APRIL 1 TO MAY 31, 1920. 3 



pinon may grow in the valleys of Arizona and California; because 

 of the size of its nuts it may also be valuable commercially. 



The Australian quandong (Mida acuminata; No, 49893) which is 

 said to have wonderful drought-enduring qualities, growing as it 

 does in the hotter, drier parts of New South AVales, should attract 

 horticulturists of Arizona and California if its fruits, as reported, 

 make preserves resembling that of the guava. 



Dr. H. L. Shantz continues in this inventory the notes on material 

 collected by him while attached as Agricultural Explorer of the 

 Bureau of Plant Industry to the Smithsonian expedition to central 

 and East Africa. The hurried nature of his trip of reconnaissance, 

 in which he covered in a year's time an area nearly four times the extent 

 of the whole Atlantic seaboard of the United States, made it impos- 

 sible for him to get complete data on many of the things he collected, 

 and this fact explains the fragmentarj^ nature of many of his notes. 



The remarkable behavior of kafirs and other sorghums and Sudan 

 grass from iVfrica made it seem possible that strains of these im- 

 portant cereal and forage crops might be found which would be 

 superior to those already introduced. Consequently Doctor Shantz 

 collected samples of these from the various regions which he visited 

 (Holcus spp.; Nos. 50008 to 50019 and 50077 to 50079). He also 

 obtained seeds of the mombo tree (Brachystegia sp.; No. 50207), the 

 bark of which furnished the natives with cloth before calicos were 

 imported. 



Pachylohus sp. (No. 50243) , a forest tree bearing nuts that are edible 

 after boiling, and Ricinodendron sp. (No. 50270), bearing sweet- 

 fleshed fruits with edible oily kernels, are two other new and promis- 

 ing introductions resulting from Doctor Shantz's exploration. 



Dr. E. D. Merrill, director of the Bureau of Science in Manila, has 

 sent in a blue-flowered Lobelia {L. nicotianaefolia; No. 50314) which 

 grows to be more than 9 feet tall and should be useful for breeding 

 purposes, even if not adapted for outside culture in this country. 



Dr. Carlos Spegazzini, of La Plata, Argentina, has presented 10 

 species of Prosopis (Nos. 50092 to 50101), leguminous trees and 

 shi'ubs, the pods of some of which are very valuable as stock feed. 



J. Burtt Davy made for us, just before he left South iVfrica, a col- 

 lection of^ trees, shi'ubs, and grass seeds covering 105 numbers (Nos. 

 50102 to 50206). Among them are many which may contribute to 

 the afforestation problem of the Hawaiian Islands and several which, 

 because of their edible fruits, may prove of value in California and 

 southern Florida; these include the mupundu (Parinari mohola; 

 No. 50167), the mahobohobo {Uapaca sansibarica; No. 50190), three 

 species of jujube {Ziziplius spp.; Nos. 50196 to 50198), Balanites 

 aegyptiaca (Nos. 50120 and 50121) ; and Mimusops zeyTieri (Nos. 50163 



