'T. Krax.—Ón the Punui of Stewart Island, 298 
some particular gravel bed or some condition of soil or moisture. In some 
places it is restricted to a strip a few yards wide, but extending lengthwise, 
following the same level round the little elevations of the plain. It grows 
in some places very luxuriantly ; fronds 6-8 inches high. 
L. trichomanoides occurs in the Longwood Ranges, but is very rare. I 
have only seen one specimen—brought in by a surveyor, who took it for a 
maiden-hair fern. 
Geranium, sp. 
A Geranium with pure azure blue flowers occurs on the hill of the New 
River Heads. I cannot distinguish this species in other respects from G. 
molle, Linn., except that it has much heavier foliage. I have sent specimens 
to Mr. Kirk, but have not yet received his reply. 
Art. XXXVI.—On the Punui of Stewart Island, Aralia lyallii, n. s. 
Krr, F.L.8. 
[Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, 9th July, 1884.] 
Plate XVII. 
Tur Punui, one of the most striking plants in the New Zealand flora, was 
discovered by Dr. Lyall in 1848, and referred by Dr. Hooker* to Aralia 
polaris, Homb. and Jaeq., discovered by those botanists on the Auckland 
Islands in 1889. Subsequently Dr. Hooker's suggestion that Aralia polaris 
might form a new genus to be termed Stilbocarpa was carried out by 
Decaisne and Planehon, and in the Handbook of the New Zealand Flora 
published in 1864, the Auckland and Stewart Island plants are included 
under the description of Stilbocarpa polaris, Deen. & Plan., the author 
stating that Lyall’s plant wants the long bristles which are so characteristic 
of the Auckland Island plant, and might belong to another speciest. 
For the sake of conciseness, in the following paragraphs the native 
name punui will be restricted to the Stewart Island plant; the generic 
name Stilbocarpa to that from the Auckland Islands, 
Until recently so little has been known of the flora of Stewart Island 
that, notwithstanding the botanical interest attached to such a remarkable 
plant as the punni the material for determining its precise relationship to 
Stilbocarpa has not been available: no specimens were to be found in our 
Herbaria, no plants in our botanic gardens. In 1878 a fine living specimen 
* Fl. N.Z. i, p. 95. + Handbook N.Z. Flora, p. 100, 
