J. T. Thomson, F.R.G.S., President, in the chair.

Mr. Thomas Kirk, of Wellington, spoke in terms of commendation of Mr. G. Thomson's paper on the Naturalized Plants of Otago, ^* which he would have been glad to see more complete, as the list given by the author could scarcely be considered to comprise more than a third of the species already established in the province. Amongst the plants named he observed one or two species, as Bartsia viscosa, etc., not yet collected in other parts of the colony, and the mode of introduction of which it seemed specially desirable to ascertain if possible, as they were plants of local distribution in Europe, and of a character differing widely from the usual naturalized plants in this colony. He regretted to notice that the author had failed to discriminate between such plants as Bellis hypocharis and other species undoubtedly introduced, and such as Geranium molle, Polygonum aviculare, etc., which must be held to be indigenous, although their area had been extended by introduction. The greater vigour and consequent rapid increase and abundance of the plants grown from introduced seed at once attracted notice, and in cases of this kind led to the very common error of considering truly indigenous, but naturally unobtrusive, species to have had a foreign origin. He hoped the paper would be followed by others on the same subject, and would suggest that the author might advantageously present specimens of all naturalized plants observed by him to the herbarium of the Otago Museum. This would afford the opportunity of correcting any errors that might occur in nomenclature, from the want of familiarity with exotic plants, in not a few cases of a critical character. Mr. Kirk made some observations on the chief points of difference between the floras of Auckland and Otago.

Captain Hutton agreed with Dr. Coughtrey that Sertularia subpinnata, Hutt., was but a variety of Sertularia johnstoni, Gray, and also that the New

Zealand Thuiaria differed sufficiently from T. articulata to warrant its being made into a separate species, as Dr. Coughtrey proposed.