538 Mr, Miers on some new Brazilian Plants 
Dr. Blume makes no mention of petals in his generic character; but as 
they certainly exist in the Indian species, I have included a notice of them in 
a parenthesis. This genus will be seen to differ but little from Burmannia, 
except in the separation of the dissepiments from the pericarpium, which is 
hence enabled to split from wing to wing, transversely upon each face, pre- 
senting three widely-gaping apertures ; and as the dissepiments become almost 
wholly contracted upon the central column, there results a clear passage across 
the capsule from one opening to the other: hence the meaning of the term 
“ capsula fenestrata.” From what I have elsewhere shown relative to the 
structure of the walls of the capsule in Burmanniaceous plants, it will be easy 
to conceive the origin of this peculiar kind of dehiscence. In like manner as 
in Burmannia, owing to the complete inflection of the margins of the carpels 
into one central axis, the placentze are thrown into a position alternating with 
their normal one, and are consequently placed upon the axile line in the inner 
angle of the cells, opposite to the wings of the perianth, and of course opposite 
to the sepals. "This explains the meaning of Dr. Blume's expression, * recep- 
tacula angulis perianthii opposita, semibifida,” a definition which exactly applies 
to Burmannia also. 82 0 
Of the Brazilian plants I am about to describe, the first species was found 
by me in the neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro in April 1837, and then named 
Dictyostega orobanchioides ; not long after which Mr. Gardner sent specimens 
to England in the dried state, gathered from the same spot. I had good oppor- 
tunities of examining this in a living state, and of making drawings and details 
of it as well as of the other species which were subsequently found. 
1. DicryosTEGA. 
Char. Diff. Perianthium tubulosum, ovario adnatum, supernè liberum : limbo 
6-fido: laciniis tribus alternis minoribus. Stamina 3, filamentis brevissi- 
mis, antherarum loculis disjunctis transversim dehiscentibus. Stylus sim- 
plex. Stigmata 3. Capsula 1-locularis, sub-3-valvis, polysperma, apice 
dehiscens: valvulis medio placentiferis. Semina minuta, scobiformia, 
testa laxâ, reticulata, diaphaná, nucleo quintupld longiore. 
Char. Nat. Perianthium monophyllum, tubulosum, petaloideum, persistens, 
infernè ovario adnatum : tubo brevi, medio constricto: limbo 6-diviso; 
