Ferdinand von Mueller

1

MS found with a specimen of Caesalpinia scortechinii (MEL 2070103). MS annotation on reverse: '1881 Scoterchini'. The letter's handwriting is similar to that of known specimens of Scortechini's handwriting.

166

Mezoneurum brachycarpum? Benth

Leguminosae

Tallebudgera

2

Southeastern Qld.

­‑ If not a luxuriant variety of his plant it might prove a new species.

3

Mueller described Mezoneuron scortechinii , paraphrasing Scortechini in places, in B92.04.03, pp. 73-4.

You may discover some more constant characters serparating this from M. brachycarpum. I have noticed 1st the absence of the golden yellow pubescence replaced by a rusty one: 2d the length of the racemose panicles, which surpasses very much that of the typical plant. I have seen these panicles even 1½ ft long and broadly pyramidal: the flowers too are proportionately larger: 3d The trailing stem of the normal M. brachycarpum is invariably (so far as my observation goes) run the whole length by two three or four corky wings of a gray color, while the plant whose specimen you have now has its stem cylindrical wingless, green, covered by a slight mealy tomentum. The fruit in this M. is young, and I have no fruit of M. brachycarpum for comparation.