To Joseph Hooker   23 June 1864

Melb. bot Garden,

23/6/64

My dear Dr Hooker.

If I rightly remember I mentioned to you before, that on my suggestion the son of Mr Travers has collected plants in the Chatham Islands with a view of affording me an opportunity of throwing more fully light on the vegetation of this little group. Within the last weeks I have received a set of the specimina and am now engaged in elaborating an essay to be printed here thereon. As the collection inclusive of Cryptogamae numbers only about 150 species, I shall soon finish my memoir,1 especially as few, (if any) new species have been brought by Mr Travers. You informed me some months ago, that the volume of the Phanerogamae of N.Z. had almost passed the press;2 hence for it any remarks3 of mine will come too late; however they will be available for some supplemental pages of the second volume, whilst the comparatively few Cryptogamae will be available for the second volume, in as much as you will have my pamphlet either by next mail or that following.

Have you seen Dr von Hochstetter's plants collected by him in New Zealand? It is not unlikely that it would yield you some additions, & I should imagine that Fenzl would be quite willing to place them from the Vienna Museum at your disposal.

I have recently looked on Araliaceae again & established a curious new genus, which has the petals more deeply inflexed and quite as tender as many Umbelliferae.4 Planchon probably & certainly Miquel has multiplied the Genera too much, as you will find yourself when once assigning to them their proper limits in your genera.5

With my kindest regards to your venerable father & your self

I remain your

attached

Ferd Mueller

 

Will you kindly send the few volumes despatched by this mail to you on to Harvey?

Had I your manual it would have been useful to me for my Chatham Essay.6

I believe I mentioned that Mr Burrows has by last mail taken charge of a small case of living plants for Kew7

Elaeocarpus cyaneus is found mostly on King's Island & thus furnishes a new genus for the Tasmanian Flora. The Banksia on the Sisters8 of Tasmania is certainly Banksia serrata L. fil. Will you kindly let me have from poor Dr Booths9 plants back my Carices?10

 

Araliaceae

Banksia serrata

Carex

Cryptogamae

Elaeocarpus cyaneus

Phanerogamae

Umbelliferae

 
1
B64.13.02.
2
J. Hooker (1864). See J. Hooker to M, 19 March 1864.
3
any remarks is marked in the margin with a cross.
4
M erected Mackinlaya (M. macrosciadea) in B64.06.01, p. 120.
5
Bentham & Hooker (1862–83).
6
Will you kindly … my Chatham essay in the margin of the front of the sheet.
7
See M to W. Hooker, 7 May 1864.
8
An island off the NW coast of Tasmania, west of Wynyard.
9
Boott?
10
I believe ... back my Carices? is written on a separate un-numbered half-sheet bound with this letter, of which it is probably, but not certainly, a part.

Please cite as “FVM-64-06-23a,” in Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, edited by R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora†, J.H. Voigt† and Monika Wells accessed on 30 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/64-06-23a