INTRODUCTION 



I. Geographical and Ecological Notes 



Only limited studies have been made of the ecological and geographical distribu- 

 tion of plant life in China. One reason for this lies in our very incomplete knowledge 

 of the systematic botany of this great area. The most active interest of botanists 

 working in China has been to collect, identify and describe the plants of her varied 

 flora. 



Before the 1840's western plant collectors were able to secure material only from 

 south China. Then came the explorations of that great introducer of Chinese plants 

 to the West, Robert Fortune, 1843-1861. His early journeys to the regions about 

 Shanghai, Hangchow and Ningpo were described as in the "northern provinces of 

 China." On his latest trip, in 1861, he was able to visit Tokyo and Peking. 



About 1900 there opened in China an era of expeditions by professional collectors 

 of seeds and botanical specimens which covered large and varied areas in western 

 China where the flora was much less disturbed by the activities of man than in 

 central and eastern China. Some of these men made brief visits to Lu Shan, near 

 Kiukiang, in northern Kiangsi, but their chief concern was for rich finds hidden in 

 the mountainous regions farther west, in western Hupeh, Szechuan, Yunnan and Tibet. 



In consequence there had been, until recent years, little intensive study of the 

 plants of east-central China which includes the area we have designated " The Lower 

 Yangtze Valley." (See accompanying map.) This is an area of large agricultural 

 populations, resulting in the predominance of semi-natural rather than natural vegeta- 

 tion cover. 



There remain in the extensive patchwork of semi-natural vegetation and cultivated 

 or urban areas, which constitute the region, a few localities where considerable relics 

 of more nearly natural vegetation remain. These are found mainly in the vicinity 

 of several large Buddhist temples and in the very few mountain-top areas. Among 

 the better known of these favorable collecting areas are: 1) Pau Hua Shan (elevation 

 about 1,500 ft.), in Kiangsu, toward Shanghai from Nanking; 2) Chiu Hua Shan 

 (elevation about 2,000 ft.), and Huang Shan (elevation about 7,000 ft.), in Anhwei, 

 south of the Yangtze River above Wuhu; 3) Lu Shan (elevation about 4,500 ft.), in 

 Kiangsi, between Kiukiang and Poyang Lake; 4) Vicinity of West Lake, in Chekiang, 

 not far from Hangchow. 



The references listed below include geographical and ecological comment which 

 applies to our region: 

 1847. Fortune, Robert. Three years wanderings in the northern provinces of China. 



1924. Jacot, Arthur P. Biological survey by provinces. In China Journ. Sci. and Arts 



2:337-341. 



1925. Steward, Albert N. A trip to Hwang Shan. In China Journ. Sci. and Arts 3: 



77-83. Illustr. 



1926. Hu, H. H. (Hu, Hsien-hsu). A preliminary survey of the forest flora of 



southeastern China. In Contrib. Biol. Lab. Sci. Soc. China 1(5): 1-20. 

 1929. — . The nature of the forest flora of southeastern China. In Peking Soc. Nat. 



Hist. Bui. 4(1): 47-56. 

 1931. Handel-Mazzetti, H. The phytogeographic structure and affinities of China. In 



Fifth Int. Bot. Congress, Cambridge, Rept. of Proc. pp. 513-517. 



