Botanic gardens Buitenzorg1
Java, 28/4. 72
My dear Dr von Müeller,
With the first oppertunity I send you some plants from New-Guinea, collected by Mr Teysmann, and I will be much pleased when you will give me a list of the names, after having determined them.
I am sorry that I send you only a very few plants, but there are no other members of the Australian typical families, found in New-Guinea. It seems that N. G. is much more related to the Moluccas as to Australia.
I am working up a list of the plants of New-Guinea, that are hitherto known, but it is an exception when I find any australian form.
I had a new Leucopogon, gathered by Mr Teysmann in the small island Gébèh near Halmahaira.2 I have already described it in a paper, just given to the press.3 The genus Drymophloeus of Zippelius is very little known and in the garden I have some but very young specimens, and I have no duplicates in the Herbarium.
The palms of New-Guinea, gathered by Mr Teysmann are:
Metroxylon filare Mart.
Drymophloeus Rumphii Bl.
Ptychosperma Seaforthia Miq. (an eadem cum Drymophloeo angustifolia4 Miq.?)
Drymophloeus? paradoxus Scheff.
Caryota furfuracea Bl. ß caudata
Areca macrocalyx Zipp.
Licuala Rumphii Blume.
I believe that the distinctive character of Drymophloeus are: male calyx imbricate, anthers versatile, albumen not ruminate; but I believe also that not all the species, attributed now to this genus, belong to one genus. Perhaps it contains also some species of Kentia.
Folia praemorsa et oblique truncata5 is perhaps also a character.
As all the plants, collected by Mr Teysmann, do belong to our museum, it was not required to ask him.
I beg you to be so kind as to return the one Myrtaceous plants, on the label of which is written: remittendrum.6 It is an uniqum.7
You will do me great pleasure in sending me any quantity of Eucalyptus spec, yielding good timber, that you can spare.
Sincerely yours
Scheffer
Seeds of Araucaria and Phormium Colensoi will be most wellcome!
Araucaria
Areca macrocalyx
Caryota furfuracea ß caudata
Drymophloeus paradoxus
Drymophloeus Rumphii
Eucalyptus
Leucopogon
Licuala Rumphii
Metroxylon filare
Phormium Colensoi
Ptychosperma Seaforthia
Now Bogor, Java.
Halmahera, Indonesia.
Leucopogon moluccanum, in Scheffer (1873), p. 419 (paper dated January 1872).
or the same as Drymophloeus angustifolia.
Leaves bitten and obliquely truncated.
to send back.
unicum?
MS found among a bundle of letters extracted from the collections at MEL; no further details available. MS annotation by M: 'Answ. 10/9/72 and before'.
Please cite as “FVM-72-04-28,” 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