276 



THE GARDENER'S 3I0NTHLY 



[September, 



which they use in traps for catching bear and 

 deer. Gentiana Buergeri, which grows sometimes 

 to the height of three feet, is very frequent, and 

 has a magnificent effect with its chisters of bkie 

 flowers. At Ohotsunai, two small Vacciniums, 

 one with red, the other with black berries, occur 

 abundantly. A greenish white Lichen grows be- 

 tween them, of which the deer are said to be 

 fond in winter. Several rivers run here into 

 the sea, and the plains through which they run 

 would afford good opportunity for cultivation. 

 The soil is a rich loam, and of a dark brownish 

 color. The black Lily mentioned before grows 

 at Kusuri in quite large quantities. 



From here to Akkeshi the road leads through 

 mountains of not very great elevation. The de- 

 ciduous trees give way here to Conifers. They 

 were represented by the Tode and the Yeso 

 Matsu before mentioned, with an undergrowth 

 of Taxus cuspidata called by the Ainos " Unco." 

 It is held in great estimation by them, as they 

 use the tough wood for making their bows. A 

 great deal of moisture must collect in these dis- 

 tricts, as a white Lichen is met with everywhere 

 hanging from the trees. Here I found a wild 

 Raspberry and a red Currant covered with fruit, 

 of which the bears are said to be very fond. The 

 Baspberries favorablj' compare with those culti- 

 vated in foreign countries. The Currant grows 

 about 10 feet high, has large leaves and bears 

 large red fruit, which is rather sour. A shrub 

 which I think to be Philadelphus coronarius was 

 past flowering, and I only saw it in fruit, and 

 waa therefore doubtful as to its identity. An 

 Actinidia, with red leaves which seem to differ 

 m'aterially from the two kinds already men- 

 tioned, I only met in this neigborhood. Around 

 Akkeshi, on the foot of the hills, a Rubus resem- 

 bling a Blackberry, except in the color of its 

 fruit, which is red, grows among the shrubs. 

 The flavor although sweet leaves a bitter taste 

 in the mouth. Wild Strawberries grow abund- 

 antly here, and are said to be of fine flavor. As 

 they were past bearing on my arrival I had no 

 opportunity of testing their merits. The leaves 

 look much like those of the European wild 

 Strawberry. 



Opposite Akkeshi there are two islands, which 

 I visited, but I found nothing different from the 

 mainland ; in fact they were too near and too 

 ■mall to have a flora of their own. 



It was my intention to proceed as far as 

 Nemoro, but the Japanese objected, because they 

 ■aid that the frost would interfere with our in- 



vestigations, and I was reluctantly compelled to 

 return to Sapporo by the same road. 



I left Akkeshi on the 28th of September, 

 taking -with me from the different stations on 

 the road the plants which I had collected. 



At Chitose I met again with Lilium tnedeo- 

 loides, and as it is scarce in other places I pro. 

 cured a large supply of it. 



I reached Sapporo, with all the plants I had 

 collected, on the 28th of September, and after 

 making an additional collection of trees and 

 seeds in that neighborhood, to be forwarded to 

 Tokio, I started for Ishcari. 



This road leads through a fertile and well- 

 wooded country. On the road well-cultivated 

 farms are seen, and the wood is composed of a 

 great variety of beautiful timber trees. It is 

 difficult to say which tree is the most abundant, 

 but near Shinoro the Chestnut and the Walnut 

 are decidedly the most prominent. In the woods 

 around Ishcari, Maples are found more abund- 

 ant. They are generally large trees, but I no- 

 ticed one of smaller growth with leaves colored 

 dark blood red, which had a magnificent effect. 

 All the trees already mentioned, such as ^lagno- 

 lia, Tilia, Aralia, Quercus, &c., seem to flourish 

 and do well here. 



The " Kokuwa," a fruit which had been de- 

 scribed to me as a great delicacy, I here had an 

 opportunity of tasting for the first time. It has 

 a peculiarity of not being eatable befoi'e it baa 

 had a certain amount of frost. Its flavor is deli- 

 cate, and resembles the taste of a fig combined 

 with that of the grape. If taken in large quanti- 

 ties it acts as an astringent medicine. A number 

 of fruits w'ere gathered and preserved in sugar, 

 which I believe Tiave been sent to Tokio. 



On the 5th of October I returned via Sapporo, 

 Tomakomai and Horobets to Tokarumui, and 

 collected on the road all the living plants which 

 I had observed before, but which at that season 

 could not be removed. 



At Tokarumui I was especially fortunate in 

 securing a great variety of trees and shrubs. 

 Among other shrubs I found a Lindera, alwaj'S 

 employed in Japan for making toothpicks, which 

 are a household necessity in this country. Cler- 

 odendron trichotomum grows here to an enor- 

 mous size, sometimes attaining a diameter of 

 one foot and a height of thirty feet. Sanshio 

 (Zanthoxylon) also grows to good sized trees of 

 about the same dimensions. I am convinced that 

 this place is very rich in its vegetation, and it 

 would repay a closer investigation another season. 



