THE GENUS GORDONIA IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 



By I. H. BURKILL 

 Director, Botanic Garden, Singapore 



By the kindness of Mr. E. D. Merrill, I have recently had the 

 loan of the gordonias in the herbarium of the Bureau of Science, 

 Manila. I find five Philippine forms among them, which for 

 the present I call species, though other authors may perhaps 

 not concede more than varietal rank to one, or possibly even two, 

 of them. First of all, there is Gordonia luzonica Vidal, a tree so 

 common in the mountains north of Manila Bay that every col- 

 lector gets it. From these mountains it extends southward, 

 certainly to Negros, and perhaps to Mindanao. Next, in the 

 Mountain Province and in Sorsogon Province, there is a tree 

 with leaves exactly similar, but with a subclavate capsule. This 

 is a form which may be no more than a variety of G. luzonica. 

 Thirdly, in the northern part of Luzon, there is the species 

 (Curran 5083) to which I previously called attention, under 

 G. luzonica, 1 with larger leaves and capsules and with a con- 

 siderable amount of hair upon the midrib on the lower surface 

 of the leaves. Fourthly, on Mount Polis, which is also in north- 

 ern Luzon, there is a species clearly distinct in flowers and cap- 

 sules from all other Philippine forms. Lastly, there is a 

 montane plant with entire leaves on Mount Sablayan, Mindoro. 



I propose to name these, respectively, (1) Gordonia luzonica. 

 (2) G. subclavata, (3) G. benguetica, and (4) G. polisana, 

 leaving the fifth without a name because it is too imperfectly 

 known. 



Key to the Philippine Gordonias. 

 a 1 . Leaves dentate. 



b\ Leaves narrowed to the acumen, about one-third as broad as long. 

 c 1 . Capsules 3 to 4 cm long, thickest below the middle, pyramidal at 



the top 1. G. luzonica. 



C*. Capsules 4 cm long, subclavate, the top domed 2. G. subclavata. 



&'. Leaves rounded under the acumen, about one-half as broad as long. 

 c*. Leaves broadest at the middle; capsule 4 cm long. 



3. G. benguetica. 



1 Journ. Straits Branch Roy. Asiat. Soc. 76 (1917) 150. 



167853 5 475 



