To Thomas Cheeseman   26 September 1895

26/9/95

In accordance with your wish, dear Mr Cheeseman, I send you some few typic specimens of Epilobium, as viewed by Bentham. But as it is now nearly 30 years, since we both worked on the 3th¹ vol. of the Fl. Austral., a large lot of specimens also of Epilobium has accumulated, but my views remain unaltered, that for continental Australia only one genuine species can be admitted. No doubt, if the species are limited by such characteristics, as are adopted in the Fl Austral, they are transmutable.

Have you studied Epilobium in Europe? I have in nature from 1839-1846 in Denmark and Germany, besides species in bot Gardens there We have in Australia not the Section with divided stigma, nor the Section with unsymmetric flowers. In New Zealand the play of forms would not be so great as in Australia, because here Epilobium advances also into the hot dry desert. I can send you specimens of later Epilobiums (later than 1866 collected), but I have not named them, as I found no stability in the characteristics adopted by Bentham for this part of the world. As he never was personally in Australia, he could have no field experiences here, such as tracing Epilobium from the Austral Alps to the far inland-deserts.

I am much beholden to you, that you will send to the great Herbarium here a set of your typic Coprosmas. It is also pleasing that you will record your further observations on this genus.

From 1857-1873 I cultivated several N.Z. species of Coprosma in the bot Garden here, and my observations on these kinds of plants led me thus to advise you to take up the genus for study in nature at its principle home. In favor to myself you might briefly mention this, when you deal with the suppl. collections. You will on close scrutiny also find, that Nertera cannot be kept out of the genus.

With regardful remembrance your

Ferd von Mueller

Coprosma

Epilobium

Nertera