John Lindley

“ In the first place there is that most beautiful plant Calectasia cyanea, R. Br., a bush like an Andersonia, with quantities of large blue flowers with deep orange-coloured anthers; this is the handsomest Endogen in the Colony. ”

“ All the time they appear aboveground the weather is seldom warmer than in England in the month of May." Such plants as Caladenia (fig. 3 & 3*) deviate a little from this manner of growth, their roots forming knots, analogous to those on the roots of Arrhenatherum avenaceum, and ought, Mr. Drummond thinks, to be considered rather as reservoirs of nourishment, to enable the plant to flower and perfect seeds, than as true bulbs or buds.
"Young plants may be produced by dividing the roots; but they spring from the joints between the swellings of the root. ”

“ Of the singular woolly genus Tribonanthes198 there are four species, all different from T. australis; they are plants of no beauty, as far as can be ascertained by their appearance in the form of dried specimens. ”

“ From all which data we may conclude that the climate of Swan River is like that of the South of Italy; and that while any of the native plants may be expected to thrive in the open air in England during the summer, none are likely to bear our winters except the mountain plants, and those only in the South of England. ”

“ Two species are known, with hoary leaves and apparently purple flowers; of which A. incana (Tab. V. A) seems the finest. Two species of the rare genus Halgania have been sent home, both different from those recently described by Endlicher; one of them, H. cyanea,191 is a hispid plant, perhaps an annual, with axillary blue flowers on long stalks, but of no beauty; the other, H. corymbosa,192 is a brilliant herbaceous plant, with long-stalked terminal corymbs of purple flowers. ”

“ Judging from the specimens hitherto received they must be among the most common plants; indeed this Colony seems to produce a greater proportion of species than any other country yet examined. In Brown's prodromus forty-six species only are named for all New Holland, if ten are added for those of other countries, we shall have only fifty-six; but I possess from Swan River alone at least forty well marked species, and there are some of Baron Hugel's with which I am unacquainted. By far the larger part of these are plants that it would be desirable to introduce into cultivation ”

“ Drummond says, that "the bulb is renewed every year in the centre of several layers of bark-like substance, one of which layers is added every year by the decay of the old bulb. If the young bulb is dissected at the time when the plant is in flower, the layer of fibrous substance, which afterwards becomes the covering, is easily perceptible; it terminates in a point, which the following season becomes a root, and another root is produced from the bottom of next year's flower-stalk. In planting these roots the fibrous substance should not be removed, or the plant will not thrive. ”

“ Of this extensive order, of which the Australian forms are so numerous and very peculiar, the Colony contains a large number of species, among which the Chamælaucieæ are extremely interesting. These chiefly consist of bushes, with small heath-like leaves, and white, yellow, or purple flowers, of great brilliancy, more or less collected into heads. Although scarcely noticed in the reports of either Brown or Frazer, they form a most striking object in the vegetation. Of the genus Calytrix alone there are ten species in my collection ”

“ S. platyphylla110 is a broad-leaved hairy species, with white flowers of considerable size; but S. squarrosa,111 fasciculata, Benth., and all the others I am acquainted with, are not at all suited to the objects of cultivators. It is among the Leschenaultias and Dampieras that the fine plants of this order are to be sought in this part of the world. Of the former genus five if not six species have already been discovered, all of which are most beautiful plants; L. floribunda, Benth. has dense clusters of blue and red flowers at the end of long branches, and is the least deserving cultivation ”

“ It is probable that for some years to come, few species deserving cultivation, will be received from Swan River, beyond such as are noticed in this Appendix, which will therefore, it is hoped, form a useful guide to purchasers in this country, and enable those who reside in the colony, or who have friends there, to judge on the one hand what to send home, and on the other, what to ask their correspondents to collect. ”

“ Sarotes ledifolia85 is a stiff-branched shrub, with very large flowers apparently of a light blue, and small leaves not unlike those of Ledum angustifolium, but whorled in threes; like the last genus it is remarkable for having a style covered with clusters of long hairs, so as to look like a bottle-brush. Leucothamnus montanus86 is a large bush, of rare occurrence on the mountains, with fine campanulate white flowers, at the base of which grow three leafy hispid bracts; its leaves are heart-shaped, coarsely toothed, and about the size of those of Thomasia solanacea. ”

“ Some genera with conglomerated capitula also occur, such as Cylindrosorus and Myriocephalus of Bentham, but they are of no beauty. Several Asteroideæ are found here, many of which belong to the inconspicuous genera Brachycome and Lagenophora; an Eurybia has also been described, and there is a genus nearly allied to Francœuria, the Asteridea pulverulenta,98 a plant of some beauty, with the appearance of an Aster Novæ Angliæ; it is not a little remarkable that with these there also occurs a plant of the genuine genus Aster,99 and of the Alpigenous section, with altogether its habit. ”

