112 AMARYLLIDACEAE. 1. Hypoxis. 



Family 30 — AMARYLLIDACEAE. 



Differs from Liliaceae chiefly in the ovary, which is inferior ; anthers opening inwards 

 and usually versatile ; capsule loculicidal. Perennial herbs, with mostly radical leaves. 



Flowers solitary, tubeless Hypoxis 1. 



Flowers in a terminal umbel, with tubes. 



Flowers large, without corona Crinum 2. 



Flowers small, the filaments united in a corona Calostemma 3. 



1. HYPOXIS, L. 



(Greek hypoxys, somewhat acid, but said to have been applied by Linnaeus in the 

 sense of " acute beneath," because the capsule is contracted at the base.) 



Perianth persistant, divided to the inferior ovary into 6 spreading segments ; stamens 

 6 ; ovary 3-celled, with many ovules in each cell ; style short, with 3 erect linear stigmas. 

 Small herbs with radical leaves and bulbous rootstocks covered by fibres. The segments 

 and stamens are sometimes 4, and the cells and stigmas 2. Star-grass. 



Stamens subequal ; bract 1 large H. glabella 1. 



Stamens unequal ; bracts 2, small H. pusilla 2. 



1. H. glabella, R. Br. Glabrous herb ; leaves linear, sometimes longer than the scape, 

 which is 6-25 cm. long, with a long sheathing bract about the middle ; flowers terminal 

 and solitary ; perianth-segments 10-18 mm. long, green below and bright-yellow above ; 

 capsule ovoid. 



Southern districts ; South-East. Aug. -Oct. 



2. H. pusilla, Hook. f. Like the preceding, but not so tall, and the flowers smaller; 

 bracts 2, bristle-like, and the scapes often forked and bearing 2 flowers ; 3 stamens usually 

 shorter than the others. 



Southern districts ; Murray lands ; Eyre Peninsula. Aug. -Dec. Our form has not 

 the very small flowers or the globular capsule of the eastern type. 



2. CRINUM, L. 



(Greek Jcrinon, a lily.) 



1. C. pedunculatum, R. Br. Murray Lily. Leaves long, radical, flat ; scape about 

 50 cm. high ; flowers white, fragrant, 5-15 in a terminal umbel, on pedicels of 2-4 cm. long, 

 surrounded by a few large membranous bracts ; perianth deciduous, of 6 lanceolate 

 spreading lobes, 5-7 cm. long, with a slender tube of about the same length ; stamens 6, 

 affixed at the base of the lobes ; ovary 3-celled, with several ovules in each cell ; style 

 long, filiform ; capsule ovoid, shortly beaked. — C. flaccidum, Herb. 



Near River Murray ; Flinders Range ; Far North. Dec.-Apl. 



3. CALOSTEMMA, R. Br. 



(Greek kalos, beautiful ; stemma, crown : alluding to the inner crown (corona) of 



the perianth.) 

 Perianth deciduous, with a short slender tube and a funnel-shaped deeply 6-lobed 

 limb ; stamens 6, inserted at the summit of the tube, the filaments winged and the wings 

 united so as to form a tubular toothed corona ; ovary 1 -celled, with 2-3 ovules ; style 

 filiform ; fruit globular, succulent, usually 1 -seeded. Bulbous herbs, with radical leaves ; 

 flowers in an umbel surrounded by 2 or 3 membranous bracts. 



Flowers purple C. purpureum 1. 



Flowers yellow C. luteum 2. 



1. C. purpureum, R. Br. Leaves linear, developing to some length after the flowering ; 

 scape slender, 20-50 cm. high ; flowers numerous in the umbel, usually purple, sometimes 

 pink, on rather long pedicels, the whole perianth 15-18 mm. long, of which the tube occupies 

 rather less than half. 



Southern districts to Flinders Range. Jan.-Apl. 



2. C. luteum, Sims. Scarcely differs from the preceding, except that the flowers are 

 yellow and rather larger. 



Northern part of Flinders Range to Oodnadatta and Cooper's Creek. Jan.-Apl. 



Family 31.— IRIDACEAE. 



This family has the inferior ovary and the 6 petal-like segments of Amaryllidaceae, but 

 the stamens are only 3, opposite the outer perianth-segments, and the cells of the erect 

 anthers open outwards ; style 1, with 3 branches, sometimes broad and petal-like ; ovary 

 3-celled with several or numerous anatropous ovules in each cell. Perennial herbs, with 

 leaves either radical or arranged in 2 rows and equitant ; flowers within a spathe con- 

 sisting of 2 bracts or valves. 



