2 



Wallich'8 origiual Holboellia, as generically different from Stauntonia. 

 'Jliis course was hardly jnstifiablej even mth the few species he had 

 under observation, and the great accession of material from China 

 leaves us no alternative but to combine Parvaiia and Stauntonia, and 

 there are no satisfactory characters by whiclr to separate Holhoellia. 

 'Jlie only character on which a nunibcr of species might be retained 

 luider this name is that of the free stamens, but this would involve 

 the exclusion of species with only slightly connate filaments. Decaisne 

 relied on the loaves l)eing either pinnately or peltately compound, on 

 the presence or absence of petals, and on the free or raonadelphous 

 stamens. These characters and others are not correlative through- 

 out, and the presence or absence of petals fails altogether. The organs 

 designated petals by Decaisne are described as glands both by 

 Wallich and Griffith, and we have employed the term nectaries. 

 De Candolle does not mention them in his description of Stauntonia 

 chinensis, and Decaisne overlooked them in this plant, which he 

 describes as having no petals, in contradistinction to Parmtia and 

 Holhoellia, But Stauntonia chinensis has nectaries (petals), at least 

 in the female flowers, and possibly in the male floAvers, for they are 

 sometimes exceedingly sniall, as are also the staminodes, when 

 present. A good specific character is afforded by the muticous, 

 apiculate or corniculate connective of the anther. The fruit uf 

 a few species only is known, but a comparison of that of IlulhocUla 

 lati/olia, Wall. (Tent. FL Nep. t. IG), with that of Stauntonia hcjsa- 

 phi/lla, Sieb. ct Zucc. (FL Jap. vol. i. t. 76), is convincing as to the close 

 affinities of the proposed genera. In this place all the species dealt 

 with are referred to Stauntonia, and a synopsis of all the species will 

 follow in the Kew Bulletin. 



The plate has been prepared entirely frojn specimens in the Kcw 

 Herbarium collected by Hooker and Thomson. — W. Botting Hemsley. 



Fig, 1, n male flowor from which the perianth has been removed, showing nec- 

 taries and stannual colunui ; 2, a section of the same showing the pistillodes ; 

 3, a female flower from whieh the perianth ha-s been removed, showing the nec- 

 taries, staminodes and eMri>e!s ; 4, a nectary and btaminodo ; 6, a ripe (?) carpel 

 from which the fleshy part has disappeared. All except 5 enlarged. 



