362 XXXIX. COMPOSITAE. {SoncJius 



Species, about 28, ohiefly distributed through the temperate regions of the Northern Hemi- 

 ' sphere. S. asper has become cosmopolitan, although jt must be considered indigenous in Australia 

 and New Zealand. S. grandifolius is endemic in the Chatham Islands. 



* Annual. 

 Auricles rounded. Aohenes longitudinally ribbed . . . . . . . . 1. S. asper. 



Auricles acute. Acheues longitudinally ribbed and transversely rugose . . * S. oleraceus. 



** Perennial. Bootstoch stoloniferous. 

 Leaves 6in.-8in. long, runcinate. Heads glandular, yellow .. .. .. * S. arvensis. 



Leaves lft.-2ft. long. Heads purple, cottony . . . . . . . . 2. S. grandifolius. 



1. S. asper, Hill, Herb. Britt. 147. Leaves entire or pinnatifid or 

 runcinate-pinnatifid, broadly oblongs waved or crisped, spinous-toothed ; lower 

 narrowed into winged petioles ; upper amplexicaul, auricles rounded, toothed or 

 spinous. Heads subumbellate ; involucral bracts acute, glabrous. Achenes 

 ribbed, but not transversely wrinkled. — /S. oleraceus, L., Gr. "Forst., Prod. n. 

 282; A. Rich., FI. N.Z. 230; A. Cunn., Precurs. n. 431. S. oleraceus P, 

 Hook, f., Handbk. 166. 



Common throughout the colony. STEWART Island; CHATHAM Islands. Sow-thistle. 

 Bauroroa. Deo. to March. 



The extreme states of S. asper and S. oleraceus appear widely different, but intermediate 

 forms have been developed by intercrossing, and are often difficult to determine. S. asper is 

 certainly the plant collected by Banks and Solander, as is proved by the fruits of their specimens; 



Var. littoralis, T. Kirk in Trans. N.Z.I, xxvi. (1893) 265. Biennial or perennial. Root stout.' 

 Stems Ift.-ljft. high, robust, sparingly branched. Radical leaves rosulate, 4in.-7in. long, closely 

 appressed to the ground, ovate-oblong, somewhat fleshy, obtuse, often waved, finely or coarsely 

 toothed ; cauline leaves few, acute, amplexioaul, auricles rounded or subacute. Outer involucral 

 bracts acute ; inner obtuse. Aohenes glabrous, 3-5-ribbed. 



On maritime cliffs from Auckland to STEWART Island, but often local ; rarely abundant. 



This appears very different from the type, but, as the fruits are similar, it does not seem 

 advisable to give it specific rank. 



* S. oleraceus, L., Sp. PL 794. Erect, glabrous, branched, 1ft. -3ft. high or 

 more. Leaves undivided or pinnatifid, sharply toothed, the terminal lobe broadest ; 

 lower narrowed into winged petioles ; upper often entire, half-amplexicaul, auricles 

 spreading, arrow-shaped. Heads fin.-lin. in diameter, subumbellate, often cottony 

 at base ; involucral bracts imbricating, often with a few glandular hairs, but usually 

 glabrous. Achenes flat, longitudinally ribbed and transversely rugose. — S. oleraceus a, 

 Hook, f., Handbk. 166. 



Naturalised in cultivated ground throughout the colony. STEWART Island; CHATHAM 

 Islands. Sow-thistle. Puroha. Pororua. Bauriki. Taweke. Wekeweke. Nov. to March. 

 Europe. 



*-S. arvensis, L., Sp. PL 893. Stoloniferous. Stems 2ft.-4ft. high, hollow, 

 stout, angular, simple or sparingly branched, leafy. Leaves variable, spreading, 

 lanceolate, sharply toothed, runcinate ; margins waved, almost spinous ; upper 

 amplexicaul, auricles obtuse ; uppermost entire. Heads subcorymbose, glandular- 

 hispid, lin.-2in. in diameter. Achenes ribbed and transversely wrinkled. 



NORTH Island : Auckland : naturalised, 1865, T. K. Soio-thistle. Europe. 



2. S. grandifolius, T. Kirk in Trans. N.Z.I, xxvi. (1893) 266. Rhi- 

 zomes stout, fleshy, rarely tuberous, sometimes 2^in. in diameter. Stem succu- 

 lent, 2ft.-4ft. high. Radical leaves erect, lft.-2ft. long, lin.-7in. broad; petiole 



