NOTES. 541 



of the year, the Peach and the Cherry are here evergreens, 

 and hence are kept in such a continued state of excitement as 

 to prevent their bearing. The Peach does indeed give a poor 

 crop of fruit of a very inferior quaHty, but although the Cherry 

 blossoms annually, its fruit never comes to perfection." 

 Champion had previously recorded (1843) that the Cherry 

 trees at Nuwara Ehya did not produce fruit. 



In 1898 this statement was brought to the notice of Mr. W, 

 Nock, who had held the post of Curator of the Hakgala Gardens 

 since 1882. Mr. Nock wrote as follows in the " Tropical 

 Agriculturist," XVIII., p. 187 :— 



" The Cherry has not become an evergreen ; it loses its 

 leaves at the end of every year, and for a short time is bare. 

 It flowers abundantly in the locaUty of Nuwara Eliya (6,200 

 ft, elev. ; 57*7° av. temp.). It sets but httle fruit, and that 

 generally falls off before the stoning stage. Occasionally 1 

 have seen fruit colouring, but have never seen one ripe. It 

 is never reproduced by seeds, but plentifully by cuttings and 

 suckers."— T. P. 



Oxalis in Ceylon. — For several years Oxalis has teen a 

 common weed in up-country districts in Ceylon. It has been 

 usually kno^\^l as Manickwattee Weed, and referred to Oxalis 

 violacea Linn. An examination of specimens shows at once 

 that under these names two species are included, which differ 

 widely in the structure of their flowers, the shape of their 

 leaves, and their methods of vegetative reproduction. The 

 commoner species, the real Manickwattee Weed, is Oxalis 

 corymbosa DC, The other species, Oxalis violacea, is rarer. 

 Both species descend as far as Peradeniya, but while 0. 

 corymbosa occurs at that elevation on roadsides and tea 

 estates, 0. violacea is apparently found only m the Botanic 

 Gardens. 



0. corymbosa is a common tropical Aveed, and there is no 

 need of any special explanation to account for its introduction 

 into Ceylon. 0. violacea was recorded by Moon in 1824, \n\l 

 it is doubtful which species he referred to. Trimen, in 1893. 

 recorded that 0. violacea was becomuig a troublesome weed 

 in some parts of the hill districts ; the herbarium spccimcas 



