geminate flowers, but in Herbarium specimens communti- 
cated by Seringe, a very good authority, I find them fascicled 
as in our figure. Loiseleur, after Duhamel, also an excellent 
authority, describes the sepals as lanceolate, and petals oval- 
oblong, which also is not the case in the specimen figured. 
Lastly, in “ Miller’s Gardener's Dictionary,” the Myrobalan 
is kept distinct from the Cerisette, and described as having a 
blue-purple fruit. 
The exact affinity of the Myrobalan ‘plum is equally 
doubtful. Linnzus referred it as a variety to the common 
Plum, P. domestica, from which it is readily distinguished 
by the glabrous peduncles, globose fruit intruded at the 
base,. acute almost beaked stone, and by its very early 
flowering. From the Bullace, P. insititia, it differs in its 
glabrous branchlets and leaves, and in the flowers appearing 
before the leaves. Loudon refers it to P. domestica, and 
further considers domestica to be a cultivated form of P. ins? 
titia, from which last he says the Myrobalan plum appears 
to him “ to be the first remove.” In his figure of the fruit 
the stone is represented as rounded at the summit, which is 
contrary to the character given by other authors and to our 
specimen. Lastly, Koch refers to it the beautiful P. divar- 
cata of Siberia, the most showy of the spring flowering 
plums, which, however, differs exceedingly in habit, in the 
leaves appearing much sooner after the flowers, and in the 
oblong yellow fruit, which is not intruded at the base. My 
own opinion is, that both P. cerasifera and domestica are cul- 
tivated states of P. insititia. 
The native country of the Myrobalan is unknown (except, 
indeed, we accept Koch’s opinion, and refer it to P. divari- 
cata, which inhabits the Caucasian provinces) ; the earlier 
authors, down to Duhamel, ascribed it to North America, 
where, however, Pursh says that it is found only about 
houses, and all later ones mention it as to be seen only in 
European gardens. Cosson and Germain, in their “ Flora of 
Paris,” state that it is naturalized on the banks of the Seine, 
near the Park of Saint-Maur, but specimens from this locality 
in Gay’s “Herbarium” are marked with a doubt, and 
appear to me to be referable to P. insititia, having a nearly 
orbicular stone, and leaves very pubescent beneath. 
The Myrobalan plum well deserves cultivation for its 
early flowering, though on this account it seldom fruits, 
being generally injured by the frost. The fruit is acid and 
flesh firm.—J. D. H. 
