60 ORNAMENTAL GARDENING 
greater part of the year, falling in the spring when the new foliage 
almost pushes off the old. It has not seeded very well here but 
seed could be imported in abundance. Its broad whitish pods 
are, however, one of its attractive features. 
The Indian Laurel, Ficus nitida, is not a laurel at all nor any 
kin thereto, but one of the figs. It has rather small glossy, thick 
leaves and forms an immense, rounded head of intensely deep 
green foliage. It has been used in Key West for a street tree with 
success and is a great favorite for roads in Cuba and many parts 
of the Orient. It stands hurricanes pretty well and holds its 
leaves all the year. It may be propagated from seed or byslitting 
and balling the limbs with sphagnum, or it can be grown from cut- 
tings. Another fig, Ficus religiosa, the Sacred Ti, Bo or Pipal 
Tree of the Hindus, everywhere held sacred in India, will probably 
make a fairly good road tree. It is a rapid grower, with thick, 
shining, heart shaped leaves which are drawn out to a long point, 
and it has a fine rounded head. It is used in Havana asa shade 
tree on the beautiful Prado and stands hurricanes fairly well. 
The Circassian Bean (Adenanthera pavonina) is a handsome, 
spreading tree with delicate, compound leaves and spikes of 
brownish flowers and spiral pods with brilliant red beans. Ihave 
a fine tree some twenty feet high which stands winds well and is 
a fairly rapid grower. There is another tree in my grounds which 
I am watching with great interest the Myrobalan (Phyllanthus 
emblica), which is without doubt one of the loveliest trees, so far 
as growth and foliage are concerned, that I have ever seen. It 
has long, wand-like shoots, slender, delicate pinnate leaves and in 
appearance resembles, to some extent, a bamboo. It is called a 
large shrub or small tree in the books, but my specimen is twenty- 
five feet high and has a trunk diameter of over a foot, the result 
of some six years growth; De Candolle says it becomes a large 
tree. It would have to be propagated from foreign grown seed 
until it could be got into bearing here. It is grown as far north 
as Japan but Reasoner reports that it is not quite hardy at 
Oneco. 
The mahogany (Swietenia mahagoni) is a native of the Florida 
keys and the extreme lower mainland of the state, growing in 
almost any kind of land from swamp to high hammock. Where 
