Vol. XIX, pp. 35-40 February 26, 1906 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



PLANTAE MONTROSENSIS. 



I. 

 BY AVEN NELSON AND P. B. KENNEDY. 



This first paper dealing with the plants of Mount Rose repre- 

 sents joint authorship, as shown above, in so far as the study of 

 the material and the specific descriptions are concerned. The 

 field work and the notes are all by the junior author, who spent 

 two weeks of the summer of 1905 on Mount Rose studying and 

 collecting its flora. This mountain is especially interesting 

 from a botanical standpoint as it is a high spur of the Sierra 

 Nevada Mountains strongly influenced by the dry atmospheric 

 conditions existing on the eastern side. It may be taken as in- 

 termediate between the typical high mountains of the Sierras 

 and those of the interior of the Great Basin. It is proposed to 

 make an extensive ecological study of the flora of this mountain. 

 The following new species were discovered while studying the 

 first lot of material, all of which was collected between 10,000 

 feet elevation and the summit, which is 10,800 feet. 



Eriogonum rhodanthum sp. no\^ 



Perennial, acaulescent, very low, caespitose, densely tomentose; the 

 caudex made up of many strands twisted together likea rojje, its numerous 

 branches terminated by clusters of very small, new and old leaves : leaves 

 7 mm. long or less with petioles about 4 mm. long, tomentose on both sides, 

 ovate to suborbicular : scapes very slender, from 12 mm.-5 cm. high, dark- 

 red, covered with a loose white tomentum, and terminating in a flower 

 cluster about 12 mm. across : involucres 2 mm. long, about 5, each with 8 

 densely tomentose, linear lobes : perianth rose-colored, 3 mm. long, its 

 lobes broadly obovate, glabrous, with a single strong brown vein : pedicels 

 3 mm. long; filaments 1 mm. long, villous below^ : ovary glabrous. 



It forms dense mats from 1-6 dm. across, on hard rocky ground. Sum- 

 mit of Mount Rose, Washoe County, Nevada, elevation 10,800 feet. No. 

 1184 (type), August 17, 1905, P. B. Kennedy. 



8— Pkuc. Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. XIX, 1906. (85) 



