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  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1943 
  

  

  medan 
  rebellion 
  of 
  1867 
  to 
  1878. 
  In 
  the 
  mountainous 
  or 
  hilly 
  Shan- 
  

   tung 
  Peninsula 
  the 
  original 
  forests 
  have 
  disappeared 
  and 
  been 
  re- 
  

   placed 
  in 
  small 
  part 
  through 
  scientific 
  reforestation, 
  in 
  some 
  cases 
  

   with 
  foreign 
  trees 
  such 
  as 
  American 
  black 
  locust, 
  Scotch 
  pine, 
  and 
  

   others. 
  This 
  work 
  was 
  started 
  when 
  the 
  area 
  was 
  partially 
  under 
  

   German 
  control. 
  

  

  The 
  ranges 
  of 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  dominant 
  plants 
  of 
  this 
  northeastern 
  

   region 
  extend 
  northward 
  into 
  Siberia. 
  These 
  species 
  are 
  thus 
  con- 
  

   sidered 
  as 
  Palaearctic. 
  There 
  are, 
  however, 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  endemic 
  

   species 
  of 
  considerable 
  importance. 
  Here 
  occur 
  also 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   plants 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  eastern 
  Asiatic-eastern 
  North 
  American 
  group, 
  

   as 
  for 
  example 
  the 
  popular 
  oriental 
  medicinal 
  plant 
  ginseng. 
  

  

  THE 
  GOBI 
  DESERT 
  REGION 
  

  

  The 
  Gobi 
  Desert 
  region 
  covers 
  most 
  of 
  Inner 
  and 
  Outer 
  Mongolia 
  

   and 
  includes 
  the 
  Ordos 
  Desert 
  within 
  the 
  great 
  bend 
  of 
  the 
  Yellow 
  

   River. 
  It 
  is 
  really 
  the 
  eastern 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  desert 
  region 
  that 
  

   extends 
  from 
  northern 
  Africa 
  across 
  Arabia, 
  Iran, 
  central 
  Asia, 
  

   northern 
  Tibet, 
  and 
  Sinkiang 
  or 
  Chinese 
  Turkestan. 
  The 
  flora 
  of 
  all 
  

   these 
  regions 
  is 
  closely 
  related, 
  the 
  ranges 
  of 
  many 
  species 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  

   Gobi 
  Desert 
  extending 
  far 
  to 
  the 
  west, 
  some 
  even 
  to 
  Africa. 
  The 
  driest 
  

   and 
  most 
  desertlike 
  part 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  south, 
  roughly 
  along 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  the 
  

   Yellow 
  River, 
  where 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  places, 
  especially 
  in 
  the 
  Ordos 
  and 
  

   in 
  eastern 
  Kansu, 
  large 
  wind-blown 
  sand 
  dunes 
  with 
  no 
  vegetation 
  

   to 
  hold 
  them 
  in 
  check. 
  Elsewhere 
  are 
  rock-strewn 
  plains 
  or 
  hills 
  with 
  

   an 
  occasional, 
  usually 
  dry, 
  watercourse, 
  along 
  which 
  occurs 
  some 
  vege- 
  

   tation 
  consisting 
  largely 
  of 
  drought-resistant, 
  dull 
  green 
  shrubs, 
  trees, 
  

   and 
  grasses. 
  Just 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  Yellow 
  River 
  lie 
  paralleling 
  mountain 
  

   ranges, 
  the 
  Alashan 
  and 
  In 
  Shan, 
  which 
  are 
  high 
  enough 
  to 
  intercept 
  

   in 
  summer 
  the 
  remnants 
  of 
  the 
  monsoon 
  winds 
  from 
  the 
  southeast 
  and 
  

   to 
  drain 
  from 
  the 
  clouds 
  sufficient 
  moisture 
  to 
  maintain 
  forests 
  of 
  

   spruce, 
  pine, 
  and 
  poplar. 
  Toward 
  the 
  southeast, 
  east, 
  and 
  north 
  

   the 
  desert 
  becomes 
  more 
  moist 
  and 
  merges 
  into 
  grasslands, 
  which 
  

   in 
  turn 
  merge 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  into 
  the 
  forests 
  or 
  steppes 
  of 
  Siberia 
  and 
  

   on 
  the 
  east 
  into 
  the 
  Manchurian 
  forests. 
  

  

  There 
  are 
  of 
  course 
  very 
  few 
  trees 
  and 
  shrubs 
  in 
  the 
  true 
  desert. 
  

   Those 
  which 
  can 
  survive 
  the 
  extremes 
  of 
  this 
  severe 
  continental 
  climate 
  

   and 
  the 
  scant 
  moisture 
  are 
  mostly 
  willows, 
  elms, 
  poplars, 
  tamarisks, 
  

   saxauls, 
  and 
  a 
  few 
  others. 
  The 
  saxaul 
  {Haloxylon 
  ammodendron) 
  is 
  

   the 
  most 
  characteristic 
  plant 
  of 
  this 
  desert 
  as 
  of 
  all 
  central 
  Asia. 
  It 
  

   is 
  a 
  leafless 
  tree, 
  rarely 
  reaching 
  30 
  feet 
  in 
  height, 
  with 
  green 
  branches, 
  

   and 
  is 
  a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  goosefoot 
  family 
  (Chenopodiacae), 
  which 
  

   is 
  largely 
  composed 
  of 
  herbs 
  and 
  semiwoody 
  shrubs. 
  The 
  garden 
  

   beet 
  and 
  the 
  common 
  lamb's-quarters 
  or 
  pigweed 
  of 
  our 
  gardens 
  and 
  

  

  