88 Transactions. — Botany. 



Hah. Edges of woods and margins of streamlets south of 

 Dannevirke, County of Waipawa, 1888 : W. G. 



Obs. Flowering in October and fruiting in May. Speci- 

 mens of the viale plant have been seen carrying female flowers 

 at top of branchlet. As a species this will naturally rank with 

 C. lucida, Forst., G. grancUfolia, Hook, f., and G. autnmnalis, 

 Col. ("Trans. N.Z. Inst.," "vol. xix., p. 263), but is very dis- 

 tinct from them all. 



Genus 4. Asperula, Linn. 



1. A. aristifera, sp. nov, 



A small, slender, weak, ascending perennial herb ; main 

 stems 2in.-3in. long, hypogaeous, sub-rigid, wiry, reddish, 

 braiiched; branches lin.-2in. high, erect, simple and slightly 

 branched, glabrous. Leaves thickish, glabrous, light-green 

 (as also calyx-tube and branches), 4 in a wdiorl, xV^^- ^o^^o» 

 sessile, linear-ovate; margins sparsely ciliate ; cilias usually 4, 

 distant, confined to middle of leaf, stout, white, patent ; tips 

 acuminate, bi-, tri-, (sometimes quadri-) aristate, divergent. 

 Flowers terminal in pairs and single in upper axils, peduncled; 

 peduncles longer than leaves, sub-succulent and pellucid, re- 

 gularly and closely reticulately veined. Calyx-tube glabrous, 

 laterally compressed. Corolla sub-campanulate- rotate, white 

 (sometimes cream-coloured), li lines diameter, 4- (sometimes 

 5-, rarely 6-) partite, cut nearly to base ; lobes liiiear-ovate, 

 apiculate, sub-papillose, 1-nerved, spreading, recurved ; sta- 

 mens rather long (sometimes 5) ; anthers bright-yellow. Styles 

 united below, tips free, rather long, spreading; stigmas globose. 



Hab. Open grassy plains, Tahoraiti, south of Dannevirke, 

 County of Waipawa ; 1887, flowering in November : W. G. 



Obs. A highly curious little species, apparently near to A. 

 2)erpiisilla, Hook, f., but differing largely in several particulars. 

 Having seen some hundreds of living plants, I find their 

 characters {sjijjra) constant. Its little white star-like flowers 

 make it to be conspicuous among the low grass and other 

 small herbage. It seems (to me) to be nearly as much allied 

 to Galium as to Asperula ; and under Galium I should prefer 

 to place it but for its close natural ally, Asperula pcrpusilla. 



Oedek XXXIX.— COMPOSITiE. 



Genus 3. Celmisia, Cass. 



1. C. setacea, sp. nov. 



A small slender species, slightly cottony ; apparently 

 grovi'ing singly. Leaves few (6-8), 2in.-3in. long, -| line wide, 

 sub-setaceous, greenish-grey, flaccid, drooping, margins re- 

 volute, tips acute ; their bases dilated and sub-sheathing, 



