80 



Ti/A' AliT ALBUM OF NEW ZEALANU FLUIiA. 



1. riLKJiALIUM NUDUM (Hook.) The Nnlvcd riic1),iliinn. 



SvKCIFic CiiAHAiTKIt. — A shnil) or snuiU (roe, \li 15 ft. 

 high, overvwlioro ghibrou^ ; brrtnclu's ver_v sleiicU'r. Loiivcs, 

 nlternafe, 1 IJ in, long, sproivding, lincnr-oblung or iiiirrow 

 oblong-lanfoolnti'. obtuse, obseurely eremite, narro\\e<l lielow 

 into very short petioles, eoriaeeous, paler, and dotted below. 

 Flowers in terminal, munyllowereil eorynibs, whitish, i-J in. 



diuni., on pedieels ,', i in. long. I'al^x very email, 5 lobed. 

 Petals, 5, linear, obtnse, with narrow overla]>i>ing margins. 

 Coeei, J in. long, obtusely rhomhoidal, eompressed, wrinkled; 

 often only one ripens, splitting down the front and baek into 

 2 valves. — Handbook of the New Zealand Flora, p. 39. 



Description, etc.— Fig. 1, Plate No. 17.— The " MAIREHAU."— This shrub is 

 pecviliar to the northern, portion of the Northern Island, and is most prolific at the Bay 

 of Islands. The whole of its parts possess a strong, fragrant, resinous smell, to which 

 the Maoris are very partial. It is not an unusual occurrence for the Natives to adorn 

 their hats Avith sprays of its thin lithesome bi'anches Avhen they make excursions into the 

 woods after the wild pigeon. The reason of this adornment is not easy to discover, 

 unless the native sportsmen suppose that the foliage may deceive the birds they are in 

 pursuit of, and permit them to get closer up to their game ; or, it may be, that they 

 have a powhant for the perfume, which they are pleased to gratify. The specific name 

 of the "Mairehau" is due to the entire absence of hairs or downy covering over its 

 entire parts — being, as it were, naked. The foliage is a bronze green colour, inter- 

 mingled with splashes of red, presenting a very singular appearance, and giving the 

 impression that the leaves are metallic. They retain their fragrance for a length of time, 

 even after they have been dried. Sir J. D. Hooker says, in his notes, that the New 

 Zealand species is closely allied to the Queensland P. elatius, but the flowers are 

 larger, the petals longer, the corymbs more flattened, and the leaves taper less to the 

 base; and that they may prove to be local forms of one species. A reference to 

 our plate will familiarize the reader with the general a2)pearance of the Mairehau, where 

 its pretty corymbs of myrtle-like white flowers and j^ink buds are carefully portrayed. 



GENUS II. 



MELICOPE {Forst.) The Melicope. 



Generic Character. — Glabrous shrubs. Leaves, op- 

 posite or alternate, simple or compound, pellucid dotted. 

 Flowers, in axillai'y, many or few-flowered cymes, more or less 

 uni-sexual. Sepals, 4, deciduous or persistent. Petals, 4, 

 sessile, spreading, valvate or imbricate, with inflexed tips. 

 Stamens, 8; filaments, subulate. Ovary, 4-lobed, 4-celled ; 



style, 1, or 4 coalescing into 1 from between the lobes ; stigma, 

 capitate; cells, 2-ovuled. Cocci, 1-i, spreading, free; endo- 

 carp, separating. Jesta, shining; albumen, abundant; 

 embryo, slightly curved. — Handbook of the New Zealand Flora, 

 p. 29. 



Description, etc. — A Pacific Island genus, very variable in habit, Avhicli does not 

 extend Avestward into Australia. The two New Zealand species, M. ternata and M. 

 simplex, are extremely dissimilar in habit. In the first named the leaves are opj)Osite 

 and 3-foliolate ; whilst in the latter the leaves are alternate or fascicled, and 1-foliolate. 



