342 Harvey's Genera of South African Plants, 



perfection in South Africa, where it abounds in species, and forms the orna- 

 ment of winter and spring at the Cape. The leaves contain oxalic acid in 

 various states of combination. " The species want revision and examination. 

 The proportion between the styles and stamens, a character insisted on by 

 authors, is of no importance, as it varies in the same species, or even in differ- 

 ent flowers of the same specimen. This character being set aside, many 

 supposed species fall to the ground." ( p. 45.) 



Pittosporum viridiflorum has the scent of jasmine, and must therefore be 

 a very desirable green-house shrub. — Diosma. " A large and beautiful genus 

 peculiar to South Africa, abounding in species, which are scattered extensively 

 from one end of the colony to the other, and in many places so abundant as 

 to impart a character to the vegetation. They are small shrubs, seldom above 

 two feet high, much branched, &c." ( p. 50.) 



Willemetia africana Brong. (Ceanothus africanus Z,.) is not uncommon in 

 gardens, and is found wild in the eastern districts. — Phylica. " The foliage of 

 many species is exceedingly pretty ; especially those of the tribe of P. plumosa, 

 the flowers of which are subtended by long feathery bractea?, forming a 

 beautiful plume at the summit of the branches." — Virgilia capensis is a very 

 common tree throughout the colony. — Crotalaria arborescens, the Cape la- 

 burnum, is very common in gardens, but not indigenous, ilfelilotus is not a 

 Cape genus, though three or four species are weeds in and near cultivated 

 ground ; among these are M. arborea, said to grow 15 ft. high in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Constantinople, with stems nearly 3 in. in diameter. (See p. 300.) 

 — T'rifolium. The Cape species are few, and most of them plants of civilisation. 

 — Ficia sativa is perfectly naturalised. — iZubus. There are several wild species, 

 many of them equalling or surpassing in the flavour of their fruit the best 

 European species, always excepting the raspberry. — ifc/yrtus. " The discovery 

 of the plants of this genus in Africa is a most interesting fact in geographical 

 botany." — Oenothera. An almost exclusively American genus, but two species 

 are naturalised at the Cape. — Citrulhis, the water melon. Two species, 

 C. caffer, and C. amarus, are indigenous. — " Sempervivum africanum Mill., 

 a very doubtful plant, is the only Cape species enumerated. It is supposed 

 to be the same as S. arboreum, a native of southern Europe and North Africa, 

 and very common in gardens in this colony. All the other species are natives 

 of Europe, or of the Canary Isles, Madeira, &c." (p. 120.) 



Mesembryanthemum. An immense and truly beautiful genus of herbs or 

 shrubs, with succulent leaves, and flowers of every hue, often intensely and 

 dazzlingly brilliant. Almost all the species are South African, and Decan- 

 dolle enumerates 316, which, however, comes considerably short of the re- 

 puted number ; and our deserts probably still retain many more." The Celery 

 and Parsley are naturalised in cultivated ground, as is the Fennel, the Lovage, 

 and several other umbelliferous plants. — Hscum. There are several South 

 African species of Mistletoe, and five or six of Loranthus. The latter " forms 

 splendid draperies to the stunted acacias, with their large clusters of rich 

 crimson flowers, and bright yellow-green leaves. Growing, as they do, in a 

 wild and often parched country, few objects can be more refreshing or de- 

 lightful to the eye of a traveller." It were to be wished that some of 

 these species of Loranthus were introduced into British conservatories. 



Nab<?« Lehm. " This genus, named in honour of Mr. M'Nab, of the Edin- 

 burgh Botanic Garden, includes a single species, N. montana Lehm. a pretty 

 shrub, with the habit of Erica, or rather of the European genus Calluna 

 (heather or ling), with which it agrees in the dehiscence of the anthers." 



.Erica. Of this beautiful genus, between 300 and 400 species are described, 

 the majority of them natives of South Africa, where, strange to say, they have 

 no colonial name. All have very much the same general habit, being bushes 

 with linear verticillate leaves ; but they differ extremely in the shape and size 

 of their flowers ; some having large tubular corollas of the most brilliant 

 colours, others small insignificant bell-shaped ones. In the memoir of Klotsch 

 in the Linncea, vol. ix. p. 360., the species will be found described with great 

 minuteness, (p. 212.) 



