6/2/83.
Only a few lines, dear Prof. Tate, to say, that I have critically and carefully examined a Cuscuta, obtained by Mr Chr Giles1 some years ago near Lady Charlotte's Waters,2 and find it a 3- or 4-merous var. of C. australis. A similar form is known from S. Europe, not separate from the typical plant as a species; this was well shown by Engelmann.3
Regardfully your
Ferd. von Mueller.
You may be quite right as regards the Hypoxides. I took the small one for the true H.4 glabella, because RBr. says of it in the prodromus expressly "scapo medio bibracteolato".5 Hence Schlechtendal in 1846 took the larger plant of Dr Behrs collection from Tanunda as a new species, and named it H. vaginata, and in this way I disposed of both for years, til I thought it was best to unite the two, just as I joined H. pratensis to H hygrometrica.6 A crucial test for the validity would be the examination of the ripe seeds. We have a similar case with Arthropodium minus & A. paniculatum.7
Arthropodium minus
Arthropodium paniculatum
Cuscuta
Hypoxis glabella
Hypoxis hygrometrica
Hypoxis pratensis
Hypoxis vaginata
Christopher Giles.
i.e. Charlotte waters, SA.
A specimen was also sent with M to G. Engelmann, 7 February 1883 (in this edition as 83-02-07a). The reference is to Engelmann (1859), pp. 492-3.
Hypoxis.
R. Brown (1810), p. 289.
Both unifications in B67.12.01, p.96.
For discussion, see B70.1.01, pp. 66-7.
Please cite as “FVM-83-02-06,” 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