234 FLORAL PRODUCTIONS OF THE SWAN RIVER COLONY. 
and spreading yellow flowers, produced in such profusion as to give 
the plant the appearance of being covered with gold leaf. Two or 
three species of Hedaroma, bushes of low growth, are so deliciously 
fragrant in their leaves and half-ripe fruit, that it is a point worth 
consideration whether they would not pay to collect and import into 
Europe for the use of perfumers. 
The Leguminose are equally abundant in this colony, as already 
noticed of the other districts, and equally remarkable as being, in the 
species, almost all peculiar to the district. Wattles (Acacia) occur in 
plenty, and some of very beautiful forms. Among the Papilionacee, 
or butterfly-flowers of this order, occur many most striking plants, as 
various Hoveas, Mirbelias, Hardenbergias, &c., remarkable in many 
cases for the intense blue or purple of their flowers; and other genera, 
as Oxylobium, Chorozema, Gompholobium, Zichya, &c., equally gay, 
with flowers varying from pure yellow to every shade of yellow 
and crimson mixed. The Swan River colony appears rather bare of 
Rutaceous plants, an order very abundant on the east side of the conti- 
nent; but among those peculiar to the west coast is Diplolena Dampiert, 
a hoary looking spreading shrub, with oblong rusty leaves, and curious 
nodding heads of flowers with long protruding pink stamens. Nearly 
twenty species of Lasiopetalez are known to exist here, among which 
Corethrostylis bracteata forms a downy shrub with heart-shaped leaves, 
and bears a profusion of forked racemes of pink flowers growing from 
coloured bracts, and forming an elegant plant. Another is Sarotes 
ledifolia, a stiff growing shrub, with narrow leaves arranged in whorls 
of threes, and producing corymbs of large light blue flowers. 
Plants with composite flowers are numerous, and some of them are 
yery beautiful; none perhaps more so than the now common Rhodanthe 
Manglesii, with its copious heads of decurved delicate pink flowers on 
the slender stems. Lawrencella rosea (like the last, an annual) is said 
to be even more handsome, having blunt linear leaves with terminal 
heads of rosy flowers. The greater part of the order is, however, 
inconspicuous or weedy. Of Epacridacee many species exist, but 
very few of much interest, and those chiefly belonging to genera well 
known in other parts of the country. Goodeniacee are numerous, and 
comprise several fine Leschenaultias. Dampiera cuneata is a dwarf 
herbaceous plant, with leathery leaves and terminal flowers of a bright 
blue. A great number of species of the curious genus Stylidium are 
found in the colony, nearly all of which are worthy of cultivation, their 
flowers varying from pink to yellow and many shades of purple. Of 
the equally neat genus of sun-dews (Drosera) several species of great 
interest are found, not only on account of their flowers, but from the 
bulbs of some of the sorts being said to afford an article of food to the 
natives, as well as to give promise of being valuable for dying purposes. 
One of these, D. erythrorhiza, has bluntly-ovate leaves, fringed and in 
whorls, with a terminal bunch of flowers, and bulbs of a bright scarlet 
colour the size of large hazel nuts. One of the most numerous orders 
is Proteacee, whose varying forms are so abundant as to stamp the 
Australian character on the whole country. They occur of all sizes, 
from bushes of humble growth to trees of the height of fifty feet. 
Upwards of sixty species of orchids have been detected, many of 
