Mr. J. Miers on the genus Lycium. 135 



minibus 5, insequalibus, inclusis, medio tubi insertis, 2 lon- 

 gioribus faucem vix attingentibus, imo pubescentibus, ovario 

 oblongo, corollse circumscissse reliquo induto, stylo incluso, 

 apice incrassato. — Ban da Oriental et Tucuman. — v. s. in herb. 

 Hook. Santiago del Estero {Tweedie)^, 



This species was formerly referred by me to Acnistus {loc. cit.) 

 on account of its shrubby habit, large leaves, and crowded fasci- 

 culate or umbellate flowers, the lobes of the corolla having 

 woolly margins ; but my knowledge of it was then only derived 

 from SchlechtendaFs description. Since that time T have seen 

 a specimen of a plant, evidently referrible to the same species, 

 which at a first glance bears more the aspect of an Acnistus or a 

 Cestrunij than a Lycium : on closer inspection, it will be found 

 that the flowers are only crowded, by the close approximation of 

 the axils. The lobes of the border are not tomentose, as in 

 Cestrum or Acnistus, but densely ciliated, and have a very de- 

 cided imbricated aestivation ; these circumstances, together with 

 the structure of the stamens, and the cupular induvium of the 

 corolla that surrounds the ovarium, mark unquestionably the 

 genus to which it really belongs. Tweedie^s plant, although 

 from a somewhat distant locality, is evidently the same species 

 as Sellow's ; both may be said to grow within the same region. 

 It appears to be a very frondose shrub, with large leaves, and 

 generally unarmed ; but sometimes it bears short spines in some 

 of its upper floriferous axils. The leaves are alternate; and 

 their axils produce in the following year short branchlets, with 

 very approximate leaflets, which assume somewhat the appear- 

 ance of fasciculated clusters. The younger leaves are pubescent, 

 upon long slender petioles ; but as they grow older, they become 

 glabrous, except at the base and on the petiole, where by a lens 

 the remaining pubescence is always distinguishable. The larger 

 leaves measure 3J inches in length, including the petiole of 

 5 lines, upon which the narrowing base of the blade is somewhat 

 decurrent ; they are 10 lines broad : other leaves vary from 1^ 

 to 2i inches in length, and 7 to 9 lines in breadth. Schlechten- 

 dal describes the leaves as having short petioles ; but the differ- 

 ence is probably accidental, depending on the comparative breadth 

 of the decurrent portion of the blade on the petiole. The flori- 

 ferous branchlets, often terminating in a spine, are f to 1 inch 

 long, and bear many small crowded leaves, and very numerous 

 flowers in almost aggregated clusters. The peduncles are slender, 

 somewhat thicker above, and 4 lines long : the calyx is tubular, 

 1| line long, with 5 acute, short, erect teeth, from which as many 



* A Jfigure of this species with analytical details is shown {loc. cit.) 

 plate 67 F. 



