870 ILLUSTRATIONS OF POLYCOTYLEDONY, 



Genus Persoonia " to the New Zealand Journal of Science, in 

 which he recorded the results of his examination of the embryos 

 of 23 out of a total of 61 known species, in the following manner. 



"Cotyledons in Species of Persoonia. — P. ferruginea, 2; P. con- 

 fertiflora, 2; P. elliptic*, 2; P. longifolia. 2; P Toro, 3, rarely 2 

 or 4; P. arborea, 3; P. dillwynoides, 3-4; P. nutans, 3-5; P. 

 Gunnii, 4; P. media, 4; P. lanceolata, 4-5; P. juniperina, 4-6, 

 rarely 3; P. linearis, 4-6; P. myrtilloides, 4-6; P. rigida, 5; P. 

 pinifolia, 5-6; P. falcata, 5-7; P. hirsuta, 5-8; P chamsepeuce, 6; 

 P. tenuifolia, 7; P. brachystylis, 7; P. quinquenervis, 7-8; P. 

 teretifolia, 7-8. Of the 61 well marked species of this genus 

 hitherto on record, I was thus able to examine 23 as regards 

 embryonic structure; but of P. brachystylis, P. elliptica, P. media, 

 P. Gunnii, P. rigida, and P. tenuifolia, only single fruits were 

 accessible to me. As out, of the above mentioned 23 species only 

 four proved dicotyledonar, it may be fairly assumed that, in the. 

 genus as a whole, the pluricotyledonar embryo by far prepon- 

 derates." {Op. cit. i. p. 11 6). 



In his "Key to the System of Victorian Plants"(i. Text,1887-8; 

 ii. Plates, 1885) the Baron mentions the number of cotyledons 

 observed in embryos of eight out of eleven Victorian species of 

 Persoonia (i. pp.275-277); and, in Plate 68B., he gives figures 

 illustrating the cotyledons of embryos of P. chamcepeuce, entire or 

 in transverse section. These figures, together with those in the 

 " Plants indigenous to the Colony of Victoria," already referred 

 to, and those given by Gartner, comprise all the published illus- 

 trations that 1 am able to find any record of. 



Of the species in the Baron's list six are restricted to West 

 Australia, two to Victoria, one to Tasmania, seven to New South 

 Wales, one to New Zealand; and the others are common to two 

 or more of the States. 



It does not seem possible to connect polycotyledoiry in any way, 

 either with geographical distribution or with the grouping of the 

 species adopted by Mr Bentham in the "Flora Australiensis," and 

 which presumabl} T represents natural groups of allied species. Of 

 the four species with dicotylous embryos in the Baron's list, 