“ The common genera, of which characteristic species exist here, are chiefly Acacia, Pultenæa, Oxylobium, Chorozema, Daviesia, Jacksonia, Burtonia, Gompholobium, Aotus, Zichya, Physolobium, Kennedya, and Hardenbergia; Frazer also speaks of a pendulous species of Viminaria, of considerable height, richly clothed with yellow and crimson flowers, by which it is probably that he intended to mention one of the species of Sphærolobium, which appear to be common here. ”

“ Three species only are yet known; all from Swan River, namely M. tridentifera, vestita, and glabrata,183 all small shrubs with three lobed or trident-shaped leaves, and numerous clusters of small flowers seated on filiform stalks; but with regard to the two Grevilleas which Brown calls Conogyne, and which Endlicher is inclined to refer to Manglesia, it does not appear to me certain that either of them belongs to it, and G. triternata certainly does not. ”

“ Milligan observes, that "the soil is of three different kinds—1st, sandy—2nd, alluvial—3rd, red loam; the first is found near the coast, and, though unpromising in appearance, trees, shrubs, and grasses grow on it abundantly, and with the assistance of manure excellent esculent vegetables are obtained from it, as the valuable gardens in the farms of Perth and Freemantle sufficiently testify. The second, or alluvial, is in extensive flats, and produces admirable crops of wheat, barley, oats, &c. without any assistance from manure. ”

“ It appears that many of the species, such as Thelymitra, Macdonaldia, Pterostylis, Diuris, Prasophyllum, &c. have roots like those of the English Orchis morio, (fig. 1) , and they will require the same kind of management.*
The mode of growth of others is quite different. The greater part of them have the roots extended to a considerable distance, that is, to the depth of several inches, underground, terminated by a bulb, and thickly clothed with numerous dry loose skins. ”

“ These considerations have led the editor to undertake the laborious task of preparing a new and complete index, both classified and alphabetical, of the entire work, including not merely the names of the plants actually figured, together with their synonymes, but references to all the genera and species described only in the notes, and to such systematical and physiological observations as are to be found scattered through the pages. ”

“ Of the splendid genus Calothamnus there are four species; of which C. sanguinea, Lab., and C. eriocarpa,28 are remarkable for the abortion of a part of their stamens, and the combination of the remainder into an irregular sheath slit on one side; C. purpurea, Endl., rivals the crimson Callistemons in appearance; while the C. lateralis27 has long terete leaves and rows of flowers, so imbedded in long lines on one side of the branches, that only the tips of the calyx and the long blood-red stamens can be seen beyond the bark in which the inflorescence takes its rise ”

“ Rhodanthe, now so common, and several unpublished plants, of new genera, the more remarkable of which are the following; viz. Lawrencella rosea,94 a most beautiful annual, resembling Rhodanthe, but handsomer, and differing in the achænia being covered with long clavate glands, and in the pappus not being plumose; from the greater part of the allies of Rhodanthe it is distinguished by the pappus being in many rows; Xyridanthe,95 another genus near Rhodanthe, from which it differs in the pappus being paleaceous and plumose, not setose: the species are annuals of no beauty ”

“ A second species (N. ligustrina, A. C.) was found by Mr. Cunningham in 1817 in the more arid parts of the Blue Mountains west from Port Jackson; he tells me it forms a very bushy shrub, three feet high, and flowers usually in the spring of the Colony (October) . The only other species of the same order, yet found, is a species of Loranthus, growing parasitically upon the "Black Wattle."
Of Lobeliaceæ there are only three of any interest for their beauty, and we already possess them in our gardens. L. heterophylla and ramosa, the latter a most variable plant, are now common ”

“ Another species, P. brevifolia,168 has flowers which, when infused in hot water, give out so brilliant a yellow colour that it is worth examination of a probable source of a dyeing material.
The Persoonias are plants of little beauty; P. Frazeri is the handsomest; P. macrostachya,172 like Petrophila brevifolia, seems to possess dyeing properties that deserve investigation. ”

“ There are however three genera peculiar to the Colony, one of which is Diplopeltis Dampieri, introduced to our gardens by Baron Hugel, a grey shrub, with long pink stamens and the flowers arranged in nodding heads ”

“ Among the introduced plants we are informed of the following facts. Along the banks of the rivers may be seen fields of wheat, barley, oats, peas, potatoes, turnips, pumpkins, Indian wheat, &c. intermixed with fine pasture land. The sandy soil is covered with coarse herbage, on which cattle thrive remarkably well; on the good soil, about sixteen kinds of grasses are met with, amongst which anthistiria australis, the kangaroo grass, is conspicuous. The gardens furnish most kinds of edible vegetables in great abundance ”

“ Of Acacia numerous species occur, among which are A. alata and pulchella, both varying with smooth and hispid foliage; the greater part of the species are peculiar to the Colony. A. diptera62 is a singular slender leafless plant, with the branchlets two-winged, glaucous, and bordered with a strong edge; A. squamata63 has the tips of the phyllodia curved like a bird's head, and its flowers appear to be brown ”

