122 THE .TOUItX.Vr- OF nOTAXV 



It is well got up, printed in clear large type, singularly free from 

 tvpogra])lucal errors, and full of the most interesting information 

 about the plants recorded. The only criticism I feel inclined to make 

 is that it is a pity a map was not included. Possibly a little too much 

 tenderness has been shown to the older Maltese botanists by not 

 e.vcludlag records which were evidently erroneous — e. g. Trifoliiim 

 spuinotiuiii, stated by Gulia to be " very common," but which has 

 never since been foiind. All species, however, which have not been 

 seen bv the authors themselves are marked with an asterisk. The 

 history of Maltese botany is fully treated, and a table, which should 

 pi'ove of interest to students of geographical distribution, shows not 

 only the distribution of species in the various Maltese islands, but also 

 in Sicily, Northern Africa, and the East. The book is published in 

 Italian. 



Those who have only seen Malta in the svimmer would find it hard 

 to believe that any indigenous vegetation could be found there at all, 

 except, perhaps, xerophilous plants. At that time of the year there 

 are onlv two colours in the landscape — the intense blue of the sea and 

 sky, and the dazzling white of the rocks, field-walls, buildings and 

 roads. There are no rivers, or even true perennial water-courses, no 

 mountains, lakes, or considerable marshes, no woods oi* plantations, so 

 that most of the vegetation peculiar to these stations is absent. 

 Geologically the islands consist almost entirely of coralline and globi- 

 gerina limestone, so that there is very little variety of soil. The 

 density of the population is extraordinary — 2167 to the square mile in 

 Malta, 879 in Gozo. The total area is only 75,000 acres (the Isle of 

 "Wight has 100,000), and of this id, 865 acres are under cultivation. 

 The rest is occvipied by buildings, or is uncultivated land, mostly 

 rocky ground, wind-swept, denuded, and arid, with only scattered 

 pockets of soil, generally oidy a few centimetres deep. Yet in spite 

 of all these restrictions the fiora is remarkably rich for so limited 

 a space. No fewer than 918 species (including ferns), 78 mosses, 

 188 lichens, 296 Alga? and 499 Fungi are recorded. 



Perhaps the most intei'esting plant referred to is MelitcUa, a new 

 genus of Gichoriacece, which was discovered in 1906 -by Sommier in 

 (.rozo, and afterwards at Malta. Of this an excellent plate and 

 description are given. M. pusifla, the only species, is a dwarf stem- 

 less plant with a rosette of leaves adpressed to the ground, surrounding 

 what appears to be a sessile single eapitulumi but which really con- 

 sists of from two to eight flower-heads. It has since been found in 

 Cyrenaica. 



Another interesting ])lant is Oxnlis cernua, a trimorphic species 

 from the Ca{>e of Good Hope, of which only the short-styled 

 form grows in Malta. It was fii-st mentioned by Giacinto in 1806 in 

 a list of plants in tlie Malta Botanical (iardens. To such an extent 

 has it spread that the fields are yellow with it, as fields at home some- 

 times are with charlock, and it is found everywhere — on the walls, by 

 the roadsides, and in such abundance that it far exceeds all the other 

 flowers together. The extraoi'dinary thing is that all this immense 

 profusion of fiowers results in no production of cajisules, the other 



