Tas. 4490. 
OXALIS ELEGANS. 
Elegant Wood-sorrel. 
Nat. Ord. OxaALIpE#Z.—DECANDRIA PENTAGYNIA. 
Gen. Char. Cal. 5-sepalus, sepalis liberis aut basi coalitis. Pet.5. Stam. 10: 
jilamentis basi breviter monadelphis, 5 ext. alternis brevioribus. Styli 5, apice 
penicelliformes aut capitati. Capsula pentagona, oblonga, aut cylindracea—Herbe 
perennes, caulescentes stipitate aut acaules, foliis variis sed nunquam abrupte pinnatis. 
De Cand. 
Oxa.is (Caprine) e/egans ; glaberrima, foliis peltatim trifoliolatis longe petiolatis 
foliolis deltoideis vel subrhomboideis angulis obtusissimis, scapis longissimis 
6—-9-floris, sepalis acuminatis apice glandulis 4 linearibus aurantiacis, pe- 
talis violaceis basi intense purpureis, staminibus glabris longioribus squami- 
geris, stylis pubescentibus. 
a. floribus majoribus pallidioribus, foliolis subtus purpureis. (Left-hand figure.) 
Oxa.is elegans. H. B. K. Nov. Gen. Am. v.5. p. 234. et 466. De Cand. Prodr. 
v. 1, p. 695. 
8. floribus minoribus, colore intensiore, foliolis subtus pallide viridibus. 
Notwithstanding certain discrepancies between this plant and 
the figure of Ovalis elegans given by Humboldt, above quoted, 
I have every reason to believe it to be the same; allowance being 
made for that figure being executed from dried specimens. Some 
differences also are observable between the figure and descrip- 
tion, for whereas the leaves are represented as hairy, the specific 
character speaks of them as glabrous. A more important differ- 
efice is in the uniformly slightly dilated filaments of the stamens 
in Humboldt’s figure, whereas the stamens of our plant exhibit 
the long stamens as furnished with a broad scale on the filament, 
the shorter ones subulate and naked; but this character is found 
to vary extremely in other flowers, and the filaments are even 
sometimes as uniformly subulate as in Humboldt’s figure. The 
species inhabits the Andes of Loxa in Columbia, bordering on 
Peru, at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet above the level of the 
sea. It was there detected by Humboldt, and it was thence 
sent by Mr. Wm. Lobb to Mr. Veitch, from whom our specimens 
were received. It appears to be quite hardy ; and continuing, 
JANUARY lst, 1850. 
