68 Queensland's plant associations 



soil, etc., of the country, but it must also study the evolution 

 of the country and its flora during the past geological periods. 



A special part of botanogeography — so-called ecology — 

 tries to explain the different adaptations of the plants 

 according to the so-called ecological factors, i.e., especially 

 the soil and the climate (the influence of warmth, water, air). 



The flora of Australia (except in some Northern and 

 Central parts) is in its rough outlines fairly well known, 

 although there is an immense field for future botanists. 

 But there is very little done in botanogeography, except 

 a recent work by Dr. L. Diels, dealing with the botano- 

 geography of extra- tropical Western Australia. In Queens- 

 land however, until the present time, very little was known 

 about the factors which cause the different plant-associa- 

 tions of the State. We know the elements of the flora 

 (and fairly well the geographical distribution of single 

 plants), due in part to Bentham, the author of the " Flora 

 Australiensis," who unfortunately never was in Australia, 

 and was therefore unable to deal with the botanogeography 

 of the country, although his flora — considering all circum- 

 stances — is wonderful ; further due to the numerous works 

 of Baron Ferd. von Mueller, and of i^. M. Bailey, who devoted 

 his whole life to the study of Queensland's flora, and also 

 due to some other authors, who published valuable special 

 papers and works, as J. Shirley (the Lichen-flora of Queens- 

 land), Brotherus and K. Mueller (Mosses), Cooke (Fungi), etc. 



Knowing all these circumstances, I made a plan for 

 a visit to Queensland, intending to study the botanogeogra- 

 phy of the State, as there is no other part of Australia 

 which would be so interesting from the botanical standpoint, 

 and which offers simultaneously marvellous prospects for agri- 

 cultural development, combining the possibilities of tropical 

 agriculture in the North and especially in the coastal region, 

 and of growing different plants of temperate region in 

 Southern parts. Besides these there is a large area with 

 splendid timbers ; many of them are used at the present 

 time, but still more of them are wasted in a manner, which 

 is understood by everybody familiar with the conditions 

 of this wonderful virgin country, but which nobody from 

 Europe can understand. 



But let me begin with a short description of the chief 

 plant-associations in Queensland. I cannot afford to speak 