“ Leaves 4 or 5 inches long, cuneate, obtuse, scarcely truncate, tapering by degrees into the petiole, coarsely serrated, wavy, green beneath, reticulated, smooth, with a downy midrib. Heads of flowers oblong, obtuse; bracteæ downy. Calyx fulvous, silky, much shorter than the style. Style straight, ascending, never curved backwards. Stigma oblong, furrowed, smooth. ”

“ D. triloba,116 a plant allied to D. fasciculata, with multitudes of short axillary spikes of blue flowers, will probably be a gay-looking plant, and D. coronata117 will certainly rival the handsomest of the Cape Lobelias; but all the other species, and there are many, are by no means beautiful objects.
(113) Leschenaultia biloba; foliis linearibus, floribus in corymbo paucifloro laxè aggregatis, pedicellis ebracteolatis, sepalis tubo corollæ vix æqualibus, corollâ extùs glabrâ intùs stuposâ laclniis altè bilobis serrulatis mucrone interjecto, filamentis glabris. ”

“ This description applies only to Glossodia and Caladenia, the species of all which seem to have the same natural habit.
Another plan of growth is to form a bulb at the end of long woolly roots, as in Drakæa (fig 5 &: 7) , Caleana (fig. 4) , and Leptoceras (fig. 8) ; and this sometimes takes place in an excessive degree, as is shewn at fig. 6, where a a are the new bulbs, and b the mother which brought them forth. Mr. Drummond has traced them in one species for more than a foot. ”

“ Lab., an herbaceous plant, or under-shrub, clothed with narrow rigid leaves, and loaded with erect racemes of violet flowers, succeeded by the curious spathulate emarginate fruit of the genus.
Of Brassicaceæ only two genera have been remarked in a wild state; the one Lepidium, the other Stenopetalum; the latter consists of three or four species, with long spirally twisted petals, but they are none of them of any Horticultural interest.
A few Stackhousias are met with, but they are species of no beauty ”

“ Labichea punctata; suffruticosa, foliis simplicibus oblongo-ellipticis utrinque angustatis mucronatis, utrinque punctatis subtus leviter puberulis, racemis folio brevioribus, anthera utraque obtusa biporosa, ovario sericeo-villoso.—Rami apice compressi. (Benth. mss.)
A few Fabaceous genera seem confined to the Colony. Of these the curious Isotropis striata, Benth. is a little prostrate bush, with its sterile branches so different from those which bear flowers that one would never suppose them to belong to the same species. ”

“ Brown should be discoverable; there is nothing whatsoever among the numerous undescribed species from Swan River which requires the establishment of a new genus, with the solitary exception of Manglesia. ”

“ Moreover the purchasers of plants will often be able, by a reference to this sketch, to ascertain, by the names under which Swan River plants are offered for sale, whether particular species are worth possession, either for the sake of their beauty or singularity. ”

“ Of the Myrtaceæ with distinct stamens the species of known genera are numerous, but not in general so handsome as those already mentioned. There is one species of Callistemon,32 with rich crimson stamens, which is perhaps the finest of the genus. Frazer speaks of two Metrosideros, growing on the beach, the fragrance of which exceeded any thing "he ever experienced;" and there are several Bæckeas, Leptospermums, and similar plants. Of the latter, however, the only interesting species are Agonis33 linearifolia and flexuosa, DC., bushes with knots of white flowers ”

“ Of the beautiful genus Tetratheca there are many species, all apparently peculiar to the colony; and, what is curious, belonging to the pentamerous division of the genus.
Of these T. viminea184 has long smooth slender branches, slightly covered with smooth ovate whorled leaves, and bright purple flowers drooping from the end of the branches; T. rubriseta185 is a bush loaded with purple or rose-coloured flowers, and often clothed with bright red hairs; T. nuda186 is a naked plant, looking like a rush when out of flower, but producing a great quantity of most brilliant crimson blossoms ”

“ When, however, we consider how many plants are now common of which the same opinion was formerly entertained, and moreover how much beyond the skill of the last race of gardeners is that of the present day, I think it would be discreditable to the art, and a libel upon the science of horticulture, to say that in the cultivation of these plants there are any difficulties which patience and skill ought not to overcome. ”

“ Of Hakea the species are numerous, and generally by no means worth cultivation, H. ruscifolia being the only one
(167) Petrophila heterophylla; ramis glabris, foliis elongato-linearibus obtusis apiculatis basi longè angustatis utrinque striatis simplicibus v. 2-3-partitis, strobilis ovalibus axillaribus sessilibus: squamis ovatis obtusis nitidis glabris, calycibus sericeo-tomentosis, stigmatis glabri articulo inferiore angulato superiore subulato multò majore. ”

“ The natural orders which most abound in the Colony are chiefly composed of species peculiar to this part of Australia; the richest in species are Myrtaceæ, especially the curious and beautiful tribe of Chamælaucieæ, Fabaceæ or Leguminosæ, Rutaceæ, Lasiopetaleæ, Droseraceæ, Pittosporaceæ, Compositæ, Epacridaceæ, Goodeniaceæ, Styidiaceæ, Proteaceæ, Hæmodoraceæ, and Orchidaceæ ”