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Lomandra is the largest genus in Asparagaceae subfamily Lomandroideae and possesses economic, ecological, and ethnobotanical significance in Australia. Lomandra comprises four sections, L. section Capitatae , L. section Macrostachya , L. section Typhopsis and L. section Lomandra, the latter comprising series Lomandra and series Sparsiflorae , all recognized based solely on morphology. In this study, phylogenetic relationships were estimated for 79 Lomandroideae individuals, including 45 Lomandra species and subspecies (c. 63% of species and subspecies diversity). We generated genome-scale plastome sequence data and used maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference criteria for phylogenetic estimation. Lomandra was non-monophyletic, with Xerolirion divaricata nested within it. Two major clades were recovered: Capitatae–Macrostachya (CM) and Lomandra–Typhopsis (LT). The CM clade included a monophyletic Lomandra section Capitatae with a base chromosome number x  = 7, and L. section Macrostachya (x  = 8); the LT clade included L. sections Typhopsis and Lomandra , both x  = 8. Section Lomandra series Lomandra and series Sparsiflorae were both recovered as non-monophyletic. Morphological characters were assessed to identify combinations of characters that characterize clades. A base chromosome number of x  = 8 was plesiomorphic for Lomandra. The largest number of Lomandra species occupy the Mediterranean ecoregion and occupancy of sclerophyll vegetation was reconstructed as ancestral for the genus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taxonomic uncertainty exists regarding the circumscription of the following seven phenotypically similar Australian species: Poa crassicaudex Vickery, P. hookeri Vickery, P. labillardierei Steud., P. phillipsiana Vickery, P. poiformis (Labill.) Druce, P. porphyroclados Nees (including P. serpentum Nees) and P. sieberiana Spreng. Multivariate ordination and clustering analyses of morphological data were conducted and the distribution of morphological diversity among taxa was assessed for congruence with current taxonomic boundaries. One-way analyses of variance and Tukey's honest significant difference tests were applied to identify continuous characters that differentiate taxa. Utility of morphological characters was assessed in light of the distribution of variation among and within taxa. Revisions of P. labillardierei, P. porphyroclados and P. sieberiana circumscriptions are proposed. Accounting for nomenclatural priority, proposed revisions include recognition of P. porphyroclados vars. acris, labillardierei, porphyroclados, and. serpentum, P. sieberiana var. cyanophylla Vickery at species rank, and P. phillipsiana at varietal rank within P. sieberiana. Species boundaries are supported by leaf, culm, panicle, spikelet and floret dimensions. The present study enables increased accuracy in taxonomic identifications for Poa species that are keystones in a range of grassland vegetation types, including critically endangered natural temperate grassland and eucalypt woody grassland ecosystems, therefore contributing to the effective biodiversity monitoring and management of these ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australasian region contains a significant proportion of worldwide Poa diversity, but the evolutionary relationships of taxa from this region are incompletely understood. Most Australasian species have been placed in a monophyletic Poa subgenus, Poa supersection Homalopoa section Brizoides clade, but with limited resolution of relationships. In this study, phylogenetic relationships were reconstructed for Australasian Poa, using three plastid ( rbc L and mat K genes and the rpl32-trn L intergenic spacer) and two nuclear [internal/external transcribed spacer ( ITS/ ETS)] markers. Seventy-five Poa spp. were represented (including 42 Australian, nine New Guinean, nine New Zealand and three Australian/ New Zealand species). Maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference criteria were applied for phylogenetic reconstruction. Divergence dates were estimated using Bayesian inference, with a relaxed clock applied and rates sampled from an uncorrelated log-normal distribution. Australasian Poa spp. are placed in three lineages (section Brizoides, section Parodiochloa and the ' X clade'), each of which is closely related to non- Australasian taxa or clades. Section Brizoides subsection Australopoa is polyphyletic as currently circumscribed. In Australasia, Poa has diversified within the last 4.3 Mya, with divergence dating results broadly congruent with fossil data that record the appearance of vegetation with a prominent grassland understorey or shrubland/grassland mosaic vegetation dating from the mid-Pliocene. © 2014 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2014, 175, 523-552. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on Rorippa dictyosperma and Rorippa cygnorum. Topics discussed include various studies conducted to examine both Rorippa species, characteristics of seeds of both species and seeds collection of both species. It is noted that fresh seeds shed from mature, dehisced pods of Rorippa are mucous and sticky to the touch and this feature can not be used to discriminate either species from related, non-mucous taxa in the genus.

Lobelia claviflora Albr. & R.W.Jobson sp. nov. is described and illustrated, with notes on distribution, habitat, conservation status and features distinguishing it from closely related species of Lobelia and Isotoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hibbertia circinata K.L.McDougall & G.T.Wright (Dilleniaceae: subgen. Hibbertia), a rare, geographically restricted species, is described as new. It is compared with H. linearis DC. and H. saligna DC., and its ecology and conservation status are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]