PIOEA 89 



Wittrock form or any description of it. There is also a 

 P. excelsa,YabT. brevifolia, Kuntze ("Taschenfl.," Leipzig, 7, 

 1867). 



Gordon's description of var. brevifolia, Cripps, is: 

 " A distinct pygmy with very minute leaves." In 

 Beissner's description of var. nana he states that it has 

 short branchlets, and often monstrous ones on the 

 top with thick buds and leaves. To anyone who has 

 grown var. 7ia7ia these outcropping monstrous branchlets 

 with their large leaves are well known ; they are one of the 

 most distinctive characteristics of this variety, and it 

 seems incredible that they should have escaped Gordon's 

 notice. One can only conclude that var. brevifolia, Cripps, 

 with its minute leaves, is not identical with var. nana, but 

 Gordon's description is so inadequate that, having failed 

 so far to discover any old specimen of this variety, I 

 cannot say whether it is any longer in cultivation. 



Recently I received from an old Continental nursery 

 a form grown by its owner as var. brevifolia, Cripps, but 

 I can discover neither its history nor its habit as an adult 

 specimen, and my plant is quite small. So far, however, 

 it is fairly distinct; its branches, branchlets, leaves, and 

 buds are similar in every respect with those of var. Clan- 

 brasiliana, but the leaves are even smaller. In habit, it 

 sends up no central leading shoot, but a number of erect 

 branches from its base which spread out as they ascend, 

 forming a low bush wider at the head than at the base and 

 being, so far, absolutely flat- topped. The leaves are mostly 

 arranged radially on the branchlets. This is undoubtedly 

 a Clanbrasiliana form, but may possibly be var. brevi- 

 folia, Cripps; at present we must leave it at that. 



P. excelsa, var. brevifolia argentea. 



Syn.: var. nana argentea, Hort; 

 var. pumila argentea, Hort. 



Buds. — Conical; minute, orange-brown; non-resinous. 

 Branches. — Thin; slightly ascending; few in number. 



