Victorian Plants. 211 



small ; each flower surrounded by bracts ; bracteoles 

 ovate-elliptical, inserted near the base of the calyx ; 

 lobes of the calyx shorter than the tube, the whole calyx 

 invested outside with silky-shining hairlets ; fruit oblique- 

 ovate, blunt. P. prostrata. 



995. Stalklets about as long as the calyx. 



Prostrate, somewhat beset with appressed shining hairlets ; 

 leaves small, linear, blunt, channelled above ; flowers in 

 terminal leafy clusters ; bracteoles linear-lanceolar, in- 

 serted at the base of the calyx ; lobes of the calyx very 

 acute ; lower petals deeply colored ; fruit beset with 

 hairlets. P. laxiflora. 



Stalklets shorter than the calyx 996 



996. Almost entirely glabrous. 



Tall-shrubby or somewhat arborescent ; leaves rather small, 

 from elliptic- to almost cuneate-linear, blunt or slightly 

 pointed, concave ;' flowers small, either in terminal almost 

 leafless corymbs or dispersed in the upper axils ; bracts 

 minute ; bracteoles small, lanceolar-ovate, at the base of 

 the calyx ; lobes of the calyx hardly or slightly pointed ; 

 fruit nearly glabrous, oblique-ovate, rather turgid, short- 

 pointed. (P. altissima.) P. flexilis. 



Much beset with hairlets ... ... ... ... 997 



997. Flowers few, rather large, either loosely placed into 



headlets or scattered, generally surpassed by the 

 floral leaves ... ... ... ... ... 998 



Flowers many, usually small, crowded into headlets, 

 generally surpassing the floral leaves ... ... 1001 



998. Flowers in leafy spikes or headlets. 



A low imperfectly shrubby plant, quite densely beset with 

 minute hairlets ; leaves broadish- or linear-cylindrical, 

 blunt, channelled, their surface often closed by the in- 

 curved margin ; bracts none ; bracteoles almost as long as 

 the calyx and inserted below its base, extremely narrow ; 

 calyx membranous, pale, its lobes much pointed, hardly 

 longer than the tube ; lower petals dark-colored ; fruit 

 oblique -elliptical, acute, shorter than the calyx ; seeds 

 somewhat shining. P. canaliculata. 



Flowers in terminal leafless headlets ... ... 999 



