Luzula pumila Hook.f.
L. cheesemanii Buch. in Engl. Bot. Jb. 12, 1890, 146.
L. micrantha Buch. in Öst. bot. Z. 48, 1898, 166.
L. triandra Buch. in Öst. bot. Z. 48, 1898, 210.
L. micrantha Buch. var. triandra (Buch.) Cheesem. Man. N.Z. Fl. 1906, 734.
Original localities: "Middle Island: summit of Mount Torlesse and Mount Darwin, alt. 6–7,000 ft., Haast; Otago, lake district, alpine, Hector and Buchanan." Type: K, Hector and Buchanan.
Compact cushion, 2–6–(8) cm. high. Lvs 1–4 cm.×0.7–1.5 mm., crowded at lower ⅓ of stem, margin almost glab. to slightly villous throughout, tips obtuse. Flowering stems us. = or > lvs when fr. is mature. Infl. a single 4–10-fld cluster, or with up to 3 closely crowded, shortly pedunculate clusters of 2–12–(20) fls. Fls 2–3 mm. long; tepals acute, us. dark brown, membr. margin very distinct or almost 0. Stamens 6, rarely 3. Capsule slightly < or c. = tepals, dark brown to almost black. 2n = 12.
DIST.: S.
Mountains from 1,200–2,000 m. altitude, us. on the eastern side of the Southern Alps.
L. cheesemanii Buch. was based on specimens "auf Berghöhen (1,000–1,400 m.) der Südinsel von Neu-Seeland: Gordon's Nob, Nelson und Black Range, Canterbury Alps." Type: AK, 3066, summit of Gordon's Nob, Nelson, 4,000 ft, T. F. Cheeseman, Jan., 1882; isotypes at WELT.
L. micrantha Buch. is known only from the original collection. Type and only specimen: AK, 105078, Mt Cardrona, 6,000 ft, D. Petrie. The specimen is immature and appears to be a small form of L. pumila.
L. triandra Buch. Type: WELT, 12356, Rock and Pillar Range, East Otago, 4,000 ft, Don. Petrie 1591/4, Nov., 1892. It appears to be only a form of L. pumila with 3 stamens.
The type of L. pumila has almost glab. lvs, and dark brown tepals with scarcely any membr. margins, while the type of L. cheesemanii has lvs with villous margins and tepals with broad, silvery membr. margins. Although plants matching these types are distinct, many specimens are intermediate in these characters.
