C—l 2.

At first sight easily confounded with R. cissoides A. Cunn. var. pauperatus, and frequently a companion plant, but distinguished by its prickly stems, those of the last named being unarmed, reddish, not yellowish, prickles, and smaller panicles. Bushes in the open produce flowers, whereas those of R. cissoides var. pauperatus seldom or never do so. (vii.) Epilobium neterioides A. Cunn., var. minimum (T. Kirk), comb. nov. — E. nummularifolium var. minimum, T. Kirk in " Students' Flora," p. 174. This very distinct plant is only known from the south coast of the South Island and Stewart Island. It might well be considered a species. (viii.) Gunnera albocarpa Cockayne, comb. nov.— Gunnera, m,onoica Raoul, var. albocarpa T. Kirk in Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. xxvii, p. 344, 1895. South Island : West coast, common ; Southland. Stewart Island : Common. This is a very well-marked species, and distinguished at once by the small globose white fruits tipped with the black calyx-lobes. It grows frequently on wet banks dripping with water. (ix.) Nothopanax parvum (Kirk) Cockayne, comb. nov. — Panax simplex Forst. f., var. parvum T. Kirk in " Students' Flora," p. 217, 1899. North Island : Waimarino Forest. South Island: West coast. Stewart Island : Yellow-pine association. Nowhere abundant. Differs from Nothopanax simplex (Forst. f.) Seem., in its more shrubby habit, much smaller leaves, and few-flowered umbels. The leaves are narrow, oblong to ovate, and from 2-5 cm. long. I have not noted a cut-leaved juvenile form, but ternate leaves are frequent as reversion-shoots. (x.) Azorella Cockaynei, Diels in Rep. Nov. sp., Regni veg., vol. vi 3/8, p. 96, 1908. Very small creeping herb, rooting at the nodes and emitting stolons, completely glabrous, perhaps an annual. Leaves simple, in small tufts ; petiole 1-1-5 cm. long, blade 2-4 mm. in diameter, ovateelliptic or suborbicular, simple, entire, fleshy-coriaceous, obtuse or slightly emarginate ; margins not recurved. Cauline leaves opposite; petioles shorter. Stipules triangular-ovate, about 1-5 mm. long. Involucral leaves concave ovate, unequal. Umbels 3-4-flowered ; pedicels stout, about 1 mm. long. Calyx after flowering pentagono-campanulate ; teeth short, broadly triangular ; petals minute, boat-shaped, about 0-8 mm. long, deciduous. Stewart Island : Mason's Bay, on salt-meadows, with young fruits, 30th January, 1907 ; R. M. Laing and L. Cockayne. This species is nearest to A. exigua Benth. and Hook., but differs in the habit, in the absence of a stout rhizome, and by the quite entire leaves not lobed or crenate, the blade much smaller and in some minor details of the inflorescence. It is a form with a juvenile habit of leaf, but which flowers.* (xi.) Dracophyllum politum (Cheesem.) Cockayne, comb. nov. — D. rosmarinifolium R. Br. var. politum Cheesem. in Manual of New Zealand Flora, p. 427, 1906. South Island : Mount Maungatua (Manual of New Zealand Flora). Stewart Island : Extremely abundant from almost sea-level to summits of mountains. A somewhat full account of this remarkable plant has been already given in Part II (3). As growing on the open meadow there is a stout hard woody stem about 7 mm. in diameter, which branches into very short branches, which, again branching several times, finally give off numerous short stems furnished with densely imbricating leaves which are about 8 mm. long, green with orange apex, erect, stout, horny, extremely hard and stiff, convex on the upper, concave on the under surface, their apices obtuse, rounded, or almost truncate, and the base sheathing and more than half the length of the lamina. In sheltered situations long trailing shoots are given off, the main stem 23 cm. long, densely leafy, and with short lateral shoots, which bend upwards. The leaves are frequently much longer than those described above, and may taper to a long-drawn-out point. The flowers are solitary, terminal, do not project beyond the leaves which quite enclose them ; sepals acute, ciliated, rather longer than cerolla-tube. By Kirk this plant was referred to D. muscoides Hook, f., but it differs in the longer and blunter leaves and general habit. It is also related to D. prostratum. So far as all three " species " are concerned, it seems to me that they are much in need of revision with the aid of abundant living material. It may eventually be shown, when the variability according to environment is properly investigated, that all three are one and the same. ■ On the other hand, I hold the typical D. rosmarinifolium (Forst. f.) R. Br., or the plant New Zealand botanists have referred to that species, as altogether distinct. (xii.) Myosotis albida (T. Kirk) Cheesm., comb. nov. — M. capitata Hook. f. var. albiflora, J. B. Armstg. in Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. xiii, p. 340; M. capitata subsp. albida T. Kirk in Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. xvii, p. 224. South Island : Eastern, Western, and especially Southern Otago. Stewart Island : abundant, and also on the Solanders. Subantarctic islands : The Snares. A full description of this will be given in Cheeseman's memoir, mentioned above.

* Written by Dr. L. Diels, who also sent Latin diagnosis, which it was not necessary to use, the species having been already published in Latin.

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