42 



ON EECENT ADDITIONS TO THE FLOEA OF 



TASMANIA. 



By Augustus Simson. 



[Bead IWi May, 1879.] 



At the instigation of Baron F. von Mueller I beg to lay 

 before the Society specimens of a species of HaJcea, not 

 hitherto recorded in the Tasmanian Flora. 



From the Baron's letter, which I send herewith, it seenas 

 that this plant is found in Gippsland, Victoria. I found it 

 at George's Bay on my first visit in May, 1875, where it is of 

 very frequent occurrence in marshy places, growing to a 

 height of twelve (12) to fifteen (15) feet, or even higher. 

 These shrubs occur also on Flinders Island, Bass'^ Straits, 

 forming occasionally scrubs in wet i)laces, and growing very 

 closely together to a height of at least twenty (20) feet. 



As Baron Mueller se^ms to think that the announcement 

 of the discovery of new plants (or at least plants as yet 

 unknown as Tasmanian, though possibly occurring in other 

 countries) may encourage others to search diligently for 

 more, I send also specimens of two other plants recently 

 added to the Tasmanian Flora, one of which is quite a new 

 species. These are : — 



1st. Eucalyptus vircjata, Sieber, or, as the Baron has 

 re-named it, vide his letter, Eucalyphis Sieheri, Mueller, one of 

 the species known in the colonies as " Ironbark." This fine 

 tree grows to a height of one hundred (100) feet, with a 

 diameter of four (4) or five (5) feet, on all the dry granite 

 country in the north-east portion of the colony. It occurs 

 also in that neighbourhood on the Slate Hills about the heads 

 of the George's Eiver, Scamander, South Esk, Break-of-Day 

 Eiver, and other streams. In the granite country it grows 

 in the valleys also, but in the slate districts is replaced by 

 Stringy Bark (Euc. ohliqua), Swamp Gum (Euc. viminalis), 

 and Peppermint {Euc. amygdalina). On the dry hills and 

 ridges along the coast, and about George's Bay, it is the 

 prevailing species, Euc. amygdalina being the only other of 

 frequent occurrence, except close along the shores of the 

 Bay, where Euc. globulus is to be found. Like all of its 

 section of the Eucalypts, it has thick rough persistent bark, 

 deeply furrowed in the older trees ; in the saplings the bark 

 is outwardly scaly, and can easily be scraped off. The 

 timber is useful for posts and rails, being very hard and 

 durable. It is also good for sawing purposes, having been 

 the timber cut up at the saw mills on tho George's Eiver 



