346 HEUU F. MtTLLER ON SOME BKAZILIAN CLIMBING-PLAKTS. 



strongly curved, and have a liard, sharp, darkly coloured ai)ex, at 

 the summits of the younger ones they are straight, soft, and green, 

 resembling in this early state tlie mucli larger stipules at the 

 bases of the tendrils. Afterwards, on the summit of the shoot, 

 true leaves arc developed at tlie bases of tlie tendrils instead of 

 the small rudimentary ones ; and finally, when the plant has 

 readied the light, and spreads over the upper surface of a thicket 

 or tree, the tendrils disappear. The inverse may be observed 

 when the plant sets out on the conquest of a new dominion, a 

 neighbouring tree for instance. Then a branch bearing only 

 leaves begins to produce on its tip tendrils supported by leaves, 

 and finally, growing rapidly to a long slender shoot, it produces 

 only tendrils, the leaves being replaced by small squamse. Thus 

 in this plant, the branches assume four different shapes : — 1st, 

 tendrils, leafless, armed Avith hook-like stipules; 2nd, long, slen- 

 der, leafless shoots, bearing tendrils and broad deciduous stipules; 

 3rd, branches with leaves, from the axils of which tendrils spring ; 

 and 4th, branches bearing only leaves without tendrils. Between 

 the leaf and the tendril there is an accessory bud (fig. 1 ^)s 

 which often developes into a branch ; these branches issuing from 

 the accessory buds seem never to produce tendrils. The tendrils, 

 after having clasped a support, thicken partially where they are 

 in contact with it (fig. 1 a). Tendrils which have caught nothing 

 behave in difi'erent ways. Some wither and fall after contracting 

 irregularly. Others likewise become flexuous, or contract into a 

 spire, or occasionally into a helix, but remain, thickening some- 

 what and becoming ligneous and rigid. Others produce branches 

 from one or some of their internodes : this also occurs, and per- 

 haps more frequently, witli tendrils which have found a support ; 

 in this case the tendrils thicken much, and sometimes attain a di- 

 ameter of more than one inch (fig. 2 a, a thickened tendiul claspmg 

 a branch of a PsiJium ; 5, branch issuing from the tendril ; c, ten- 

 dril-bearing branch ; d^ branch from an accessory bud, without 

 tendrils). Lastly, the tendrils even transform themselves into 

 true bi-anches : in this case they may remain nearly straight or 

 become but little flexuous, and at their ends they produce leaves \ 

 tlie first of these leaves have sometimes hook-like persistent sti- 

 pules, like those of the tendril, while the stipules of the following 

 leaves are deciduous like those on other branches. These tendrils 

 often become much elongated. I saw a shoot, almost all the ten- 

 drils of which were developed into serpentine branches ; and under 

 t?ach uf these branches there was a straight branch from an acces- 



