DR. PARRY ON A NEW CALIFORNIA LILY. 189 



all the steep, gravelly slopes adjoining there was the usual displaj' of Cal- 

 ifornia evergreen shrubbery, including conspicuously the heath-like 

 Adenostoma, which, under the common name of Chamisal, is largely used 

 for fuel ; the holly leaved cherry Prunics ilicifolia, exhaling a strong 

 odor of bitter almonds ; the Heterorneles arbidifolia, with glossy var- 

 nished leaves, and a prevalent form of " California lilac" {Ceanotlms 

 crassifolim), with thick leathery foliage ; the dull, green hue which every- 

 Avhere characterizes the moorish growth is at this time of year partly 

 relieved by brilliant scarlet festoons of Pentstemon cordifoUus, trailing 

 over adjoining bushes, or the less showy blossoms of Pentstemon ternatiis. 

 What, however, soon attracted more exclusive attention was a conspic- 

 uous yellow lily, growing abundantly in the boggy ground adjoining the 

 house, and sharing with the potato patch the care and attention of the 

 undisputed proprietors of the soil. Though not as showy as some other 

 members of the lily family in this region, there is a grace displayed in 

 its large drooping flowers, surmounting a slender stem, beset with nar- 

 row scattered leaves, which occasionally are crowded at base into a 

 distinct whorl ; the plant varies in height from three to five feet, the 

 number of flowers regularly unfolding from it is also variable, ranging 

 from three to nine. The specimens then collected, together with later 

 material, obligingly fnrnislied by Mr. King, has supplied the necessary 

 means for a complete description, and the whole having been placed at 

 the disposal of Mr. Sereno Watson, who is now elaborating the endoge- 

 nous flora of California, he has determined the same as an undescribed 

 species, which he has complimented the discoverer by naming Lilium 

 Parryi Watson. At my request Mr. W^atson has kindly furnished the 

 following characterized description : 



" Lilium Parryi Watson, Bot. Calif, ined. 



" Bulb somewhat rhizomatous, of numerous crowded scales, fleshy 

 and jointed, about an inch long, the upper joint broadly lanceolate ; stem 

 slender, glabrous, two to five feet high, 2-10 flowered ; leaves usually scat- 

 tered, occasionally the lower ones in a whorl, linear, oblanceolate, four 

 to six inches long, and half an inch wide or less, mostly acumin- 

 ate ; flowers horizontal, pale yellow, sparingly and minutely dotted 

 with purple ; segments tlu'ee and one-half inches long, and five or six 

 lines wide, with long, narrow claws, slightly spreading from the base ; 

 stamens and style a half inch shorter, equal ; anthers oblong, brown- 

 ish, three lines long ; capsules narrowly oblong, acutish, two inches long 

 by half an inch in breadth. 



" (^f the section Enlirion^ to which also belongs the Californian L. 

 Washingtonianum. It is distinguished from the latter especially by its 

 small bulbs, with jointed scales, its more scattered and narrower leaves, 

 its smaller yellow flowers with less spreading segments, and its longer, 

 narrower and acuter capsules." 



In farther illustration of this species, by the kindness of Mr. W. O. 

 Gronen, I am enabled to present an excellent figure with some of the 

 more important specific details.* 



*Plate V, fig. 1, Lii'titni Parryi, general view, one-third natural size ; fig. 2, bulb, three- 

 fourths natural size; fig. 3, pod, three-fourths natural size; fig. 4, diagram of pod, three-fourths 

 natural size. Plate VI, full size view of the top of plant, showing flowers and buds. 



[Proc. D. A. N. S. Vol II.] 26 [May, 1878.] 



