70 Queensland's plant associations 



to promote the immigration of skilful people from Europe, 

 who could stand the competition with the Chinese, as the 

 English people are usually not fond of this branch of agri- 

 culture. 



As there is not much time left, I will mention only 

 some of the other plant associations of Queensland : — 



1. On the very top of Bellenden Ker there is a most 

 extraordinary form of low mountain scrub, consisting of 

 different shrubs with extermely hard branches. It is 

 nearly impossible to penetrate through this thicket, which 

 is in many respects of high importance, as there are found 

 several plants (for instance Agajjetes Meiniana, Bliodo- 

 denclro7i Lochae), which have their affinities in the Malayan 

 and Papuan mountains. This association covers only the 

 narrow top of the mountains and the slopes some 80 feet 

 below. Except this, the whole mountain is covered with 

 dense tropical vine-scrub, of course of different types at 

 different heights. The soil is everywhere on the 

 eastern side granitic and poor. The ascent of the 

 central highest peak is certainly not so difficult as 

 one would suppose after reading the travels of Mr. 

 Arch. Meston. The eastern side of the mountain 

 is not such good timber country as the scrubs on the 

 basaltic plateau. There are comparatively few trees, 

 which are sufficiently numerous and are of a high n:ercantile 

 value. Meston' s Mangostoen {Garcinia 3Iesto7ii), botani- 

 cally an extremely interesting type of the flora of Bellenden 

 Ker, described and discovered by J^. M. Bailey, is very plenti- 

 ful in the eastern slopes in an elevation between 2,£00- 

 4,000 feet. But the value of the fruit was exaggerated by 

 Mr. Meston, and I regard all experiments with this tree as 

 useless. First, it will not do well in the low land ; and sec- 

 ond, its fruit is of no special taste ; naturally it cannot be 

 compared with the true mangosteen {Garcinia Mango- 

 stana). 



2. Shrubby plant association, consisting of plenty of 

 low shrubs with little grass and few small trees, is often 

 found on loose sand in the inland country. It is a 

 Xerophilous association. 



3. On the islands of Moreton Bay, and also near Sunny- 

 bank, in the vicinity of Brisbane (and surely in several 

 other localities), is to be found an extremely interesting. 



