152 PLANTS AND FERNS OF PORT ELIZABETH. 



a very unpleasant odour. This specimen was found in Port 

 Elizabeth in a gravelled yard. 



Of other plants in my list I would like to mention specially 

 Viscwm minimum (Laurinese) on Euphorbia polygona, Viscum 

 capense on Rhus krebsiana (Terebintineae), Eriospermum Dregei 

 (Liliacese), Drimia haworthioides (Liliaceae), Neodregea glassii 

 (Liliaceae), Crinum lineare ( Amaryllideae), Hexaglottis longi- 

 folia (Iridaceae). Angrcccum arcuatum (Orchideae), Cytinus 

 dioicus (Rafflesiaceae). Lauren tia radicans ( Campanulaceae), and 

 Hypoxis aquatica (Amaryllideae). Several of these plants may 

 be seen in my garden. 



Eriospermum Dregei is a very remarkable plant in particular 

 as to the leaf. Out of a tuber, which is very large in comparison 

 to the leaf, comes the peduncle, about half an inch or less from 

 the ground ; it forms a round leaf ; the peduncle then grows 

 upwards, and forms a round hairy ball. This ball splits into tree- 

 like branches of a grey colour, covered with long white hairs. 

 These hairs grow from small tubercles like Mesembryanthemum 

 barbatum or some cacteae. 



Drimia haworthioides was not suspected to be in Port 

 Elizabeth. The plant has a very curious root, the root under- 

 ground consisting of onion-like bulb-scale-shaped leaves without 

 chlorophyll, and smaller true roots. These bulb-scale-like leaves 

 afterwards form above the ground the true leaves, which lie flat 

 on the surface. The leaves are produced in February, the flowers 

 in December. 



Crinum lineare (Amaryllideae), Hexaglottis longifolia (Iri- 

 deae), Cytinus dioicus ( Raffllesiaceae), Hypoxis aquatica (Amaryl- 

 lideae), Angraxum arcuatum, Gethyllis spiralis and Hemimeris 

 montana have not been recorded from Port Elizabeth. 



Neodregea glassii grows in damp places amongst short grass, 

 sheltered by rocks and low bushes of Erica, Passerina, Erioce- 

 phalus and Mctalasia. The name was given by Mr. C. H. Wright 

 at Kew. It belongs to the Liliaceae. The flower looks verv 

 peculiar under a magnifying glass.* 



Laurcntia radicans Schonland is remarkable on account of 

 its smallness. It is not easy to detect it. It grows flat on the 

 ground in damp places. 



* Letter from Kew referring to this plant : — 

 " A fruiting specimen of this plant was received at Kew from Mr. 

 James Glass in 1896, hut flowers remained unknown until the recent arrival 

 (1909) of Mr. I. L. Drege's specimens from Doctor Schonland, Director 

 of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown. This species has the habit of a 

 dwarf Ornithoglossum, the flower (except the ovary) of Androcymbium, 

 and the ovary of Veratrum, but in the sum of its characters it agrees 

 most with Dipidax. Although the perianth segments are so narrow, vol 

 they bear auricles iust above the claw, such as are found more highly 

 developed in the genus Androcymbium, and just indicated in Dipidax. 

 The pistil at first sight appears to be apocarpus on account of the deep 

 lobing of the ovary and the apical divergence of the carpels." Dr. 

 Schonland writes, 23rd September, 1909 : — " It is certainly one of the 

 most interesting discoveries made amongst flowering plants in South 

 Africa during recent years." 



