144 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



variable extent of their margin, sometimes even to the summit. In 

 Fragosa, the leaves are numerous on the short erect aerial stems, 

 imbricate, often narrow, linear. The inflorescences are terminal 

 umbels, with pedicels frequently short. In Apleura, which appears 

 to us to be also a section of the same genus, the inflorescence is 

 reduced to one terminal flower, and the pericarp has a hard interior 

 layer, representing a kind of putamen. Natives of Western and 

 Southern America, chiefly the region of the Andes, of Australia and 

 New Zealand, these plants are almost all perennial, sometimes woody 

 at the base ; they not unfrequently have scarious stipules or scaly 

 hairs at the base.' The habit is sometimes peculiar.^ Laretia, a 

 csespitose herb of Chili, closely resembUng some species of Azorella, 

 has flowers in simple terminal umbels with very short pedicels, and 

 fruit, larger than that of Azorella, with broad flattened or concave 



mericarps thinned like wings at the sides. 

 The undivided carpophore unites them 

 only at the median line, and the lateral 

 ridges correspond to the margins. The 

 back bears the three ridges, median and 

 dorso-lateral. Laretia is in some respects 

 intermediate between Azorella and Muli- 

 num, which has given name to a tribe 

 (^Mulinece). The flowers of Mulinum have 

 well developed pointed sepals, entire petals 

 and elongate styles dilated interiorly to 

 conical stylopods. In the fruit the back 

 of the mericarps is quite concave, forming 

 a re-entrant dihedral angle ; and as the connexion of the mericarps 

 is linear, the transverse section of the fruit (fig. 167) is in the form 

 of a St. Andrew's cross. Mulinum comprises humble plants from 



sj)inosujn. 



Fig. 167. Trans, sect, of 

 carpel (|). 



' Although generally referred to another 

 division of this group, the genus Klotsehia 

 appears to us very closely allied to Azorella and 

 at the same time to Hydroeotyle such as Micro- 

 pleura of which it has the inflorescence. It has 

 the peltate leaves of certain American species 

 of Btjdrocotyle, triangular or lobed, or oval, 

 denticulate. The inflorescence has one her- 

 maphrodite flower in the centre and around it 

 younger flowers, male or likewise hermaphro- 



dite. The petals are narrow, carinate, and the 

 conical stylopods are continuous with the base 

 of the stylary branches. The fruit is similar 

 to that of Azorella in which the mericarps are 

 more compressed parallel than perpendicular 

 to the partition. The primary ridges only are 

 salient little developed, and may have a thin 

 vitta in their interior. Klotzsehin consists of 

 herbs from tropical Brazil. 

 ^ Resembling mosses, lichens, &c. 



