Document information

Physical location:

Herbarium, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. 85.00.00

Plant names

Preferred Citation:

Ferdinand von Mueller to Robert Wallace, 1885. R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora, J.H. Voigt and Monika Wells (eds), Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, <https://vmcp.rbg.vic.gov.au/id//letters/1880-9/1885/85-00-00-final.odt>, accessed May 7, 2026

1
Archivist's annotation: 'Baron Ferd. v. Mueller Coll. Gift from E. of Scotland College of Agric. Feb. 1978.'
Dated on the basis of Wallace's appointment in 1885 as professor of agriculture at the University of Edinburgh. The list was written after 1878, since a number of species listed were described by Bentham in the part of vol. 7 of Flora australiensis that was published in March of that year. Wallace was appointed as Professor at Cirencester in 1882, so the list is unlikely to have been prepared before that date, and given the provenance, is more likely to have been after Wallace moved to Edinburgh in 1885. Although in and after 1880 the editions of M's listing of species suitable for 'industrial culture' are entitled 'Select extra-tropical plants...' (see final paragraph, below), M usually referred in correspondence to the various editions as 'Select Plants', and this reference is not a useful guide to dating.
Australian Grasses for Prof. Wallace
The most valuable for pasture marked with an asterisk
2
Item is in an unknown hand with some additions and corrections in M's hand, noted where they occur. The asterisks appear to have been added by M; at the end of most entries there are marks that are probably 'rest marks' made by the pen used by M elsewhere in the letter. These marks have not been noted.
, F. v. Mueller.
3
Palisot de Beauvois authored this species in 1812, as cited by M in B83.03.04, p. 135.
, Bauvois.
4
Beauvois?
, R. Brown
5
Bentham (1863-78), vol. 5, p. 582 gives this as M's herbarium name (see specimens at K838408, K838409) in synonymy of Deyeuxia minor. In B82.07.05, B83.03.04 and B89.12.03, M prefers Agrostis over Deyeuxia, but does not list A. minor in either Systematic Census.
, R. Brown
, R. Brown.
, R Brown. *
, R Brown. = , Roemer & Schultes
6
= Agrostis ... Schultes in a different ink from the remainder of the list, but apparently in the same hand.
, Trinius.
, R Brown.
, F. v. Mueller, * for alpine country
7
for alpine country in M's hand.
, Linné = A. palustris Hudson (Immigrated)
, L. (Immigrated)
, Linné.
8
Linné. in M's hand.
, R. Brown
, Nees.
; R. Brown.
,
9
A. halepensis?
Sibthorp. * (Immigrated)
10
Sibthorp. in M's hand.
, R. Brown.
,
11
montanus in M's hand, above maritima deleted.
Roxburgh.
, R. Brown.
, R. Brown.
,
12
A. bombycinus?
R. Brown.
, R Brown.
, Linné.
, R. Brown.
, Linné *
, Lindley *
, R. Brown
, R. Brown.
, Cavanilles.
, RBrown.
, Bentham.
, Gaudichaud.
, Labillardière.
13
Corrected from Labillardieré with the same pen used by M elsewhere in the letter.
, Linné. (Immigrated).
, Humboldt. (Immigrated)
14
Usually attributed, including by M, B73.12.01, p. 126, to Kunth (1815-25), his descriptions of the plants from Bonpland and Humboldt's collections; see vol. 1, p. 151.
, Lindley.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, F. v. Mueller.
, R. Brown.
, Bentham.
, RBrown.
, Persoon *
, F. v. Mueller. *
, R. Brown = D. penicillata F. v. M. var
15
The only variety of this species known to have been described by M is D. penicillata var. pygmae (B74.13.05, p. 66).
, RBrown = D. penicillata, var.
, F.v.Mueller. *
, RBrown = D. penicillata F.v.M. var.
, R. Brown.
, J. Hooker. *
Deyeuxia (Agrostis) Forsteri, R. Brown
16
Kunth (1829), vol. 1, p. 77 is usually attributed as author of this species. See n. 5 above; in B64.10.02, p. 60, M treats Kunth's name as one synonym among many of his new A. solanderi; Brown is not listed there as having used this name.
= , FvM.
, J. Hooker. = D. sciurea, , Cavanill.
17
S. micrantha? ' , Cavanill.' written in a smaller hand below the second 'J. Hooker' in this entry, with intended position indicated by an arrow.
J. Hooker
, Palisot. *
18
Below this entry in the MS is a mark that may be the letter 'P' or 'F', linked with a curved line to '=' in the entry beginning ' ' above.
, F. v. Mueller.
, R. Brown.
,
19
E. ovatus?
Palisot.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, Labillardière*
20
Labillardière in M's hand, after Lindley, deleted.
, J. Gaertner *
, Persoon
21
Usually attributed to Desfontaines (1798), vol. 1, p. 85; in B83.03.04, p. 134, M cites Persoon (1805-7), vol. 1, p. 82.
= E. cruciata, Lamarck *
, Roxburgh. *
, F. v. Mueller.
, Palisot.
, Nees. *
, Gaudichaud. *
, Bentham.
, Steudel.
, Nees.
, Bentham.
, Bentham.
, F. v. Mueller. *
, Bentham.
, Beauvois.
, Steudel.
, Bentham.
, Steudel.
, R, Brown.
, Nees. *
F. v. Mueller.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, R. Brown.
, Kunth. *
, F. v. Mueller.
, F. v. Mueller *
, L.
, R. Brown.
, R. Brown.
, Nees. *
,
22
N. alopecuroides?
R. Brown. *
, RBrown. *
, F.v. Mueller. *
, R. Brown.
, G. Forster. *
, Persoon
23
Palisot de Beauvois (1812), p. 51, is usually cited as the author of this species, including by M in B83.03.04, p. 130.
(Immigrated).
, Kunth. *
, Bentham. * for sandy deserts only
24
for sandy deserts only in M's hand.
, Labillardieré
25
Labillardière?
.
, Bentham.
26
R. Brown (1810), p. 198 is usually cited as the author of this species, including by M in B83.03.04, p. 131.
, R. Brown.
27
Palisot de Beauvois (1812), p. 26, is usually cited as the author of this species, including by M in B83.03.04, p. 133.
, R. Brown.
, Bentham.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, Humboldt & Kunth.
, Labillardieré
28
Labillardière?
, Steudel.
, Steudel = S. scabra, Lindley.
, R. Brown.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, R. Brown.
, Labillardière
29
Labillardieré has been corrected with the same pen used by M elsewhere in the letter.
, R. Brown.
, F. v. Mueller.
, Palisot.
In reference to some of these see "select plants for industrial culture and naturalisation"
30
The final paragraph is in M's hand. The reference is to B76.12.04 or subsequent editions.