THE SOUTH AFRICAN GERBERAS. 



of the Humansdorp District of Cape Colony, but who is responsible 

 for its discovery is problematical. G. Lynchii is certainly one of the 

 gems of the dwarfer-growing species, and has much in common with 

 G. parva, but is easily distinguished from it by the elliptic more 

 coriaceous leaves, their dark glossy green upper and thickly white- 

 felted lower surfaces, the nude scapes, larger flower-heads, which 

 have, moreover, fine purphsh-pink radial florets. 



Fewer individuals have contributed more valuable data to con- 

 temporary hterature regarding Gerberas than Mr. Irwin Lynch, M.A., 

 Curator of the Cambridge Botanic Gardens, and it gives me great 

 pleasure to associate his name with this charming Httle novelty 

 (fig. 55). 



Gerbera natalensis, C. H. SchuUz in Flora, xxvii. 778 (1844) ; 

 Wood Illustr. Natal Plants, vi. t. 546 (1910) ; Walpers Rep. vi. 315 

 (1846). 



Syn. Gerbera viridifoHa, Harvey in Harv. & Sond. Fl. Cap. iii. 523 

 (1865), in part. 



Gerbera tuberosa, Klatt in Bull. Herb. Boiss. iv. 845 



(1896). 



Crown of the tuberous rootstock densely white-silky. Leaves two 

 to three, small, elHptic-oblong, acute, tapering at the base into a short 

 white-silky sheathing petiole, 2-2J inches long, J-y^^ i^^^ broad, 

 thinly coriaceous, light green and sparingly pilose above and below ; 

 margin entire and ciliate. Scapes invariably solitary or in pairs 

 (rarely in threes or fours), dwarf, 1-6 inches in length, cottony- 

 white, ebracteate. Flower-head |-i inch across, the involucre-scales 

 2-3-seriate, J- J inch long, sparingly pilose. Ray-florets twice 

 as long as the latter, erect or ascending-spreading, white within, 

 often pink without ; disc-florets yellow. Pappus dirty or creamy- 

 white. 



Distribution. Eastern Region. Natal ; Port Natal, Krauss, 452 1 

 near Port Natal, Sutherland ! Pietermaritzburg, 2000-3000 feet, 

 Sept.-Oct. 1858, Sutherland ! Inanda, 1800 feet, Feb., Wood, 203 ! 

 among young grass, Drakensberg, Polela, 5000-7000 feet, July 1895, 

 Evans, 515 ! Sydenham, 400-600 feet, Aug., Wood, 11697 ex Wood, 

 I.e. 



In stature G. natalensis approaches most closely to G. parva, but 

 is at once distinguished by its hairy facies and its peculiarity of 

 blooming when leafless, this often being accelerated by the effects of 

 bush-fires. Medley Wood remarks that it is among the earUest of 

 the flowers to appear in the spring, and is often in abundance 

 on hills from which the grass has been recently burned off. Except 

 in the more cuneate slightly sinuate-dentate and cihate leaves, the 

 I ray-florets which are purplish towards their tips, and the pale reddish 

 pappus, I can find no other differences to distinguish Klatt's plant 

 from G. natalensis. 



