146 NEW ZEALAND PLANTS. 
others will get a firmer hold upon the land; cases of these kinds 
are being recorded yearly. 
The seed-plants which have gained a more or less firm footing 
are a most varied assemblage. They belong, indeed, to no fewer 
than 68 families and 279 genera. Certain of these families are not 
represented in the indigenous flora—e.g., the willow family (Sali- 
caceae), the poppy family (Papaveraceae), the mignonette family 
(Resedaceae), the valerian family (Valerianaceae), the teasel family 
(Dipsaceae), and some others. Most numerous of all with regard to 
the species they contain, as might perhaps be expected, is the grass 
family (Gramineae), 83 species, which surpasses in number even the 
great daisy family (Compositae), 67 species. Then come the pea 
family (Leguminosae), 44 species, and the cress family (Cruciferae), 
34 species. Other fairly large families are those of the chickweed 
(Caryophyllaceae), 26 species; sage (Labiatae), 21 species; koromiko 
(Scrophulariaceae), 17 species; dock (Polygonaceae), 14 species ; 
buttercup (Ranunculaceae), 13 species; rose (Rosaceae), 13 species ; 
potato (Solanaceae), 13 species; carrot (Umbelliferae), 12 species ; 
and forget-me-not (Boraginaceae), 10 species. On the other hand, 
some families are represented by only 1 species—e.g., the gentian 
(Gentianaceae), the primrose (Primulaceae), the periwinkle (Apo- 
cynaceae), and the pokeweed (Phytolaccaceae). 
With regard to the genera, the following contain the most species : 
Clovers and trefoils (Tvifoliwm), 15; buttercups (Ranunculus), 11 ; 
brome-grasses (Bromus) and wild-turnips (Brassica), 8 each; docks 
and sorrels (Rumex), 7; and plantains (Plantago) and vetches (Vicia), 
6 each. 
At first thought, the idea of 520 different sorts of plants—some 
of them the most aggressive weeds in Hurope—having not only been 
loosed to do their will, but also having established a secure footing, 
would lead to the conclusion that, if not the flora of New Zealand, 
at any rate the primitive vegetation was doomed. No conclusion 
could be more incorrect. Were it not that man has changed, and 
is changing, the face of nature by means of his farming operations, 
his grazing-animals, his fires, his drains, and his exploitation of 
the rain-forest and the flax-swamp, the host of foreign plant 
invaders would be powerless—the indigenous plants, attuned to 
the special life-conditions of their native land, would laugh these 
aliens to scorn. Why, even now, when the introduced plants have 
