4:6 THE GENUS FUMAEIA IN BRITAIN 



taken. Considerable difficulty, however, has been found in the 

 treatment of its varying forms, especially the rampant ones and 

 those approaching F. Vaillantii Lois, and F. Schleicheri Soy-Vill., 

 which have been referred to F. Wirtgeni Koch. 



The diversity of form among these plants was noticed early in 

 the last century by Eeichenbach, in whose Icones Fl. Germ, a 

 variety scandens is depicted, as well as a glaucous plant with 

 officinalis -like fruit, which is figured and diagnosed as a distinct 

 species, F. media Lois. In 1828 Fries (Novit. Fl. Suec. p. 221) 

 made two varieties of this species — /? grandiflora and y tenuiflora ; 

 and in 1839 Walker-Arnott proposed three varietal names — 

 a grandiflora, /5 diffusa, and y vulgaris — in a paper read before 

 the Botanical Society of Edinburgh. A year later Babington took 

 up Eeichenbach's variety scandens as a British plant, describing 

 also as F. Gasparinii a Sicilian form that probably belongs to the 

 same species. 



In Parlatore's Monograph of the genus, p. 55 (1844), two 

 varieties of F. officinalis are created : — 



"/^ densiflora — Floribus magis dense racemosis et intensius 

 purpurascentibus, foliorum laciniis angustioribus." 



" y alhiflora — Floribus albis apice tantum purpureis." 



In the succeeding year, in Koch's Synopsis Fl. Germ. ed. 2, 

 p. 1017, a fresh set of varieties appears, viz. : — 



" a vulgaris — major, diffusa, petioli saepe cirrhiformes. F. 

 media plurimorum botanicorum. 



" ^ minor — herba intensius glauca, flores dimidio minores. 

 F. officinalis tenuiflora Fries. 



" y florihunda — herba rigidior, firmior, intense glauca, racemi 

 speciosi, flores saturatius purpurei ; pulchra planta." 



It is in this last work (p. 1018) also that F. Wirtgeni is 

 described as a new species, from specimens collected at Coblenz, 

 with a diagnosis: — '' Fructihus stthrotundis obtusis in apice ipso 

 breviter apiculatis tuberculato-rugulosis, sepalis ovato-lanceolatis 

 acuminato-cuspidatis dentatis corolla plus duplo brevioribus pedi- 

 cello latioribus, bracteis pedicello fructifero brevioribus, foliorum 

 laciniis lanceolatis. . . . Flores rosei. Dignoscitur habitu et 

 floribus F. officinalis et siliculis F. Vaillantii. Petioli saepe 

 cirrhiformes." 



Hammar in dealing with these plants adopts the varieties of 

 Koch, with the addition of a var. scandens, of which he says 

 " floribus suis parvis, albidis vel dilute roseis, fructibus magnis in 

 racemis erectis, strictis, foliorum lobis latis, obtusis mucrone in- 

 structis, et toto suo habitu est prae caeteris insignis varietas . . ." 

 Eeichenbach's figure of the variety scandens is identified with 

 var. a vulgaris, and that of F. media is quoted as illustrative of 

 the new var. scandens Hammar. A new species, F. tenuiflora 

 Fries Herb. 1826, is also introduced, based on a Leipzig plant 

 named F. acrocarpa by Peterman. Of this, F. Wirtgeni Koch is 

 quoted as a synonym. 



The later monographer, Haussknecht, bestowed considerable 

 attention on the living plants of this group, and after pointing out 



