MEISNER'S PLANTARUM VASCULARIUM GENERA

Abstract

The Plantarum vascuiarium Genera secundum Ordines Naturales ordinata (folio; Leipzig, 1837-43) by the Swiss botanist Carl Friedrich Meisner (1800-74), later Meissner, is in two parts with separate pagination. The Pars prior, Tabulae diagnosticae consists of keys to the families and genera of flowering-plants and vascular cryptogams. The Pars altera, Commentarius supplements this with notes on synonymy, reference to descriptions and illustrations, comments on diagnostic characters and affinities and concise descriptions of additional genera. Although now rarely consulted, it cost its author, une botaniste extremement consciencieux et laborieux , seven years of continuous toil. Some forty generic names were first published in this work, which was contemporary with Endlicher's Genera Plantarum (1836-41) and its supplements 1-3 (1840-43). There existed close bonds of friendship between Meisner, who was a professor at Basel, and Alphonse de Candolle (1806-93) at Geneva. For de Candolle's Prodromus Meisner wrote accounts of the Polygonaceae, Proteaceae, Thymela-