Mr. C. C. Babington on some species of Epilobium. 317 



(Mant. iii. 185, and Summa, 178). Mr. Baker's plant appears 

 to have had a hollow " bisulcate '' stem (but I do not know that 

 the furrows descend from the dorsal ribs of the leaves, as Fries 

 states to be the case in his plant), much branched and clothed 

 with fine scattered hairs ; leaves ovate-lanceolate, suddenly nar- 

 rowed below into a very short winged petiole, finely and distantly 

 denticulate ; lower leaves probably opposite ; floral leaves large 

 and more or less alternate ; flowers apparently rather large, 

 " dark purple," constantly erect ; sepals hairy, broad, oblong, 

 acute or perhaps cuspidate ; capsules very long, thick, hairy 

 when young, rising conspicuously above the top of the stem. I 

 have thought it right to introduce this short notice of the 

 suspected E, purpureum into the present paper from its appear- 

 ing to deserve the attention of botanists. 



Before closing this communication, it is proper to bring more 

 prominently forwards than has been done by its discoverer, the 

 fact that the E. rosmarinifolium (Haenke) is a native of Scot- 

 land. Mr. John Robertson, a very intelligent gardener and 

 botanist, has had a ' Flora of Perthshire ' in preparation for 

 some years, and would have published it before this time if he 

 had succeeded in obtaining sufiicient subscribers to cover the 

 expense*. With the prospectus of this book he circulated in 

 1852 a " few scraps from the work " itself, and amongst them 

 there is the announcement of his having found this plant upon 

 almost '^ inaccessible rocks that overhang the Tarf, a mountain- 

 stream in Glen Tilt." He adds, that " it may be readily over- 

 looked from the frequent nibbling of sheep and other animals. 

 .... It has also been observed in one or two situations by the 

 Tay, where doubtless it has been carried ... by the impetuosity 

 of the mountain torrents." The characters for distinguishing it 

 from E, angustifolium are — 



E. rosmarinifolium (Haenke) ; stem erect round, leaves linear not 

 veined, petals elliptic-oblong not clawed, style equalling the 

 stamens. 



E. rosmarinifolium, " Haenke in " Jacq. collect, ii. 50. 



E. Dodonaii, Sturm, Deutsch. Fl. fasc. 72. t. 5. 



Creeping moderately. Stem often decumbent below. Leaves 

 shortly attenuate at both ends, entire or denticulate, with revolute 

 margins. Flowers rose-coloured or white. 



This is a very interesting addition to the flora of Britain, for, 

 as far as I can learn, it had not with certainty been ascertained 

 to grow further north than the Cevennes. Messrs. Hooker and 



* Subscribers' names are received by Messrs. A. and C. Black, publishers, 

 Edinburgh. Price 10s. 6d. 



