145 



Hob. Prov. Musashi : Tokyo, Bot. Gard. Koishikawa, cult. (Herb. ! Sc. 

 Coll. Imp. Univ. Tokyo, Oct. 22, 1879 ; T. Makino ! 1890). 



Peperomia (Micropiper) japonica Makino sp. nov. 



Succulent perennial, quite green, attaning 10-33 cm. in height. Roots 

 fibrous, emitting from the base of stems, darkish. Stems tufted, erect, 

 succulent, terete, not angulate, jointed at nodes, loosely ramose above with 

 1, 2, or verticillate branches, or sometimes simple, subtilely pubescent with 

 minute short soft and erect hairs, light green, attaining 9 mm. across, 

 remaining during 3 years and then decaying; internodes longer or shorter 

 than leaves ; branches erect-patent or patulous, terete, simple, jointed to 

 the stem. Leaves 3-6 or sometimes 9-vertieillate, patent, petiolate, ovate, 

 subrhombeo-obovate, or subrhombeo-obovate-elliptical, rounded-obtuse at apex, 

 obtuse or cuneato- obtuse at the base, entire, succulent, but membranaceous 

 and very minutely grittering nigro- punctate under lens in dried state, plane 

 on both surface, shining and subtilely pubescent and ciliated with very 

 minute and erect hairs, green above, paler beneath, |-4| cm. long, |-3J cm. 

 broad, 5-nerved, but both outermost ones very weak, the nerves hardly 

 visible superficially ; petiole shorter than the blade, subterete, more or less 

 flat in front, subtilely pubescent, 2-18 mm. long. Spikes erect or ascending, 

 simple, terminal and axillary, untqual in length, shortly pedunculate, 

 3-11 cm. long, 1J-2J mm. across ; rachis fleshy, slenderly terete, glabrous, 

 but subtilely pubescent in the peduncle, light green, minutely nigro-punctate 

 under lens when dried, slightly foveolate in the inserted place of flowers. 

 Flowers minute, achlamydeous, numerous, sparsely disposed, sessile. Bract- 

 scales minute, closely placed under each flower, thick, peltate, oval at the 

 face, glabrous, light green, minutely nigro-punctate under lens when dried, 

 persistent. Stamens 2, hypogynous, lateral, patent; filament filiform-cylin- 

 drical, longer than the anther, white; anther oval, dorsifixed, extrorse, 2-celled, 

 with white pollen. Ovary 1, ascending, obovoid-globose, sessile, glabrous ; 

 stigma terminal, sessile, pauci-penicillate ; ovule solitary. Berries nearly 

 dried, minute, obovoid-globose, minutely granulato-papillose or granulato- 

 punctate, lesser than 1 mm. in length, accompanied by the bract-scale 

 below. Seed solitary, globose; albumen copious, white and farinaceous. Fl. 

 June-May. 



Peperomia portulacoides Makino in Bot. Mag., Tokyo, I. p. 189, tab. 

 21 ; Id. Illustr. FL Jap. I. n. 2, p. 2, tab. 10, 11, non A. Dietr. 



