Tas. 6540. 
POLYGONUM SACHALINENSR. 
Native of Japan and the Island of Sachalin.. 
Nat. Ord. Potyeonacex.—Tribe PotyGonex. 
Genus Potyaonum, Linn.; (Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. Pl. vol. iii. p. 99.) 
Potyconum (Pleuropterus) sachalinense; caulibus dense fasciculatis erectis 
elongatis fistulosis sulcatis foliosis, foliis magnis glabris breviter petiolatis 
ovatis v. oblongo-ovatis acutis v. acuminatis basi truncatis v. cordatis subtu 
glaucescentibus, ochreis fissis deciduis, racemis axillaribus et terminalibus 
compositis confertifloris foliis multoties brevioribus rachibus tomentosis, floribus 
parvis glaberrimis, bracteis ovatis longe acuminatis, pedicellis capillaribus infra 
medium articulatis, perianthio fructifero elongato-obcordato 3-alato alis acutis, 
stigmatibus 3 subsessilibus. 
P. sachalinense, . Schmidt in Primit. Fl. Amur. p. 233; Regel Gartenfl. 1864, 
p. 68, t. 429; Carriére in Rev. Hortic. 1876, p. 36, cum Ic. Xylog.; Masters . 
in Gard. Chron. 1870, p. 1599. —- 
This is by far the noblest species of Polygonum known in 
cultivation, if not the noblest of the genus, forming, as it 
does, clumps six to eight feet high and broad, of innumerable 
rich red-brown wand-like stems that spread and droop 
gracefully all round, loaded with magnificent leaves, which 
attain a length of eighteen inches and breadth of ten. It 
belongs to a set of N. H. Asiatic and Japanese species, of 
which two have been lately figured in this work, namely, P. 
compactum, Tab. 6476, and P. cuspidatum, Tab, 6503, both 
of which it surpasses in size and beauty of foliage, but not 
in inflorescence, which is very poor in comparison, of an 
inconspicuous greenish-yellow hue. : 
Polygonum sachalinense was discovered in Amur-land by 
the celebrated Russian botanist and traveller Maximovicz, 
and the first notice I find of its being cultivated is in the 
Moscow Zoological Gardens, where it was seen by M. André 
in 1869. It was, however, known in England before that 
‘date, and, if I mistake not, was in cultivation at Kew 
at least twenty years ago, having been probably introduced 
FEBRUARY Ist, 881. 
