In Puerto Rico floweriiifj usually from January to 

 March, sometimes also in Anjiust, the fruits ma- 

 turing- from February to May. 



The wood is whitish, soft, perishable, and little 

 used in Puerto Rico. 



Formerly the trees were widely planted in 

 Puerto Rico for coffee shade. Now, however, they 

 are not recommended for that purpose. They 

 fjrow to large size, larger than desirable for coffee 

 .shade and thus may compete with the crop be- 

 neath. The weak branches are easily broken by 

 strong winds or hurricanes. The trees are grown 

 also as ornamental and shade trees. 



Centuries ago this species was transported over 

 the Amei-ican tropics from its home in lower slopes 

 of the Andes as a shade tree for coffee and cacao 

 plantations and pastures and for living fences. In 

 some countries, especially in the Andes, this is still 

 a popular coffee shade tree. 



The bark, twigs, and seeds of various species of 

 this genus are more or less toxic. They have pro- 

 vided drugs and medicines locally and have been 

 employed also to stupefy fish. It is reported that 

 the flowers of this species have been eaten in soup 

 and salad. 



Chiefly in coffee plantations in the lower Cordil- 



lera and moist limestone regions of Puerto Rico. 

 Also in St. Thomas. 



MUXICTPALITY AVHERE ESPECIALLY COMMON. 73. 



Range. — Native probably from Venezuela to 

 Panama, south to Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and 

 Brazil. Now extensively planted and naturalized 

 in tropical America north to Guatemala and intro- 

 duced into the Greater Antilles, Guadeloupe, Mar- 

 tinique, and Trinidad and Tobago. Cultivated 

 also in the Old World tropics and recorded from 

 southern Florida. 



Other common names. — bucare gigante, bucare, 

 bucar, brucayo, palo de boya (Puerto Rico) ; bu- 

 matell (St. Thomas) ; brucal, amapola, mapola 

 (Dominican Republic) ; pinon de sombra, bucare 

 (Cuba) ; pito extranjero (Guatemala, El Salva- 

 dor) ; pisamo, saivo, cachimbo, cambulo, pito 

 gigante (Colombia) ; bucare, ceibo (Venezuela) ; 

 bombon (Ecuador) ; amasisa (Peru) ; saibo (Bo- 

 livia) ; anauca (United States) ; mountain immor- 

 telle, bois immortelle (Jamaica, Trinidad) ; 

 anauca immortelle, cocoa-mamma, coffee-mamma 

 (Trinidad) ; bois immortel (Haiti) ; bois immor- 

 tel, immortel jaune (Guadeloupe) ; mulungu 

 (Brazil). 



Botanical synonym. — Erythrina micropteryx 

 Poepj}. 



LEGUME FAMILY (LEGUMINOSAE) 

 PEA SUBFAMILY (LOTOIDEAE; FABACEAE) 



85. Mata-raton, mother-of-cocoa 



Mata-raton, a small introduced tree commonly 

 planted in fence rows and for ornament, is dis- 

 tinguished by: (1) odd pinnate leaves 6-16 inches 

 long with 7-17 ovate, elliptic, or lance-shaped leaf- 

 lets; (2) numerous showy whitish-pink or pur- 

 plish-tinged pea-shaped flowers about % inch 

 long in lateral clusters along old branches when 

 leafless or along branches back of leaves; and (3) 

 flat blackish pods 4-6 inches long. 



A small deciduous tree or shrub, becoming 25 

 feet tall and 8 inches in tnnik diameter, with ir- 

 regular spreading crown of thin foliage. The 

 bark is gray or light brown, smoothish to slightly 

 fissured. Inner bark is whitish and almost taste- 

 less. Young twigs are light green and finely hairy, 

 the older twigs light brown. 



The alternate leaves have slender yellow-green 

 finely hairy axes. Leaflets, paired except the ter- 

 minal one, have hairy stalks about %6 inch long. 

 The thin leaflet blades are li^-2i4 inches long 

 and %-li4 inches wide, short- to long-pointed at 

 apex, rounded or short-pointed at base, not toothed 

 at edges, dull green above, and gray green and 

 slightly hairy beneath. 



The numerous lateral flower clusters (racemes) 

 2-5 inches long are many flowei-ed. The attractive 

 flowers have a slender green stalk and a bell- 

 shaped light green calyx tinged with red, i/4 inch 



196 



Gliricidia septum (Jacq.) Steud.* 



long and broad, minutely 5-toothed at apex; the 

 butterfly-shaped corolla about % inch long con- 

 sists of 5 whitish-pink or purplish-tinged petals, 

 the broad .standard turned back and yellowish near 

 base, 2 oblong curved wings, and 2 united petals 

 forming a keel ; 10 whitish stamens % inch long, 

 9 united in a tube and 1 separate; and pistil % 

 inch long, with stalked narrow red ovary and 

 whitish bent style. 



The pods are yellow green when immature, turn- 

 ing blackish, i/^-% inch wide, short-stalked at base 

 and short-pointed at apex, splitting open at ma- 

 turity. There are 3-8 flat, elliptic, shiny, blackish 

 seeds % inch lon^ (2,000 to a pound). Flowering 

 in winter and spring (December to May) , the fruit 

 maturing from winter to summer. 



The sapwood is light brown and the heartwood 

 dark brown, turning reddish brown on exposure. 

 The wood is hard, heavy, strong, and considered 

 durable in the ground as posts. It is used chiefly 

 for this purpose in Puerto Rico because promptly 

 set posts generally sprout and take root, lasting 

 indefinitely. Elsewhere the wood has been em- 

 ployed for railroad ties and heavy construction. 

 Pretty and taking a good polish, it should be suit- 

 able for furniture and small articles. 



This tree is a popular ornamental or hedge plant, 

 being readily propagated from cuttings as well as 



