16/10/89
Let me ask you, dear Mr Dyer, to express to Sir Joseph my grateful recognition of the graceful manner, in which he alluded to me, when publishing an other Eucalypt in the Bot. Magaz.1 His words are most encouraging to me in many ways, so also in horticultural efforts.2 It was not my intention at first, to write specially about this new illustration of Euc., but on further consideration I think it best, to do so, because this Eucalyptus was cultivated already by Dehnhardt about 50 years ago as E. linearis, and seems to have held its ground in S European culture ever since. Therefore some Botanists from there, visiting Kew, might recognize it as known in the Italian Gardens. I have never seen this plant either wild, nor have I ever received an indigenous specimen from any collector. It seems to have originated in humid culture under peculiar circumstances. My own impression is, that it must be reckoned among the forms of Euc. amygdalina. It is remarkable for its flaccidity of branchlets and leaves, whereas E. stricta received its name for their rigidity. This characteristic is much lost in a delineation, such as the Eucalyptography offers,3 and thus it would be very difficult to recognize the differences, unless both plants were in a living state before the observer. You will likely find the leaves very much dotted with pellucid oil-glands, as is the case in an original specimen from Dehnhardt.
If you do not receive of each of the Plants, brought from the N.G. Highlands by Sir Will. Macgregor,4 a specimen, it will be, because in many instances the material is so scanty, that it barely suffices for analytic purposes. The descriptions of the whole will — I trust — be through the press by the end of the month5
Always regardfully your
Ferd. von Mueller
Eucalyptus amygdalina
Eucalyptus linearis
Eucalyptus stricta
Eucalyptus stricta, in Hooker (1865-1904), vol. 115, 1889, Tab. 7074. In his notes, Hooker wrote: 'In his most valuable "Eucalyptographia," Baron von Mueller has discussed the intricate synonymy of this variable species, and corrects some of Mr. Bentham's observations'. Hooker went on to remark that the specimen figured 'is from a plant about thirty feet high in the Temperate House at Kew, raised from seed probably sent by that indefatigable correspondent of the Gardens, Baron von Mueller'. M's discussion is in B84.13.19.
A penciled line marks off the first two sentences from the remainder of the letter.
E. stricta is delineated in B84.11.02, E. amygdalina is in B80.13.14, Decade 5.
i.e., MacGregor.
B89.13.11.
MS found with a specimen of Eucalyptus pulchella at Kew. Annotated: Sir JDH.
The herbarium sheet is marked: cultivated at RBG Kew, collected 30 May 1888, and annotated: Not very characteristic of E. stricta, Sieb. as it grows naturally JHM [J. Maiden], and Type specimen of Bot. Mag. t. 7074 [where it was figured as E. stricta].
Please cite as “FVM-89-10-16,” 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