280 THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY 



an epiphyte usually met with on the tea-trees. At first sight 

 one would imagine he had fallen in with one of the fleshy 

 stemmed Euphorbias, common to South Africa, but should he 

 be fortunate enough to meet with it in flower he would at once 

 find it to belong to the Rubiacece, an order to which belong 

 many of our northern timber trees. The thick gouty stem, often 

 hollow, and the close mat of roots, together with the loose bark 

 of the tea- tree, its favorite support, are taken advantage of by a 

 small black ant which makes it anything rather than pleasant 

 to collect specimens of this vegetable curiosity. In close 

 proximity to the last, but usually found on trees having a close 

 hard bark, is often to be seen an interesting orchid Sarcochilus 

 phjllorrhizus, F. v. Muell. So unlike indeed is this to a phseno- 

 gamous plant, that while at Trinity Bay I got out my knife 

 and began to cut it off the close bark of an Exccecaria for a 

 Lichen before seeing my mistake. The flattened roots in no 

 way resemble a leaf, but doubtless they perform all the functions 

 of that organ. They adhere so closely to the bark as to be 

 removed with difficulty, and resemble rather the thallus of a 

 Lichen than the roots of an orchid. Speaking of curious 

 epiphytes Dischidia nummularia, R. Br., and D. timorensis, 

 Decaisne, must not be over-looked, as both are interesting. The 

 flowers of the last-named have as yet not been seen, but the 

 curious pitchers it produces in such abundance point it out 

 as a most desirable plant for decorative purposes. The first- 

 named species produces small white flowers in abundance, which 

 mixed with its round fleshy white leaves have a pretty appearance, 

 especially when growing on the dark stems of the Wormia alata, 

 R. Br., and from the branches of which it may often be seen 

 hanging down in long streamers. In notioing plants of eccentric 

 habit the root parasite, Balanophora fungosa, Forster, should not 

 be over-looked. This strange plant, often on a root no thicker 

 than one's finger, will grow to a foot or more in diameter. No 

 botanist should travel through our northern scrubs without 

 looking up this extraordinary parasite. It is by no means 

 difficult to discover, for in the dense scrubs bordering rivers, 



