Flora of New Zealand Series

H. novae-zealandiae Petrie in T.N.Z.I. 12, 1880, 355.

Actinotus novae-zealandiae Petrie loc. cit. 13, 1881, 324.

Type locality: Stewart Id, "southern part". Type: W, Petrie Herb.

Low herb with creeping branching stems, rooting at all or most nodes, forming rather compact patches up to ± 3 dm. diam.: branches ± clad in soft patent hairs. Lvs entire, coriac., subfleshy. Lamina narrow-oblong to narrow-spathulate; glab. or with a pencil of ± fulvous hairs towards apex and scattered hairs on margins; (2)-3-4-5 × 1-3 mm., margins thickened, ± recurved; petiole membr., sheathing, ± 5 mm. long, margined by long hairs. Peduncle up to c. 2 cm. long, clad in soft patent hairs. Involucral bracts us. 5, obovate-oblong to broad-ovate, obtuse, c. 1·5 mm. long, hairy at base of ventral surface. Umbel 4-5-fld; fls subsessile, calyx-limb obsolete, petals 0, stylopodium stout. Mericarp brown, c. 1 mm. long, obscurely ribbed.

DIST.: S., St. Montane to subalpine boggy ground and herbfield, descending to near coast in St.

FL. 11-12. FT. 12-1.

Rodway (Tasm. Fl. 1903, 65) describes A. suffocata of Tasmania as having "Leaves ovate, entire, smooth, about 1 line long, on a hairy stalk rather longer . . . Fruit about 1/2 line long." Hooker (Fl. Tasm. 1, 1856, 158, t. 36 A) also illustrates an ovate lamina, and a fr. with distinct ribs. Tasmanian specimens that I have seen have lvs with ovate lamina, ± 2-4 mm. long, on slender petioles up to nearly 1 cm, long; no pencil of hairs at apex.