Plate 46. 

 MASSONIA LATIFOLIA. 



Cape Province, Little Namaqualand. 



Liliaceae. Tribe Allieae. 

 Massonia, Thurib. ; Benth. et Hook.f. Gen. Plant, vol. iii. p. 806. 



Massonia latifolia, Linn. fit. Suppl. 193; PI. Cap. vol. vi. p. 416. 



All the species of Massonia, an endemic Cape genus of the 

 Liliaceae, have fragrant hyacinthoid flowers, arising in a sessile 

 cluster from between two broad prostrate leaves. The name 

 was given to the genus by Carl Thunberg to commemorate 

 the name of Francis Masson, who was sent to the Cape in 

 1772 as collector for the Royal Gardens at Kew, and who 

 was responsible for introducing a large number of Cape plants 

 into cultivation. The first 20 volumes of Curtis's Botanical 

 Magazine, which contain 786 plates, have nearly one-third 

 devoted to figures of Cape species, mostly sent to Kew 

 Gardens by Masson. 



The genus Massonia is very imperfectly known, as about 24 

 out of the 33 species described in the " Flora Capensis " have 

 never been collected within the last 50 years, or are only 

 known from figures in botanical publications. It is, there- 

 fore, with some pleasure that we publish our first plate repre- 

 senting a species of the genus, collected by Mrs. E. Eood, of 

 Van Rhynsdorp, in the hope that it may stimulate others to 

 forward specimens to the Division of Botany, Pretoria, for 

 illustration in future numbers of this work. 



This particular species was figured by Jacquin in 1803. 

 Specimens are preserved in the National Herbarium, Pre- 

 toria (Herb. No. 1450). 



Description : — Bulb 3*5 cm. long, 3 cm. broad, ovoid- 

 ellipsoid, with brown membranous tunics. Leaves 2, lying 

 flat on the ground, somewhat fleshy, 12 cm. long, 14*5 cm. 

 broad, somewhat orbicular, narrowed and channelled at the 

 base, glabrous. Inflorescence an abbreviated raceme. Bracts 

 3-5 cm. long, 1 cm. broad, lanceolate, acuminate, acute, about 



