Pimelea.] 
LXVIl. THYMELE/E. 
243 
in. long, white, odorous. Stamens and style exserted. Nut crustaceous, en- 
closed in the base of the perianth. 
Northern Island : common, Banlcs and Solander, etc. ; and northern parts of the 
middle Island : Nelson mountains, ascending to 2000 ft., Travers. 
2. P. Gnidia, Forst. ; — FI. N. Z. i. 221. A short, erect, robust, gla- 
brous (or nearly so) species, 1-5 ft. high; branches very stout ; bark pale or 
dark, always glabrous. Leaves crowded, very coriaceous, shining above, pe- 
tioled, i-f- in. long, oblong or oblong-lanceolate, acute or obtuse, almost or 
quite keeled, veinless ; floral not very different. Flowers in. long, silky 
and villous. — Passerina Gnidia, Forst. ; Cookia Gnidia, Gmel. 
Northern Island : thickets near the top of the Euahine range, Colenso. Middle 
Island: Dusky Bay, Forster, Menzies ; South Island, Lyall (leaves longer, nearly' flat). 
The var. 0. Menziesii , of FI. N. Z., is, I now believe, the true P. Gnidia , Forst., distin- 
guished from P. buxifolia, which is confounded with it in that Flora, hy the perfectly 
glabrous branches, and floral leaves not much differing from the cauline. 
3. P. Traversii, Hook, f, n. sp. A short, very robust, glabrous, 
alpine, usually erect species, 4-24 in. high, densely branched ; branches very 
stout, often tortuous, always glabrous, tubercled with close-set scars at the 
insertion of fallen leaves. Leaves densely 4-fariously imbricate, very coriace- 
ous, sessile, g— £ in. long, obovate oblong or almost orbicular, quite glabrous, 
obtuse, nerveless, midrib often obscure, yellowish when dry ; floral large 
(sometimes 4 times as large), broader, often edged with purple, often verdigris- 
green when dry. Flowers very silky, £ in. long, white. 
Middle Island: Macrae’s Run, Murtro ; Hurumui and Wai-au-au mountains, Travers; 
Southern Alps, in various places, alt. 2-4000 ft., Sinclair and Haast ; Otago, tVaitaki valley, 
Hector and Buchanan. One of the most distinct species, though sometimes prostrate, and 
sometimes having a few hairs on the branches, when it approaches forms of P. prostrata. 
4. P. virgata, Vuld ; — Fl.N. Z. i. 220. A small, erect, dense shrub, 
1-2 ft. high. Branches slender, strict, silky. Leaves spreading, not imbri- 
cate, ijr-1 in. long, linear- or oblong-lanceolate, obtuse acute or acuminate, 
glabrous or pilose or glabrous above and silky below ; floral similar. Flowers 
small, about 8-10 in a head, ^ in. long, silky ; tube swelling below; lobes 
broad, obtuse. Nut obovate, enclosed in the dry or baccate base of the pe- 
rianth, brittle. — P.pilosa, Vahl; Passerina pilosa, Forst. Prodr.; P. axillaris, 
Thunb. ; Banksia tomentosa, Forst. Gen. 
Abundant throughout the islands. Banks and Sc lander, etc. I think this passes into 
P. prostrata. 
5. P. buxifolia. Hook. /., n. sp. A small, stout, erect, rigid shrub, 
1-5 ft. high, much branched ; branches very stout, hirsute with short grey 
hairs ; bark black, minutely verrucose. Leaves close-set, 4-fariously imbri- 
cate, very coriaceous, £ in. long, oblong-ovate, keeled, acute or obtuse, lateral 
nerves conspicuous when dry ; floral half as large again and broader than the 
cauline, often green when dry. Flowers | in. long, densely silky. 
Northern Island, Bieffenbach ; base of Tongariro and top of Euahine range, Colenso. 
Very similar in habit to Veronica buxifolia. Closely allied to P. Gnidia, hut the hairy 
branches and larger floral leaves at once distinguish it. The evident lateral nerves on the 
leaf are a good character. I have a small specimen from Colenso (stony hanks, Ahuriri), 
which has the foliage of this, hut habit of B. prostrata. . . 
R 2 
