10/6/78.
I am not certain, dear Mr Bentham, whether I drew your attention to the fact, that Macadamia verticillata is probably identical with Brabejum stellatifolium. Never since I obtained in 1857 the only specimen (as supposed indigenous) from the Sydney collection, did I receive an other sample, which confirms my idea, that the Brabejum was cultivated and flowering in the Sydney Garden long ago, especially as Cunningham1 already established interchanges with Zeyher.
In my contribution to the volume of the Acclimation Society of Victoria last year I united indeed Macadamia with Brabejum,2 and this will on geographic grounds not be so very objectionable, since not only species of Lomatia but (as latterly shown) of Embothrium occur also out of Australia.
Perhaps you like my drawing attention to this for the "genera", and do me the justice to mention in 2 or 3 words as ascertained by myself, as it is of course more pleasant to correct an error through myself, than to be corrected.3
Always regardfully your
Ferd. von Mueller.
Persoonia has also species with 2 glands.
Brabejum stellatifolium
Embothrium
Lomatia
Macadamia verticillata
Persoonia
Allan Cunningham was curator of the Sydney Botanic Garden, 1837-8, succeeding his brother Richard who had been curator since 1832.
M also mentioned the unification of Macadamia and Brabejum in M to J. Hooker, 3 May 1877, where he cited B74.03.01, p. 150 in which the two were brought to Helicia.
The reference in this letter to the 'volume of the Acclimation Society' is probably an error for B76.12.04, where under Macadamia, p. 123, M gave the synonym Helicia ternifolia F.M.; however, he did not list Helicia as a synonym for Brabejum on p. 34. B76.12.04, although not published by the Acclimatisation Society of Victoria, is a 'rearranged and largely supplemented' arrangement of the lists of plants that appeared in the journal of the Society (see B71.06.02, B72.07.01, B74.13.06, B75.07.06).
Bentham & Hooker (1862-83), vol. 3, part 1, p. 178 acknowledge M's change of opinion: 'M. verticillata, F. Muell., est, ex auctore in litt. verisimiliter Brabejum stellatifolium, stirps austro-Africana in horto Sydneyano culta; specimina nobis desunt et character in Flora Australiensi imprimis e schedis Muellerianis excerpta fuit, ovario non examinato.'
Please cite as “FVM-78-06-10a,” 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