420 Transactions. — Botany. 



Inflorescence (male) : A short, stout, upright panicle 

 sunken among the foliage leaves, with branches 3-5 cm. long, 

 or less, arising from axils of long leafy bracts, which resemble 

 in all respects the foliage leaves, except for longer less-ad - 

 pressed hairs ; upper bracts much shorter than lower. 



Flowers crowded, very shortly pedicelled, strongly scented, 

 semi-erect ; perianth segments linear or ligulate, purplish and 

 yellow at base ; filaments stout ; anthers black ; stigmas 3, 

 capitate; ovary (when present) 3-furrowed to about middle. 



Inflorescence (female) shorter than male. 



Flower : Perianth segments ovate, acute, sometimes trifid, 

 pilose at apex. 



Hah. South Island: Mount Rolleston, Canterbury; L. C. : 

 Walker's Pass. Canterbury and Westland ; B. Broivn and 

 L. C. (1889) : Kelly's Hill, Westland ; D. Pctrie and L. C. : 

 Humboldt Mountains, Otago ; L. C. 



This plant may be at once distinguished from A. nervosa, 

 Banks and Sol., var. alpina, T. Kirk, by its shining pale- 

 coloured very stiff leaves, which are much less hairy on the 

 upper surface. It grows in hollows on alpine meadows where 

 the snow remains often until end of December or beginning of 

 January, and which will be very wet during early summer and 

 dry in the autumn, at an altitude of from 1,300 m. to 1,500 m. 

 It is very easy to cultivate, but, although I have had plants 

 for nine years, they have never bloomed, nor did I ever 

 observe bloom on the wild plants until January, 1898. The 

 above description is drawn up from very imperfect material, 

 and will certainly require considerable modification. The 

 strong and perhaps disagreeable odour of the flowers, together 

 with the dark-purple colour, suggests fertilisation by blowflies. 



Veronica subalpina, sp. nov. 



An evergreen shrub with small leaves, 75 m. to 2 m. in 

 height. 



Branches not very dense, sometimes spreading, marked 

 above with old leaf-scars ; bark green, often tinged, stained, 

 and spotted with purple ; youngest twigs green, minutely 

 pubescent. 



Leaves usually patent, not very coriaceous, bright pale- 

 green, shining above, duller beneath, sessile, narx'ow-lanceo- 

 iate or broader at times, 3cm. to 3-5 cm. long, subacute; 

 upper surface concave, sometimes arched with apex pointing 

 downwards ; midrib sunken above, raised slightly beneath. 



Racemes usually in a pair at the ends of the branches 

 from axils of terminal leaves, short, equalling or rather longer 

 than the leaves, with rhachis equalling peduncle. 



Flowers crowded ; pedicels minutely pubescent, equalhng 

 the calyx ; bracts short, variable in shape, oblong or deltoid, 



