Flora of New Zealand Series

Goniocarpus depressus A. Cunn. in Ann. nat. Hist. 3, 1839, 30.

H. aggregata Buchan. in T.N.Z.I. 4, 1872, 224, t. 13.

H. uniflora Kirk in T.N.Z.I. 9, 1877, 548.

H. spicata Petrie in T.N.Z.I. 19, 1887, 325.

H. bibracteolata Col. in T.N.Z.I. 22, 1890, 462.

H. depressa var. aggregata (Buchan.) Kirk Stud. Fl. 1899, 149.

H. depressa var. spicata (Petrie) Schindler in Pflanzenr. 23, 1905, 43 (under H. uniflora).

H. uniflora var. bibracte-olata (Col.) Schindler in Pflanzenr. 23, 1905, 43.

H. depressa var. uniflora (Kirk) Cheesem. in T.N.Z.I. 42, 1910, 203.

Type locality: "Low boggy ground at Wangaroa [Whangaroa, N.] A. Cunningham."

Wiry herb, spreading by much-branched underground stems that dry yellow; above ground portions 2-10-(20) cm. long, ± covered with scattered soft hairs most abundant on young stems and increasing on parts affected by a not uncommon disease. Stems very obscurely tetragonous; lvs mostly opp., (2)-5-(15) mm. long, about ovate, margins cartilaginous with 2-4-(5) incisures on each side, lower margins, midrib on under side and very short petiole us. with scattered white hairs, finer hairs often on upper side of lvs. Fls solitary, axillary, us. a few opp. pairs, occ. alt., the uppermost often single and terminal, in small plants a single terminal fl.; bracts like lvs but smaller, bracteoles hairy. Fls erect, very shortly peduncled, apparently sts unisexual; sepals triangular, glab.; petals reddish, hooded, with stiff hairs on keel, c. 2 mm. long; stamens 8, = petals, filaments elongating and some anthers hanging out between petals, in ♀ much smaller and persistent; ovary 4-angled, about as long as wide, little constricted below sepals; styles 4, rather long, curving outwards and downwards between sepals, stigmatic surface on upper side with long flexuous multicellular hairs. Fr. brown, shining when mature, c. 2 mm. long, tetragonous, each face flat or with median longitudinal rib, broadest about mid-height, surface smooth; pericarp hard, 1 loculus, us. 1-seeded.

DIST.: N., S., St., C. In open places on sand, shingle, peat or rock-crevices.

FL.- FT. 11-4.

In Petrie's Lake Hawea specimens of H. spicata in W and in A several flowering branches up to 10 cm. long arise from the top of the stem. Petrie commented that only "the upper one or two flowers in each spike is perfect and produces large nuts, while the others appear to be staminate only." Several lower fls dissected were malformed, abortive, and diseased: the whole infl. is a sort of "witch's broom". Kirk (Stud. Fl. p. 199) notes that all are seedless. Specimens of H. aggregata from Lake Guyon, Nelson (the type locality), also in W and in A, match Buchanan's figure (loc. cit. t. 13) well; again the infl. is branched and paniculate, but here the internodes are very short giving a tightly aggregated group of fls. Infls intermediate between spicata and aggregata have been seen occ. on diseased plants, and it is fairly clear that both these spp. are based on monstrosities and should be rejected.

Specimens that must include the type of Kirk's H. uniflora ("The Bluff Hill, Southland") are also in W and A. They agree with his description except that the stamens, which are poorly represented, are probably 8. The plants are small, the single fls terminal, and the frs notably narrow, with rounded angles and distinct peduncles. Such narrow frs occur in both axillary and terminal positions also on larger plants (? = Colenso's H. bibracteolata not in W), and broad frs can occur singly on quite small plants. Kirk (Stud. Fl. p. 149) remarks, under H. spicata, that seedless frs are. very common in single-fld specimens of H. depressa (these he himself no longer refers to H. uniflora). Many frs opened are seedless, but either broad or narrow form can contain a single seed, apparently well-developed. Thickness of pericarp varies greatly and is not directly related to fr. shape or seed development. There is fairly good evidence that some fls are functionally female with small useless stamens; some pollen-bearing fls seem to be pro-tandrous, later producing full-sized frs; it is not clear whether any fls are purely male. A study of heteromorphy in the fls might also throw light on the relation of seed set to number of fls and size of fr.