— 165 — 



Koh Kahdat, sandy seashore (No. 572 a). 



Area: Madagascar and both coasts of tropical Africa (acc. to Bot. Maga- 

 zine), The Concans, coasts of India, Ceylon, Malay Peninsula, Msflay and Pacific 

 Islands, North Australia. Commonly cultivated in the Tropics of the Eastern 

 Hemisphere. 



Note. The T. viridis Hemsley (Hook, f., Icônes Pl., 2515 — 16, 

 1897) is nearly allied to the above species, and by the scarce material 

 a distinction between these two species is hardly possible. 



2. T. lancifolia Zoll. & Mor., in Moritzi, System. Verzeichniss der 

 von H.Zollinger in den Jahren 1842 — 44 auf Java gesammelten Pflanzen, 

 etc., Solothurn 1845 — 46, p. 91; T. integrifolia Schnitzlein, Iconographia, 

 vol.1, 1843-46, pi. 58, figs. 1, 7-15, non Ker.-Gawl.; T. laevis Wallich 

 herb., non Roxb. 



— — var. breviscapa nov. var. 



Rhizoma subterranea erecta, brevis; petiola foliorum laevia, 

 infra in vaginas dilatata, 10(8 — 12) cm. longa; folia lanceolata vel 

 elliptici-lanceolata , longe acuminata, 20(15 — 30) cm. longa, 5 

 (3 — 7) cm. lata, lævia, petiolo subduplo breviora; scapus 

 floriferus petiolis duplo vel triplo brevior, 5 — 10 cm. 

 longus, lævis; involucri folia 4, ovato-lanceolata, acuminata, sub- 

 æqualia, exteriora 2 — 2,5 cm. longa, 0,7— 0,8 cm. lata, 9 — 10-nervata; 

 flores 3 — 5 in umbrella, petiolis brevibus (c. 1,0 cm. in statu fructifero) ; 

 cirri longi numerosi; perianthium, stamina et stylus fere ut in T. 

 lancifolia (Schnitzleiri, 1. c); fructus (submaturus) sicco-baccatus, 

 2 cm. longus, perianthio persistenti coronatus, 6-alatus; semina 

 numerosissima, oblique ovata, curvata, striata, 0,25 — 0,30 cm. longa, 

 0,15 cm. lata. 



Dr. Schmidt has brought home 4 dried specimens and some um- 

 bels in alcohol of a Tacca which is allied to T. lancifolia Zoll. & Mor. 

 in Java, but differs by the shorter stalked leaves, the very short scape 

 etc.; the umbels preserved in alcohol and the three dried specimens 

 have not full-developed flowers, only young buds; but there is one 

 specimen with nearly ripe fruit. The form of the leaves and of the 

 involucral leaves are about as in a Javanese specimen of T. lancifolia, 

 and consequently I think it better to consider the Siamese plant a variety, 

 until we know the entire-leaved species of Tacca better. It seems to me, 

 that they form a line from T. cristata Jack, T. integrifolia Ker. Gawl., 

 T. laevis Roxb. to T. lancifolia Zoll. & Mor., the length of the scape 

 and the differentation of the involucral leaves varying very much; therefore 

 other characters are necessary for distinction. 



The Indian plant figured by Schnitzlein (1. c.) from a specimen 

 sent by Wallich belongs beyond doubt to T. lancifolia; I have also 

 seen a specimen from Wallich's herbarium which is like javanese T. lanci- 

 folia, only being a little larger. 



Jungle near Klong Son, end of February (No. 641). 

 Area (of P. lancifolia)-. Java, India (Wallich). 



