JUNE 1 TO SEPTEMBER 30, 1920, • 29 



50726 to 50966— Continued. * 



50835. Jatropha cubcas L. Euphorbiacea. 



"(No, 830. Nyanza, Unindi. March 13, 1920. Herb. No. 708.) Black 

 oil seed. Same as Nos. 459 and Gil [S. P. I. Nos. 50021 and 50239]. 

 Planted as an ornamental." 



50836. Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. Solauacese. Tomato. 

 "(No. 867. N'gano N'gano, Urundi. March 18, 1920.) Small red 



tomato, grown by natives." • 



50837 and 50838. Manihot esculenta Crantz. Euphorblacese. 



(M. utilissima Pohl.) Cassava. 



50837. "(No. 677. Nyanza, Urundi. February 28, 1920.) The 

 sweet cassava ; the roots were eaten fresh and are sweet and very 

 good. Seed is not usually produced but is quite atnmdant here. 



* This is the chief money crop as well as the staple food on the 



lowlands in and about Nyanza and Kigoma, The roots are sold 

 either (1) when fresh, peeled, fermented, dried, and pounded 

 into flour; or (2) as a thick pasty cake (which has no flavor 

 except that derived from wood smoke) made by cooking the flour 

 in water; or (3) prepared by boiling fresh roots and pounding 

 them in a mortar. The leaves are eaten as a green vegetable and 

 the roots eaten in the following ways : Fresh, merely having been 

 * peeled ; baked or boiled ; boiled and pounded to a paste ; peeled, 

 placed in earthen vessels with water and allowed to ferment for 

 three days, then sun dried. These dried roots, which are often 

 perfectly white but at times are covered with a black or blue 

 mold, are either boiled in fat or pounded in a mortar and sifted 

 to a white flour, which is boiled to form a starchy paste. This 

 doughy mass, wrapped in banana-leaf containers, constitutes one 

 of the principal foods of the natives. Containers holding from 

 15 to 20 kilograms of cassava flour each are sold at a rate of 

 about 1.50 francs for 100 kilograms. Corn is abundantly grown 

 but is not as universal as Manihot. Drought may harm the corn 

 crop, but even iu'se^»ere drought a Manihot plantation can be dug 

 up and the roots eaten. The elevated beds on which the plants 

 are cultivated insure the penetration of water into the soil. The 

 old Manihot stems are broken up and placed in the ground at the 

 top of broad ridges 3 feet or so across and 1 to 2 feet high. Its 

 growth is rapid and the weeds and grasses are kept out by occa- 

 sional hoeing. When about 4 years old the plants are dug up 

 , and a new crop started. The fully matured crop forms an open 



thicket 6 to 10 feet high. At Nyanza a leaf spot seemed to be the 

 only disease, and this, although abundant, caused very little dam- 

 age. I have not found any of the bitter cassava ; all plants which 

 I have tasted are sweet." 



Plate III illustrates the native methods of preparing cassava 

 roots for use. 



50838. "(No. 904. Nyanza, Urundi. March 21, 1920.) Sweet 

 cassava." 



50839. Meibomia sp. Fabacece. 

 {Besmodium sp.) 

 "(No. 856. N'gano N'gano, Urundi. March 17, 1920.) A legume with 

 sticky flower branches." 



2210—23 3 



