42 CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



Scorzonella, was thirty years ago reduced by Dr. Gray 

 to Calais. Bentham and Hooker, in the Genera Plantarum, 

 while reducing the whole of DeCandolle's Calais to Micro- 

 seris, in recognition of the priority of the latter name, nev- 

 ertheless perceived the validity of Scorzonella as a genus, 

 and restored it; but in the Synoptical Flora, as well as an- 

 tecedently, in volume nine of the proceedings of the Ameri- 

 can Academy, it reappears as a mere section of Microseris. 

 Having studied these plants diligently on their native soil 

 during some six or seven years, I can but agree with the 

 able and experienced founder of the genus, and with the 

 learned authors of the Genera Plantarum, that Scorzonella 

 should stand. Here the pappus-bristles are somewhat in- 

 definite in number, and are mostly real bristles with palea- 

 ceous-dilated base, rather than awn-tipped pale^e. The 

 plants, while caulescent like Calais, have nodding heads like 

 Microseris, quite distinctive involucres, fusiform perennial 

 roots, and are gestival in flowering; whereas the two kindred 

 genera of annuals have but a very short and strictly vernal 

 season of flowering and fruiting. April is their month, and 

 it is usually in vain to look for them after the beginning of 

 May. 



There are some three species of this particular alliance, 

 upon which the eminent author aforenamed in the Plantae 

 FendlerianaB established a genus Ptilophora, concerning 

 which I judge all to have been well, save that the name was 

 already in use for a genus of sea-weeds. These jDlants, 

 while wholly in keeping with Scorzonella, as regards their 

 general aspect, and perennial root, have a pappus of quite 

 different character. The only distinction which has hitherto 

 been definitely stated is that the numerous bristles are white 

 and soft-plumose. This is doubtless the most obvious, in- 

 deed it may be the only difference noticeable at first sight, 

 in the very best of herbarium specimens, unless it be this, 

 that the texture of the pappus is not only soft, but very 

 fragile, which is not true of that of any Sco7'zonella. Now, 



