462 EUPHORBIACE./E (Prain). [Mermrialis. 



■ 



as to description and partlfj as to specimens^ hut excL loc. Outenlqua ; 

 BallL Adansonia, iii. 158; Miill Arg, in DO, Trodr, xv. ii. 797; 

 Prain in Ann. !>(><. xxvii. 397. 



Coast Eegton : Cape Div. ; near Capetown, OhJenland ; Thunherg ! Lehmann ! 

 ScJdechter, 1364 ! Tulbagh Div. ; near Tulba^^li, Kassner, 1287 1 



The earliest record of this introduced species having been collected at the Cape 

 is that of Burmann in 1768 who had seen specimens in Oldenland's herbarium. 

 The next record is that by Thunberg in 1794. Miiller has ignored Burmann's 

 statement and, owing to Thunberg having in his herbarium mixed up Leidesux 

 caperms with M. annua, has transferred M. annua, Thunb. non Linn., as a 

 synonyuij to X. capensls ; Baillon*s statement has also been left unnoticed by 

 Miiller. Since 18G6, when Miiller wrote, Schlechter and Kassner have both 

 proved that M. annua, Linn., is actually present as a weed in cultivated ground 

 in South Africa. The doubt which Milller's action has thrown upon the judgment 

 of Euruiauu and Thunberg and Baillon is thereby removed. 



XXVII. LEIDESIA, Miill. Arg. 



Flowers monoecious ; petals ; disc 0. Male : Calyx closed iu 

 bud, splitting into 3 valvate lobes. Stamens 3-7 ; filaments short, 

 slender, occasionally connate below ; anther-colls globose, free from 

 the base, at length spreading, 2-valved. Rudimentary ovary 0. 

 Female : Calyx reduced to a single short narrow l)ract5 ^^ obsolete. 

 Ovary 2-celled ; ovules solitary in each cell ; styles 2, free, linear, 

 undivided. Capsule 2-dymous or occasionally by abortion 1-celled, 

 globose ; cocci 2-valved, endocarp thiuly crustaceous. Seeds sub- 

 globose ; testa crustaceous ; albumen fleshy ; cotyledons broad, 



flat. 



Delicate annual branching herbs ; leaves alternate or at the branching nodes 

 nearly opposite, ovate or orbicular, very thinly membranouSj wide-toothed or 

 entire ; racemes terminal or in dichariia, rhachis filiform ; male flowers minute, in 

 numerous fascicles towards the apex of the raceme ; female flowers few towards 

 the base of the rhachis, subtended by a leafy bract; bracts and male calyx- 

 segments usually setose ; capsules small, hispid. 



DiSTRiB. Three endemic species. 



Stems firm, woody at the base ; leaves narrow, thrice as 



long as broad, closely minutely crenate (1) firmula. 



Stems succulent throughout; leaves nearly as broad as 

 long, wide-crenate : 



Leaves 4-7 -toothed on each side ... (2) capensis. 



Leaves 1-3-toothed on each side ,. (3) obtusa. 



1. L. firmula (Prain in Kew Bulletin, 1912, 337) ; a rigid herb; 

 stems yellowish-green, glabrous, erect, copiously intricately branched, 

 6 in. high ; leaves short-petioled, membranous, ovate-lanceolate or 

 lanceolate, acute, base narrow-cuncate, margin closely crenate, J-f hi- 

 ^^^03 i"-¥ i^- ^^'ide, finely pubescent on the margins, elsewhere 

 glabrous on both surfaces, not puncticulate; petiole ^-^ i^^- '^^^^j 



