BOTANY. 



87 



shrubs. B. fandanifoUa and D. milligani, when well de- 

 veloped, grow erect and unbranched, with a head of long 

 Bword-like leaves, often many feet in length, recalling the 

 aspect of a cordyline or a palm rather than a dicotyledon. 

 The Rham/nece, Rutacece, and Subiacece are all fairly repre- 

 sented, and with a large proportion of endemic types. Gap^- 

 rifoliacece, on the other hand, is represented by but one 

 common Australian species, Sambucus gaudichaudiana. 

 Rosacece again, as in Australia, is but poorly represented; 

 still, we have two interesting endemics, a Geuin, G. r em- 

 folium, with reniform leaves and large strawberry-like 

 flowers. Unfortunately, it occurs only towards the summit 

 of Adamson's Peak and La Perouse. It appears, however, 

 not very difficult to acclimatise to a low altitude. The 

 other is a Raspberry, Riibiis gunnianus. It is sraall, with 

 a creeping habit, and bears, when well developed, a scariet 

 fruit nearly an inch in diameter, consisting of drupels ^ach 

 nearly J-in. The flavour is poor, and though most common 

 towards mountain-tops, it seems to resist all efforts of culti- 

 vation. The large order, Stylidece, though almost confined 

 to Australia, is hardly .to be found in Tasmania. , Only one 

 species, S. gramhiifolium, the familiar trigger-plant, with 

 its irritable column and tall raceuse of crimson-rose flowers, 

 is ordinarily met with. The Cupuliferce, which supply the 

 broad-leaved trees to the forests of the Northern Hemi- 

 sphere, are here replaced by the Myrtacece. But, in Tasr 

 mania, we still have two Fagus of this order. F. cunning- 

 hami, a noble tree, with wood of an excellent quality, ia 

 abundant in rich forest land throughout the Island, and F. 

 gannii, a small Alpine tree, that occurs only at a high 

 elevation in the West and South- West. ■ This latter has 

 the singular distinction of being the only deciduous in- 

 digenous species in Australia. In Hydrocharidacece, Val- 

 lisneria spiralis, as here found, is more robust than the 

 European type, and the peduncles create annoyance by re- 

 fusing tO' retract in the orthodox coil. Elodea canadensis 

 has also come here from Europe, America, or somewhere. 

 As in England, so here, only the ladies of the species have 

 arrived, but this seems to be not at all disconcerting, and 

 its propagation in watercourses is often more generous than 

 entertaining. The orchids are fairly numerous ; about 70 

 kinds, mostly of the Australian genera, Pterostylis, Cala- 

 denia, Thelyinitra, Diuris, and Prasofhyllwin. Probably 

 none are endemic; only one, Sarcochiins jparvifforus, epiph\- 

 tic. Two, Gastrodia sesamoides and Difodiuiii inriU-tattini; 

 are, doubtless, parasitic on roots of higher plants, but the 

 connection has never been traced. Amongst the Iridacece.^ 



