WOOD ANATOMY OF THE DICOTYLEDONS INDIGENOUS TO NEW-ZEALAND .23. MYRTACEAE - SUBFAM LEPTOSPERMOIDEAE .1.

Wood anatomy of the New Zealand Leptospermum scoparium J. R. et G. For st., Kunzea ericoides (A. Rich.) Joy Thomps., and K. sinclairii (Kirk) W. Harris is described. Examination of K. sinclairii, a small shrub, was restricted to young stems 5-12 years old, and its anatomical featu res are described for the first time. In Leptospermum scoparium the ve ssels often occur in multiples and are arranged in a conspicuous obliq ue pattern; in K. ericoides and K. sinclairii they are predominantly s olitary with a weak oblique pattern. K. sinclairii is separated from L . scoparium and K. ericoides by more numerous chambered crystalliferou s axial parenchyma strands, and more numerous, much branched protubera nces of the vestured layer in the vessels. Simple perforation plates w ith irregular outline are recorded in all three species. Wood anatomy of a recently discovered intergeneric hybrid, K. sinclairii x L. scopa rium, is also described. Some anatomical features of this hybrid are i ntermediate between those of the parent species.