OCTOBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1909. 9 



varieties have also been introduced from Bogota, Colombia (Nos. 

 26126 to 26129). 



The Arracacia of South America forms a staple food of the Vene- 

 zuelans, who know it under the name of apio. It is cultivated in 

 high altitudes and requires a long season in which to mature. It 

 deserves a thorough trial in the South to determine where it will suc- 

 ceed. (Xo. 26204.) 



The destructive fungous disease of the chestnut, which threatens to 

 destroy the native chestnut trees of the Atlantic coast region, makes 

 the production of a chestnut-chinquapin hybrid of unusual interest, 

 since its resistance to this bark disease may furnish a way out of a 

 situation which seriously threatens the chestnut industry. Doctor 

 Van Fleet's hybrids (Nos. 26230 to 26235) have so far shown a high 

 degree of immunity to the disease. 



The interest in the Japanese flowering cherry trees, which have been 

 found to succeed well in the United States, makes it worth while to 

 call attention to seven Chinese flowering cherry trees from the Yangtze 

 Valley, collected by Mr. E. H. Wilson, of the Arnold Arboretum. 

 (Nos. 26246 to 26252.) 



For many years attempts have been made to introduce the cliff- 

 grown tea and the teas from the Dragon Pool, of the Kienningfu and 

 Wuishan districts of China, but without success. Through the kind 

 assistance of Mr. Rockhill, ambassador to Russia, formerly American' 

 ambassador to China, and the hearty cooperation of the American 

 consul and vice-consul at Foochow, fourteen varieties of these spe- 

 cially noted teas have been introduced and are being propagated. 



As heretofore, the work of identification and nomenclature, as 



well as that on the geographical distribution, has been done by Mr. 



H. C. Skeels under the supervision of Mr. W. F. Wight, of the Office 



of Taxonomic and Range Investigations, and the manuscript has 



been prepared by Miss Mary A. Austin. 



David Fairchild, 



Agricultural Explorer in Charge. 



Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, 



Washington, D. C, March 7, 1910. 



65739°— Bui. 205—11 2 



