Placea Miers ex Lindley 1841

Nat. ord. AMARYLLIDACEÆ. PLACEA. Miers Trav. in Chili, 2. 529. Absque char.

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Char. diff. Perigonium petaloideum, subdeclinatum, 6-partitum, laciniis pa- tenti-reflexis, æqualibus, 2 inferioribus late divergentibus. Corona, e disco epigyno orta, 6-phylla, declinata ; foliolis lineari-oblongis, extus carinatis, apice emarginatis. [Nobis e contrario sex-partita videtur, laci- niis basi in tubum junctis.] Stamina 6 (quorum 3 longiora) declinata, adscendentia. Ovarium inferum. Stylus declinatus. Stigma truncatum. Char. naturalis. Perigonium petaloideum, epigynum, subdeclinatum, 6-par- titum, tubo millo, laciniis æqualibus, lineari-oblongis spathulatis apice mucronatis, æque expanso-reflexis, 2 inferioribus late divaricatis. Co- rona hexaphylla, valde declinata, foliolis suberectis, e disco epigyno ortis, lineari-spathulatis, extus carinatis, apice emarginatis. Stamina 6 ; fila- mento valdè declinata, summo adscendentia, 3 perianthio medio longitu- dine, 3 alterna paulo longiora. Antheræ obovatæ, imo emarginatæ, dorso gibbo versatiles. Ovarium inferum, 3-gonum, 3-loculare. Stylus simplex, declinatus, apice incurvus. Stigma gibboso-clavatum, obtusum, cavum. Capsula ignota. - Planta Chilensis radice tunicata bulbosa; foliis binis radicalibus amplexicaulibus linearibus ; scapo solitario foliis longiori : spatha 2-valvi lineari sub 6-flora, pedicellis basi bracteatis. Miers in litt.

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P. ornata ; Perianthium subcrassum, niveum, laciniis spathulato-oblongis, apice mucronatis, vittis 4 miniatis interne ornatis marginalibus semi- pinnatis. Corona nivea, apice punicea. Folia linearia nitida subtus obtuse carinata. - Crescit in Montibus Cordillera de los Andes prope Aconcagua. Miers in litt.

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We publish this plant for two reasons ; firstly, in the hope that the figures may lead to the introduction from Chili of so very pretty a bulb ; secondly, because it is of all plants one of the least known to botanists. Up to the present time all that has been published about

it is its name, which was given in a page at the end of Mr. Miers's Travels in Chili. By the kindness of this gentleman I am now able to present the readers of the Register with a figure taken by himself from the fresh plant, and a generic character ; to which I am allowed to add the following note. "This very elegant plant was found by me in the year 1824, in one of the lateral branches of the lofty chain of the Andes that jut into the plain of Aconcagua. The scape, rising to the height of nine inches, bears a head of four to seven flowers, upon pedicels from two to three inches long, or rarely by abortion it is one-flowered. The marcescent linear spathe bears within it as many membranaceous bracts as there are flowers. The separation of the two lower segments appears at first sight as if two of them had been torn away. The flowers externally are snow-white, the colour of the brilliant vermilion lines being in no degree distinguishable on the back of the segments, where they are also pure white and striated longitudinally. The filaments are of a pale crimson, and the anthers, somewhat emarginate at base, are versatile. The stamens and corona originate outside of a raised epigy- nous disc, together with the perianthium. The style is some- what longer than the stamens, and more declinate, but the apex is curved upwards to meet the anthers, as in the genus Amaryllis. I gathered a number of the bulbs of this beautiful plant, which I regret were all lost by shipwreck, together with the greater part of my collections." Mr. Miers has also given me a dried specimen, which enables me to confirm the general accuracy of the figure and technical character, as published. I am however inclined to think that the coronet is not composed of six distinct lobes, but that they are united into a cup about one-fourth of their whole length ; at least such appears to be the structure of the only flower I have been able to examine. In the opinion of the Dean of Manchester, the genus is most nearly allied to Eucrosia.