28 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



43451 to 43461— Continued. 



the ash {Fraxinus excelsior). This tree is found in the Peruvian Andes 

 on the tributaries of the River Guancabamba. (Adapted from Humholdt 

 and Bonpland, Plantes Equinoxiales, pp. Ifl-H, PT" IS.) 

 43461. ScHiNOPSis LOEENTzii (Griseb.) Engl. Anacardiacese. 



(Quebrachia lorentzii Griseb.) Quebracho. 



A tall timber tree, native of central South America, attaining a height 

 of 50 to 75 feet and a diameter of 2 to 4 feet. The leaves are composed 

 of 10 to 15 pairs of pinnte and the flowers occur in panicles. The fruit 

 is a dry, indehiscent samara. The heartwood of this ti-ee is one of the 

 hardest, heaviest, and most durable timbers in the region of its occur- 

 rence. It contains a large amount (20 to 24 per cent) of tannin, which 

 acts as a preservative, and it is used extensively for railroad ties, 

 wharves, dry docks, fence posts, etc. The wood is whiter than that of 

 the Quebracho Colorado of the Chaco. (Adapted from Mell, Forest Serv- 

 ice Circular 202, and from Venturi and Lillo, Contribuct^n al Conoci- 

 miento de los Arboles de la Argentina, p. 3.) 



43462. PiNus MERKusii Jungh. and DeVr. Pinaceae. Pine. 



From Buitenzorg, Java. Presented by the director, Botanic Gardens. 

 Received October 16, 1916. 



This tree, which is the only pine found south of the Equator, attains a 

 height of 100 feet and forms a flat, umbrellalike crown. It is found in Burma, 

 Borneo, Sumatra, and the Philippines, chiefly at elevations of 3,000 to 4,000 

 feet. The leaves are in clusters of two, the cones are usually in pairs, and the 

 seeds are smiill, much shorter tlian the uneqiial-sided wiug. The wood is very 

 resinous, and the trunks are used for masts and spars. (Adapted from Brandis, 

 Indian Trees, p. 691, and from Mueller, Select Extra-Tropical Plants, pp. 

 39 3-3 9 Jj.) 



43463 and 43464. 



From the Himalaya Mountains. Collected by Mr. R. E. Cooper and pre- 

 sented by Mr. A. K. Bulley, Bees Ltd., Liverpool, England. Received 

 October 16, 1916. Quoted notes by Mr. Cooper. 



43463. Chenopodium sp. Chenopodiacesp. 



( Cooper No. 5259. ) " This plant grows in sandy soil at an elevation of 

 10,CKX) feet and forms a rosette of red-fruited sprays about 11 inches 

 in diameter." 



43464. Delphinium sp. Ranunculacese. Larkspur. 



(Cooper No. 5355.) "This plant grows at an altitude of 10,000 feet 

 and was in fruit only under moist gravel banks." 



43465. Chorisia insignis H. B. K. Bombacacese. 



From Guayaquil, Ecuador. Presented by the American consul, through 

 Mr. L. H. Dewey,' of the Department of Agriculture. Received November 

 9, 1916. 



" This is one of the silk-cotton trees, although not of such econonric im- 

 portance as the true kapok. The silk cotton is very nice and useful for stuffing 

 pillows. The trunks of the young trees are spiny, but shed the spines with 

 advancing age. I have seen trees of this species in the foothills of Salta with 

 a diameter of 2 meters 40 centimeters, looking like immense onions. Some of 

 the inhabitants there use the partly hollowed trunks of the live trees around 



