Cheeseman. — Revision of the N.Z. Species of Carex. 415 



For the original discovery of Carex in New Zealand, we are indebted to 

 the labours of Banks and Solander, during Cook's first voyage. Eleven 

 species are included in their collections, now preserved in the British 

 Museum. Most of these were named and fully described in manuscript by 

 Dr. Solander, but were never actually published. Several of the same 

 species were gathered by Forster, in Cook's second voyage ; by D'Urville 

 and Lesson, in the two French exploring expeditions that visited New Zea- 

 land in 1822 and 1827; and during the several visits of Allan and Bichard 

 Cunningham, from 1826 to 1838 ; but no fresh forms appear to have been 

 discovered. From time to time descriptions of these were published by 

 European botanists, who were not always cognizant of each other's work, 

 so that in some cases the same plant received several names. About 1836 

 Mr. Colenso commenced his well-known botanical explorations. His collec- 

 tions were forwarded periodically to Kew, .and seem to have included spe- 

 cimens of all Banks' and Solander's species, as well as eight additional 

 ones, mostly from the previously unexplored central districts of the North 

 Island. Some of his discoveries were collected, a little later, by Dr. 

 Sinclair, M. Baoul, and others, with one or two fresh ones. In 1853 Sir 

 Joseph Hooker published the first volume of his " Flora Nova3 Zealandis." 

 This contains an excellent synopsis, from the pen of the late Dr. Boott, of 

 the 22 species then known to inhabit New Zealand. Twelve or thirteen of 

 these were published for the first time, some four or five under the manu- 

 script names previously applied by Dr. Solander. During the ten years 

 following the publication of the "Flora" little attention was paid to the 

 Carices, so that Sir Joseph Hooker records only three additional species in 

 the " Handbook of the New Zealand Flora," issued in 1864. His arrange- 

 ment is mainly that of Dr. Boott, but few changes being made. O. secta 

 was merged with C. virgata ; C. solandri was considered to be identical with 

 the Norfolk Island C. neesiana ; and C. fascicularis and C. forsteri were 

 united. This is the last attempt to give a collected arrangement of the 

 whole of the New Zealand species. 



But although no systematic sketch of the genus has appeared since the 

 publication of the " Handbook," numerous additions have been made to the 

 list of species. Dr. Berggren, who specially attended to the genus during 

 his travels in New Zealand, has described and figured five new ones in the 

 " Minneskrift" of the University of Lund for 1878. His descriptions have 

 been lately reproduced in the " New Zealand Journal of Science," but it is 

 a matter for regret that the excellent plates are not generally accessible in 

 the colony. The Otago species have been most carefully and assiduously 

 collected by Mr. Petrie, who has described the new ones, eight in number, 

 jn various communications to the New Zealand Institute. His C. goyeni is 



