Nov. 2, 1885.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



351 



THE SQUARE BAMBOO. 



Tlie cylindrical form of the stems of grasses is 

 60 miiversal a feature ill the family that the report 

 of the existeuee in China ami Japan of a bamboo 

 with manifestly four-angled stems, has generally 

 been considered a myth, or, at any rate, as founded 

 on some diseasetl or abnormal condition of a species 

 having stems, when properly developed, circular in 

 section. 



Of the existence of such a bamboo there cannot, 

 however, now be any kind of doubt. It is figured 

 in a Japanese book, the "So moku kin yo sin." 

 (Trees and shrubs with ornamental foliagd), publishe 1 

 at Kyoto in 1829, and the figure is rapi-oduced by 

 Count Oastillon in the Rcinie llurtUule (1876, p. il.) 

 It is further figured in a work for a copy of which 

 we are indebted to my fri^'ud Prof. Kinch (formerly 

 of Tokiyo), called the ".lu-moku Shiii-ynku" — i.e, 

 a .short description of trees (of Jap.in^. Finally, in 

 IStiO, Sic'ssrs. A'eitch presented to the Kew JIu.seum 

 fine specimens of the stem of the square bamboo, 

 brought from Japan by their intelligent collector 

 Mr. C. Maries. 



M. Carriere states, in an editoral note to Count 

 Castillon's article, that the plant had been introduced 

 into France at that date, antl was indeed actually 

 on sale in the nurseries near Autibes. 



Nothing, however, till quite recently, appears to 

 have be.ii known as to the existence oi the square 

 liamboo in China, from which country, however, it 

 is LXtremely probable that the Japanese procured it. 

 Thus, Jlr. F. B. Forbes, whose personal knowledge 

 of the Chinese flora is only secontl, perhaps, to that 

 of Dr. Hauce, informs me.- — "I have never seen 

 the .square bamboo growing, and I have always sup- 

 posed that its 'squaiity' was artfioially produced." 



The first authentic account of its occurrence in 

 China is, as far as I know, due to Mr. Frederick 

 iS. A. 1-iourne, of H. B. M. Chinese Consular Service. 

 Jlr. Bourue wrote to us, October 1-5, 1S8'2, that he 

 had made a journey from Foochow to a distance of 

 lilJO miles to the western border of the Fokien 

 province, reaching Wu-i-kung, the celebrated monast- 

 ery in th'j Bjhea hills— a place, Mr. Bourne 3tates, 

 "only vis. ted by a Kuropean once before, I believe— 

 i. 0., by Mr, Fortune, about the year 184.5." In the 

 gardens of this monastry he found several clumps of 

 the square bamboo grooving to the height of about 

 eight feet. 



The Tropical AgnCHltm-Ut (an astonishing repertory 

 of everything relatiug to the economic botany of the 

 Eist) cont:iins in its issue for November, 1882 (p. 

 44.5), an arliele extracted from the NorWi tliimi 

 lUrald, also relating to the square bamboo, plants 

 of which, destined for the park at San Francisco, 

 h;id been obtained by Dr. Macgowan at "VV^enchow.* * * 



Dr. Macjowan being well known to botanists for 

 his intelligent interest in all that relates to the 

 vegetable production of China, I ventured to write 

 to him to ask his aid in lirocuring living specimens 

 of his interesting plant for the Koyal Gardens. 

 Through bis kindness and that of Mr. E. H. Parker, 

 late acting consul at ^Venchow, we were fortunate 

 enough to receive a Wardian case filled with plants 

 of the square bamboo, some of which at least appeared 

 t) be alive an 1 hkely to grow. Besides these. Dr. 

 iMacgowan sent us specimens of walking sticks and 

 pipe--tc-nis mads from it. 



