158 proceedings: botanical society 



THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



The 110th regular meeting of the Botanical Society of Washington 

 was held in the Assembly Hall of the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m., Tuesday, 

 February 1, 1916. Fifty-three members and four guests were present. 

 Messrs. Chas. H. Clark, Felix J. Schneiderhan, and T. Tanaka 

 were elected to membership. The following papers were presented: 



Egyptian use of date tree products other than fruit (with lantern) : 

 S. C. Mason. (To be published in full elsewhere.) 



Botanical and economic notes on the dasheen (with lantern and ex- 

 hibit): R. A. Young. 



The dasheens represent one type of the taro, which is well known 

 in the Orient and the islands of the Pacific. All belong to the genus 

 Colocasia. The variety under special consideration was the one known 

 as the "Trinidad," from the island of Trinidad; it is believed to have 

 come originally from China. Slides were shown illustrating the dif- 

 ferences in floral and other characters between two very distinct types 

 of Colocasia, which for the past sixty years have been included under 

 the name C. antiquorum (L.) Schott. One of the types, which includes 

 the dasheen, was recognized tentatively by Schott, in 1832, as a good 

 species under the name C. esculenta (L.) Schott. In 1856 he reduced 

 it to a varietal rank. The other type, which is represented by the 

 "qolqas" or "colocasia" of Egypt, is the species C. antiquorum. It 

 is contended that the reduction of C. esculenta to varietal rank, was an 

 error and it is proposed to restore it to specific rank. The true C. anti- 

 quorum properly includes the common elephant-ear plant, generally 

 referred to as Caladium esculentum of Ventenat. 



The dasheen is gaining in importance in the far south, and a northern 

 market is developing. Many culinary experiments have been made 

 and a number of delicious and attractive dishes have resulted. 



After the program, dasheens which had been parboiled and baked 

 with electric stoves, were served. 



The pathological inspection work of the Federal Horticidtural Board. 

 Geo. R. Lyman. 



The Plant Quarantine Law seeks to prevent the introduction into 

 the United States of injurious plant diseases from abroad by requir- 

 ing the inspection of imported plant material. The inspection of com- 

 mercial importations presents few difficulties, inasmuch as the variety 

 of host plants involved is not great and the importations are ordinarily 

 from countries where the diseases are well known. But importations 

 by the Department of Agriculture for experimental and introduction 

 purposes present many problems, since they come from every quarter 

 of the globe and are practically unlimited in variety of host plant. 

 Both host and disease may be new and hence potentially dangerous. 

 All such importations are received in a specially constructed inspection 

 house in Washington, and the packages are opened in the presence of 

 the inspectors, all wrappings being burned. The plant material is 

 closely examined and suspicious specimens are referred to experts of 

 the Department of Agriculture for study and determination. Extra- 



