THE BOTANICAL GARDENS OF CEYLON 197 



tropical beauty is here assembled. The flame tree of Madagascar, 

 named from the brilliant color of the flowers, is a wondrous sight in 

 March and April, the whole tree being a mass of red which hides the 

 dark-green foliage. From India there is a tree, Saraca indica, with a 

 profusion of brilliant orange-yellow flowers ; and from tropical America 

 various trees of the genus Brownea, especially interesting because of 

 the graceful clusters of pendant young leaves. The leaves droop when 

 young and tender, thus presenting very little surface for injury by 

 the overhead sun. As they grow older a horizontal position is assumed 

 and the red color is lost. It is supposed that the red coloring matter 

 acts as a screen which protects the living substance of the young leaves 

 just as the red glass in a photographer's dark-room window protects 

 the sensitive plates from injury by light. 



Among the most interesting plants are the bamboos, of which many 

 different kinds are cultivated, some native, others imported from penin- 

 sular India or from other parts of Asia. Some interesting studies 

 have been made at the gardens on the rate of growth of bamboo stems. 

 These spring up almost as if by magic. To measure the growth from 

 day to day no expensive auxanometer is needed, but only a tape measure 

 and a coolie to climb an adjacent tree with the end of the tape. A 

 day's growth is measured not in millimeters but in feet or inches. 

 Bamboo stems are hollow, as are most grasses — for bamboos are but 

 grasses — and are wonderfully strong considering the weight and the 

 amount of material in them. Indeed, the principle of the hollow 

 cylinder so well known to engineers was long understood by the 

 Asiatics, who use bamboos for building purposes. 



Of economic plants in the garden there seems almost no end. The 

 balmy breezes of Ceylon may v/ell be spice-laden. Ceylon cinnamon 

 is known the world over. The various peppers, as black pepper, long 

 pepper, betel pepper, are woody climbers. A handsome grove of nut- 

 meg trees is planted near the entrance — the trees about seventy years 

 old. On the ground under the trees may be found the seeds, i. e., the 

 nutmegs, and around them a covering, the aril of the botanist, which 

 forms the spice known as mace. Clove trees may be seen also; it is 

 the young flower buds of the tree which are dried to make the cloves 

 of commerce. In the garden one may see the plants which furnish 

 vanilla, citronella oil, tea, indigo, pineapple, ramie, sisal hemp and 

 sago. Almost countless trees there are of economic importance. A few 

 may be named, as those which furnish coffee, chocolate, cola, cocoanut, 

 Brazil nut, camphor, rubber, gamboge and other tropical products. 



In speaking of economic plants mention must be made of the 

 experiment station which is really a part of the garden, although 

 situated across the river. As a matter of fact nearly all the world 

 lies across the river from the Peradeniya gardens, as these are situated 

 in a bend of the stream which flows first north, then west, then south 