I quote the following ])assages from the very 

 interesting communication with which Dr. JIacgowan 

 was also good enough to favour us: — 



"Its ge .graphical range is fiom 25' to 30° N. 

 latitude, littoral, and westward farther than I have 

 been able to discover. Unlike other varieties of 

 bamboo hi're. its shoots are developed in the autumn, 

 not in the spring. It sprouts in September or October, 

 and the steins grow until they jire arresterl liy 

 December cold, by which time they attain a height 

 ot from two to four or five feet. In the spring 

 following their growth recommences, when the grass 

 attains its full height, ten to fourteen feet. The lower 



portion of the culms bristle with short spines; iu 

 the second or third year their squareness is far less 

 strikiug than when matured by several years' growth ; 

 that quality is sometimes so marked that native 

 botanist describes them as appearing like rods pared 

 by cutting instruments. I have seldom found the 

 corners much more .sharply defined than in the largest 

 of the specimens herewith transmitted. It is cultiv- 

 ated chiefly for ornament in gardens, in temple 

 court.s, &c. ; the stems (sometimes as much as an 

 inch-and- a-hiilf through) are used for staves; the 

 smalU'r ami less squarish for stems of opium-pipes ; 

 and the sm illest and less mature for tohaccj-pipe.s." 



He fur. her adds: — "Its anomalousness is attributed 

 by Cliiuese to supernatural powers — occult agencies 

 varying with each district. The ^V!Hf//)0 6'rt--f«. (V tells 

 how Ko Hung, the most famous of alchemists (fourth 

 century a. d.), thrust his chopsticks (slender bamboo 

 rods pared square) into the ground of the spiritual 

 monastery near that city, which, by thaumaturgical 

 art, he caused to take root and to appear as a new 

 variety of bamboo — square." 



As no flowering specimens of the scjuare bamboo 

 ha-ve reached the hands of botanists, its taxonomic 

 position must .at present be regarded as doubtful. 

 Kiviere " Bes Bambous," p. 315) refers to it as the 

 Baitihm carre, and Feuzi, quot'iig from Kiviere, (A'art. 

 Soc. To.<c. di Orf., 18j0. p. 4(;i), gives it thft name 

 Jiinnhusa fjttatJrunf//ihir/s. 



I cm discover no reference to it in the late 

 General Monro's dassicil monograph of the Bamhvsacerr 

 (Trans. Lin. Noe., vol. xxvi. ). Of the three groups 

 into which he divides the genera, in only one, '/\ t- 

 fy/nssr/", is theie any tendency to depart from the habit of 

 the order in having anything but round stems; and 

 this only occurs in the small genus J'kyl/odaflii/s, in 

 which they are somewhat laterally flattened," The 

 stems of Jiij/l/ustuchi/s iiir/ra are often used iu Kiirope 

 for walking-sticks and light broom-handles. 



But I do not think the square bamboo will turn out to 

 be a Ph/l/ostaclii/s. Munro has a JJaihhusa anyulata 

 which is distinguished from all its allies by having 

 the branches of the panicle angular. This is the only 

 tendency to angularity of stem which I have dis- 

 covered among the true IJamlnise(f. 



For the present, at any rate, the species must be 

 known provisionally as BamJn'sa quadrauriu/ar is, Feny.i 

 W. T. THtsEi.TON "Dyeb. — yature. 



THE TRADE IN SAFFLOWER. 



With the exception of Madder there is no veget- 

 able dye that has been so largely interfered with as 

 Saftiower, by the introduction of the .artificial dyes 

 prepared by the chemist. It is chiefly a product of 

 the East, and there it still retains some value among 

 the natives. From 18.51 to 1855 the ofticial value of 

 the SaBiower imported into this country ranged from 

 £71,000 to .il34,(IOO. Sixteen years ago we received 

 over 32,n00 ewt. Last year our imports fell below 

 1,4()() cwt,, valued at but £3,-500. In contrast to this 

 our imports of aniline dyes from abroad (exclusive of 

 those made at home) exceeded in value £710, (H)0. 

 Carthamus tinctoiius [a Composite plant | is grown 

 exten.sively all over India, mostly as a subonlinate 

 crop. That grown in Dacca is the best in Indi.a. and 

 ranks next to that of China. It is an annual, growing 

 to 1 to 2 feet iu height. 



The plants begin to flower in February, when 

 about 2i feet high ; from then till M.ay the flower 

 are picked off each day as they appear, leaving the 

 llower-heaus on the stalk. All that is detached is 

 the fragile-looking corola, which issues from the 

 summit of the prickly Teazle-like flower-head. When 

 these are picked off, their subsequent treatment 

 depends on whether they are to be made up into the 

 Salllovver of commerce or whether they are merely to 

 be prepared for dyeing purposes in the country. If the 

 former is intended the florets are damped with water 

 and pressed into lumps. A rough strainer is made by 

 stretchng a mat on a wooden frame; on this the lumps 



