Page:Transactions NZ Institute Volume 17.djvu/378

298 not seen Mr. Blair's specimen from the Five Rivers, but, as he at once identified it with mine from the Dart Valley, I entertain no doubt of his correctness, and have great pleasure in connecting his name with the species.





this species exhibits a considerable amount of variation in the shape, toothing and texture of the leaves, it is the most easily recognized of all the New Zealand beeches, especially when the fruit is fairly developed: the curious glandular scales on the valves of the cupules at once distinguish it from the other species, while they show its close affinity to F. gunnii, Hk. f., of Tasmania, F. moorei, Muell., of New South Wales, and F. betuloides, Mirb., of Cape Horn and South Chili.

This forms a fine tree, 60′–80′ feet high, with a trunk 2′–3′ in diameter, but larger specimens are by no means unfrequent. The twigs are clothed with a fine brown pubescence; leaves glabrous, rigid, orbicular, or broadly ovate, or rhomboid ovate, shortly petioled, with the margins cut into very short blunt teeth, or more frequently crenate, each crenature being irregularly notched. In the young state the leaves are sometimes deeply toothed, stipules linear-oblong. The valves of the cupule are pubescent and clothed with from 5 to 7 horizontal scales, the margins of which carry a fringe of stalked glands. Nuts trigonous, 3-winged, the wings being divided or fringed at the apex.

In common with all the local species, the bark varies considerably at different periods of growth. Before reaching maturity, the tree is characterized by a thin silvery whitish bark much resembling that of Betula alba, L. This becomes gradually thickened, and rugose, although patches of