2339 Burchellia bubalina

Burchellia bubalina. Cape Burchellia.

***************Class and Order.

Petandria Monogynia.

Generic Character.Capitulum involucratum. Cor. clavato-infundibuliformis:limbo 5-fido abbreviato fauceque imberbi; aestivationemutuo imbricata contorta. Stamina supra medium tubiinserta; antheris subsessilibus, inclusis. Stigma cla-vatum. Bacca calyce alte 5-fido coronata, bilocularispolysperma. Brown in Bot. Reg.

Specific Name and Synonyms.Burchellia bubalina.Burchellia capensis. Brown in Bot. Reg. 446.Lonicera bubalina; capitulis terminalibus pedunculatis,foliis oblongis integerrimis glabris. Lin. Suppl. p. 146.Cephælis bubalina. Persoon Syn. p. 202. n. 12.BuffelHorn. Colonis batavis.

In the Supplementum Plantarum of the younger Linnæusthis plant was referred to the genus Lonicera, but as itbelongs to the natural order of Rubiaceæ it will by nomeans associate with that genus. Persoon joined it withSwartz's Cephælis the Tapocomea of Aublet and Jussieu;but Mr. Brown not finding it to accord with any esta-blished genus, has considered it as distinct from any,and given it the name of Burchellia in honour of Mr.Burchell, a very enterprising traveller in Southern Africa,who has favoured the public with an interesting accountof his travels in that country. And, certainly, personswho, in spite of deprivations and difficulties, spend a largeportion of their valuable time in such hazardous under-takings, for the promotion of science, merit this only re-ward

ward of the botanist; but we can by no means approveof altering the specific name, which, when once established,should remain inviolate, except for very particular reasons;we have therefore thought it right to restore the name ofbubalina.Burchellia bubalina is a native of the Cape of GoodHope, where it is called Buffelhorn or Buffaloe-Horn, aname given it by the colonists from the extreme hardnessof its wood.Flowers in the spring or summer. Requires to be pro-tected from frost and we believe has seldom blossomed inthis country without the assistance of the heat of the stove.Communicated by Messrs. Loddiges and sons.