28 The South Australian Naturalist. 



to keep land fit for agricultural purposes. One tree noted had a part of the 

 stem three feet above ground, swollen similar to the base stock, and from it 

 two stems issued. Is it a freak of Nature or some extra provision to ensure 

 the life of the tree in case of accidents? 



1. Eucalyptus gracilis, F.M. (No. 934), is a very small 

 Mallee, which does not form the swollen base above ground. It 

 is a shrub of from 8 to 10 feet high. The stems arise in 

 a clump, so characteristic of this section of the genus. The bark 

 on the stems is brown, and peels off in long strips. This species grows 

 in the higher situations in reddish sand and limestone. The fruit Avas tiny^ 

 being about one-eighth of an inch long and the same across. The leaves were 

 very much dotted with oil cells. Two small greenhood orchids (PterostyUs 

 nwtica, K.Br., and P. cycnocephaJa) and the adder's tongue {Opldoglossum 

 rulgatum, Linne) grew alongside this Mallee, which Avas not in flower. 



2. What is called the Tall Mallee (No. 965) (E. dumosa, A. Cunn.) 

 grows in clumps 20 to 25 feet high, and develops a dense umbrella-shaped 

 crown. The stems are mid-grey in colour, and the bark peels off in long 

 ribbons. The fruit is of the small variety, being less than half an inch long ; ^ 

 ■lie lid on the buds is of a squat nature. The soil is Avliite sand, and grooving 

 at the base of a clump of this Mallee Avas the purple lily, Dianctla revoJufa, 

 E, Br. Also close by Avas a Gum (Eucalyptus fasciculosa, F. M.) and shrubs 

 of Melaleuca and Acacia, but groAAing in limestone — red-sand composition. 



These tAvo associations are AA'orthy of note: — 



I. Limestone and red-sand groAving Gum (not Mallee). shrubs of 



Melaleuca, Dodonaea, Acacia spinescens, Benth., and other plants, 

 such as Xerotes, sp., and orchids (Diuris palustris, Lind., Caladcnia 

 deformis, E. Br., C. filamentosa, E. Br.), etc. 



II. Pure white sandy soil, in AAhich the Mallees predominate, Avith occa- 



sional plants of Brachyloma ericoidcs, Sander, Acacia spinescens, 



DianeUa levoluta, etc. 

 It is iiiterosting to find these plants ahvays in the one type of soil 

 associated Avith certain plants only. While the Mallee slums the limestone, 

 the pink gum {E. fasciculosa) iuA'ariably groAvs on the limestone ridges. 

 In addition to the suitability of the soil, there is the factor of light that aids 

 the plant in the selection of a home. The limestone country is one of open 

 spaces and intense light ; the Mallee scrub is usually dense and has less 

 iilumination and fcAver plants intermixed AA-ith it. Plants associated Avith 

 the Mallee are different from the limestone type. 



3. A smaller Mallee, groAving in the typical clumps from 8 to 10 feet 

 high, and Avith fruits quarter of an inch long, is another form of Eucalyptus 

 dumosa, A. Cunn. (No. 963). The buds and fruit of this variety are 

 small, being about a quarter of an inch long and of the same width. The 

 lid, or operculum, is rather flat, or squat, and is longitudinally ribbed. The 

 leaves are wider than other specimens haA-ing similar buds and fruits. Hoav- 

 eA'er, most likely they are the same species, as the genus is knoAvu for the 

 remarkable A-ariatiou in all its parts, as obserA-ed by Australia's leading 

 authority on the Eucalypts, Mr. J. H. Maiden, Director of the Botanic 

 Gardens, Sydney. 



Where this Mallee grows there appears to be a slight oA'erlapping. The 

 Mallee has iuA-aded the limestone red-sand area, and the Pink Gum has 

 entered the Mallee reserve. This is generally the case AA'here tAvo types of 

 country meet. Associated Avith this Mallee are species of Xerotes, Caladcnia 

 fdamentosa, E. Br., Bursaria spinosa, Car., and Melaleuca parviflora, Lind. 



4. The Giant Mallee (Euccdyptus incrassata, Labill.), No. 935, in this 

 district grows from 12 to 15 feet high. The stems spring from one spot 



