384 CRITICAL NOTES ON SOME SPECIES OF CERASTIUM. 



CaryophylUis Jwlosteus alpiims gramineus, Bauhin, Prodr. 104 

 (1671). 



Myosotis caule hirsiito, foliis perangustis glabris, /lore calycem exce- 

 dente, Haller, Enum. pi. Helv. 384, t. 5, f. 1. 



Both these names are mentioned by Linnaeus under Cerastium 

 strlctmn, so that there can be no doubt about the identity of the 

 plant. Vitman's description is so much more lucid than that 

 of Linn^us that I here transcribe it: — " Caules digitales foliosi, 

 floriferi. Folia lineari-lanceolata, mollia. Calyx laciniis carinatis, 

 acuminatis, villosis. Petala non profunde bifida, calyce longiora. 

 Capsula calyce brevior, 10-valvis." Linn^us, however, says of the 

 leaves : " folia linearia, acuminatissima, stricta, glabra," and bases 

 the ''nomen triviale" on this character. This discrepancy is 

 probably due to the fact that the difference between the radical 

 and cauline leaves is not noted : the cauline leaves (in Austrian 

 specimens) are oblong or lanceolate, the radical leaves much nar- 

 rower and recurved somewhat, resembling those of 0. alpinum. 



22. C. ANOMALUM Waldst. & Kit. ex W. Sp. Plant, ii. 812 (1799) ; 

 et PI. rar. Hung. i. 21, t. 22 (1802). At the time when Willdenow 

 was occupied in re-editing Linnseus's Species Plantanim and bringing 

 it up to date, Kitaibel was engaged on his monumental work, and 

 knowing probably that Willdenow was about to publish the new 

 edition, he communicated to him the description of this Hungarian 

 plant. The authority as given by Willdenow is " Waldstein et 

 Kitaibel, PI. rar. Hung." On the other hand, when this latter 

 work was subsequently published, the reference to Willdenow was 

 full and explicit. There is therefore no ambiguity about the date. 

 The species is widely distributed, and occurs in Europe, Asia, and 

 N. Africa, growing on damp pastures. 



Geogr. limits : — N. : Germany ; on the banks of the Oder at 

 Steinau, in the province of Silesia. S. : Syria ; between Tripoli 

 and Hamah (Blanche ex Boiss. Fl. Orient, i. 715). E. : Russian 

 Turkestan ; east shore of the Caspian Sea (Karelin ex Ledeb. Fl. 

 Rossica, i. 398). W. : France ; dept. of Loire-inferieure (Rouy et 

 Fouc. Fl. de France, iii. 225). 



23. C. APETALUM Dumort. Obs. Bot. 47 (1822) = C. glomeratum 

 var. apetalum Rouy & Fouc. Fl. de France, iii. 213 (0. viscosiim var. 

 apetalum Fenzl). If the rule of priority in names were as generally 

 applicable to varieties as it is to species, the name of this plant 

 should be C. glomeratum var. rotundifolium, as Dumortier's plant 

 (which is not mentioned in Grenier's monograph) is identical with 

 C. rotundifolium Fisch. (1812). This, however, would not be such 

 an appropriate name. The flowers are usually apetalous, though 

 the uppermost flowers on the stem bear sometimes 2-4 small petals. 

 I have seen specimens from Thirsk, in Yorkshire. Dumortier's 

 work is usually wrongly cited as " Comm. Bot.," e.g. in hidex 

 Kewensis. 



24. C. APRicuM Schlechtendal in Linn^a, xii. 208 (1838) : 

 = C. rattans var. apricum Rohrb. in Linnaea, xxxvii. 290 (1872-73). 

 Pedicelli crassi ; calyx 4 mm. ; petala calycem aequantia. Variat 



