safford: notes on dahlia 373 



sharply 5 -toothed, yellow, 10 mm. long; mature achenia, 1.5 mm. 

 long. 



Type in the U. S National Herbarium, no. 473271, collected at 

 Socoyoct^, Department of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, January 16, 1905, 

 by William R. Maxon (no. 3295). 



Distribution: Mountains of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, and across 

 the boimdary into the state of Chiapas, Mexico. 



This handsome tree dahlia is named in honor of Mr. William R. 

 Maxon, collector of the type material. It is further represented in 

 the U. S. National Herbarium by specimens from Sepacuite, Alta 

 Verapaz, collected by George P. Goll (no. 224), Guatemala, without 

 definite locality, by Heyde (no. 319) and Mrs. William Owen (no. 2a 

 "Tzoloj"); in cultivation near Guatemala City by Wilson Popenoe (no. 

 728); and in the vicinity of San Cristobal, state of Chiapas, Mexico, 

 at an elevation of 7000 to 8800 feet, by E. W. Nelson (no. 3173). 



In Mr. Maxon's field notes he describes it as a plant "8 to 15 feet 

 high; flowers lavender-pinkish, 4 inches across; buds and young shoots 

 eaten as 'greens;' a very common plant." Mr. Popenoe's notes, dated 

 Tactic, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, December 16, 19 16, are as follows: 



"This tree dahlia is extensively used here for hedges. The stems are 

 cut and inserted in the ground, projecting three or four feet; they take 

 root and grow, and when the plants have reached ten or twelve feet 

 in height they produce quantities of lilac-pink flowers, three to five 

 inches broad. Just now they are in all their glory, and Tactic is brilliant 

 with them. This impresses me as being an unusually fine decorative 

 plant. It should be cultivated in the United States. In addition to 

 the typical form, — single pink, — three others are known in this region. 

 Some of them may be distinct species. The people say they are wild 

 plants. One resembles the typical form except that it is quite double. 

 Another is a single white, its flowers resembling those of the single pink 

 in everything except color. The fourth form is double white. The 

 flowers of this form are very handsome and are used by the Indians to 

 adorn the images of saints which they keep in their houses. Don 

 Matias Acevedo says that water contained in the hollow stems is medi- 

 cinal. It is used here as a gargle in cases of sore throat. This plant 

 is called shikor in Pokomchi,^ which is the language spoken in Tactic. 

 In Kekchi, which is the language spoken throughout most of the Alta 

 Verapaz, the name is tzoloj." 



