1953] 



PLANTS COLLECTED IN NYASALAND 



241 



Mr. Brass* specimens are referable to the var. vulgaris Benth. f. burmanniana 

 (DC.) Radlk., as defined by Radlkofer, Pflanzenreich 98g (4"»): 1368 (1933). 



MELIANTHACEAE 21 



Bersama abyssinica Fresen. Mus. Senckenb. 2: 281. pi. 17. 1837; subsp. abys- 

 sinica; Verdcourt, Kew Bull. 1950: 237. 1950. 

 Bersama holstii Gurke, Bot. Jahrb. 19 Beibl. 47: 36. 1894. 



Zomba District: Zomba Plateau, on river-banks in rain-forest, one example 

 seen, tree 5 m. high, flowers not seen, fruit purple-red, 1450 m., June 3, 1946, 

 16173*. Kota-kota District: Nchisi Mountain, on rain-forest borders, tree 10 m. 

 high, flowers white, 1600 m., Sept. 10, 1946, Anthony 17613. Cholo District: 

 Cholo Mountain, occasional in rain-forest secondary growths, tree 5-6 m. high, 

 sparsely branched, leaves up to 50 cm. long, flowers cream-coloured, 1200 m., 

 Sept. 25, 1946, 27797. 



Verdcourt, Kew Bull. 1950: 239 (1950), has the following notes on the above 

 specimens: 



(i) Form close to B. holstii Gurke — see Kenya (i). Leaves 7-jugate, sessile, 

 with petiolules 2-3 mm. long. Flowers small. Calyx brownish with less hair than 

 other forms. Brass 17797 (Nyasaland). 



(ii) Forms rather similar to typical abyssinica but with leaves of very various 

 sizes. Anthony 17613, Brass 16173 (Nyasaland). There is incomplete material 

 from Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia which belongs here in all probability. 



Bersama abyssinica Fresen. subsp. paullinioides (Planch.) Verdcourt, Kew Bull. 

 1950: 237. 1950. 



Natalia paullinioides Planch, in Hook. Fl. Niger 252. 1849. 

 Bersama nyassae Bak. f. Jour. Bot. 45: 19. 1907. 



Zomba District: Zomba Plateau, in exposed rocky situations, tree 6-7 m. high, 

 fruits unripe, seeds red, 1500 m., June 2, 1946, 16163. 



B. zombensis Dunkley is said to be a very large timber tree, it has leaflets 

 with golden hairs, but is very close to the above and may be a growth stage of it. 



Bersama sp. 



Leaves and inflorescences too young. 



Kota-kota District: Nchisi Mountain, frequent in brushy forest, tree or shrub 

 2-4 m. high, young leaves bronze-green, buds only, fruit strongly ridged, brown, 

 pubescent, seeds red, 1400 m., July 30, 1946, 17032. 



ANACARDIACEAE" 



Rhus longipes Engl, in DC. Monogr. Phan. 4: 431. 1883; Hiern, Cat. Welw. Afr. 

 PI. 1: 192. 1896. Engl. Pflanzenw. Afr. 3 a : 212. 1921. 

 \_Rhus villosa (non L.f.) Oliv. Fl. Trop. Afr. 1: 439. 1868, pro parte; et auct. mult.] 

 Rhus huillensis Engl. Bot. Jahrb. 24: 501. 1898, pro parte; Exell, Jour. Bot. 66 



suppl. 1: 92. 1928, pro parte. 

 Rhus ruzizensis Engl. Pflanzenw. Afr. 3 a : 211. 1921. 



North Nyasa District: Nyika Plateau, common in edges of juniper forest, tree 

 or shrub to 6 m. high, flowers green, fruit immature, red, 2350 m., Aug. 11, 1946, 

 17178. Widely spread through tropical Africa from Angola and S. Rhodesia to 

 Kenya, though apparently absent from Abyssinia, Sudan, and N. W. tropical area. 



"Determinations all by Mr. B. Verdcourt, East African Agricultural and Forestry Re- 

 search Organisation, Nairobi, Kenya. 



22 Rhus, Heeria by R. D. Meikle, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 



