32 Annals of the South African Museum. 



Little Namaqualand : Sandy ground, summit of pass between 

 Garies and Middelkraal, 5608. 



A dwarf undershrub with a short caudex (about 2-5 cm.), branched, 

 brown, and rugged. Branches closely beset with leaves above, 

 covered with leaf-bases below, short (1-1*5 cm.). Leaves sessile, 

 fleshy, obovate to cuneate, acute to acuminate, slightly convex 

 beneath, glabrous, 8-12 mm. long, bearing in their axils many long 

 (up to 3 cm.) white shining flattened stipular bairs. Eaceme 

 branched, 1-1 flowered, w T ith a long glabrous peduncle (up to 

 15 cm.) ; pedicels about 2-5 cm. Bracts about 6, scattered, lower 

 ones leaf-like, upper lanceolate, sheathing, with a coriaceous midrib 

 and membranous margin, about half as long as the leaves, bearing 

 stipular hairs in their axils. Flowers not seen. Capsule 1-celled, 

 6-toothed, 1-2-2 cm. long. Seeds small, brown, with three wdiitish- 

 grey wings. 



2. CERARIA. 



2. Ceraria, gen. nov., dioecia, floribus singulis rarissime herma- 

 phroditis. Sepala 2, abbreviata, persistentia. Petala 5, sepalis 

 longiora, hypogyna, libera, tandem accrescentia. Stamina in 

 masculis 5, in foeminis ad staminodia linearia reducta vel raris- 

 sime antheris abortivis instructa. Ovarium in foeminis et masculis 

 3-quetrum et applanatum, 1-ovulatum ; stigma 2-3 tidum ; stylus 

 vel brevissimus ; ovulum basale. Fructus immaturus com- 

 planatus, asymmetricus, unipterus, membranaceus, coccineus, 

 corolla accrescente arete vestitus. Fructus vix maturus (in specie 

 una visus) baccatus, asymmetricus, apterus, corolla accrescente 

 basi cinctus. 



Arbores parvte, frutices, vel fruticuli. Folia per anthesin perpauca 

 (? praecipue hysterantha) geminata vel fasciculata, parva, carnosa, 

 plana vel tereta. Flores parvi, rosei, nodis floriferis ('? aphyllis) in 

 fasciculis vel racemis axillaribus dispositi. 



Ceraria differs from Portulacaria in being dioecious and in having 

 a slightly flattened ovary and a fruit which is at first 1-winged and 

 later (nearly ripe fruit seen only in C. fraticulosa) fleshy and wing- 

 less ; the fruit of Portulacaria is 3 -winged and dry. 



