
D istk ib . Victoria: Hopkins River and Mount Emu Creek,
P late CXXXVIII. A. Fig. 1, capitulum; 2, the same, with the involucre spread open ; 3 ,stamen; 4 ,pollen;
.5, female fiower; 6. stigma; 7 ,ripe fruit; 8. ditto, with the valves separate ; 9 , seed; 10, ditto, cut longitudinally,
showing the embryo -.—all magnified.
N a t . O r d . XV. CYPERACEÆ.
One of the most difficult Tasmanian Natural Orders to investigate, and I am not at all confident
of having rightly determined several of the genera and species, though I have devoted much labour and
iliouglit to them, and examined most of the Australian Cyperacea at the same time. The genera are
to a great extent natural, but their limits are extremely vague, and tbe technical characters necessary to
limit them are seldom constant ; thus, Chcetospora differs from Schænus only in the presence of hyposyiious
bristles, which are often excessively minute, or even evanescent, and some plants almost identical in all
other points are hence generically separated by this artificial character. These two genera again differ
from and Scirpm chiefly in their scales being distichous; but species of both liave imbricating
scales. The shape of the nut, and its articulation with the base of the style, also afford good characters,
but often very difficult of appreciation; and the relative number of scales and flowers in a spikelet is also
apt to vary, as does the number of stamens and styles, or arms of the style, in the same or most nearly
allied plants. I t is hence almost impossible to determine a few isolated species of the Order, except by
artificial means, and it is better that the student of Tasmanian Cyperaeeæ should not attempt to make out
the species until the structure of at least half the genera of the Order is understood, when the value of
their characters (which are not expressed in absolute terms, but in. relative) will become apparent.
I find about 350 Australian Cyperaceoe in the Hookeriau Herbarium, and there are a considerable
number of tropical species mentioned iu Brown’s ‘ Prodromus,’ which I am unable to identify with any of
these, so that I assume that there may be fully 400 known Australian ones. Of these a large proportion
(fully one-third) are almost exclusively tropical, and a considerable number of them identical with Indian
and Malay Island plants, often of wide tropical distribution. Of the extratropical species the majority
are natives of the south-western quarter, and comparatively few are common to this aud the southeastern
quarter. The Tasmanian species are almost witliout exception also natives of Victoria and New
South Wales; a few of tliem are common to New Zealand, and some to all temperate and many tropical
latitudes.
Geu. I. CYPERUS, L.
Spicula distichæ, multiÜoræ; squamis numerosis, carinatis, omnibus conformibus floriferis, v. paucis
iiilimis minoribus vacuis. Seta hypogynæ 0. Slylus inarticulatus, deciduas.—Culini simplices, enodes,
basi fo lia ti t>. vaginati; infloresceutia terminali, involúcrala; spiculis sapissime versus apices radiorum
umbelloe congestis spicaiisve.
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