﻿PLANTS 
  OF 
  CHINA 
  — 
  WALKER 
  345 
  

  

  and 
  their 
  rather 
  narrow 
  valleys, 
  and 
  of 
  similar 
  delta 
  areas 
  along 
  

   the 
  coast. 
  Here 
  the 
  luxuriant 
  vegetation 
  is 
  under 
  complete 
  control, 
  

   and 
  the 
  hills 
  that 
  protrude 
  through 
  the 
  delta 
  plains 
  are 
  given 
  over 
  

   to 
  the 
  graves 
  of 
  past 
  generations 
  on 
  which 
  the 
  cattle 
  graze. 
  There 
  

   is 
  little 
  room 
  for 
  native 
  forests 
  and 
  no 
  incentive 
  to 
  develop 
  them. 
  

   Hainan 
  Island, 
  being 
  more 
  thinly 
  populated 
  with 
  Chinese 
  around 
  the 
  

   edges 
  and 
  with 
  more 
  primitive 
  peoples 
  in 
  the 
  interior, 
  still 
  has 
  

   tropical 
  jungles, 
  which 
  vary 
  in 
  character 
  at 
  different 
  altitudes. 
  On 
  

   the 
  higher 
  parts 
  are 
  oak-chestnut 
  forests 
  with 
  broadleaved 
  evergreen 
  

   rain 
  forests 
  below. 
  

  

  Hong 
  Kong 
  Island 
  and 
  Kwangtung 
  are 
  botanically 
  the 
  best-ex- 
  

   plored 
  parts 
  of 
  China, 
  the 
  flora 
  of 
  Hong 
  Kong 
  published 
  in 
  1861 
  being 
  

   the 
  first 
  real 
  plant 
  manual 
  of 
  any 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  country. 
  The 
  flora 
  is 
  

   rich 
  in 
  species 
  but 
  poor 
  in 
  numbers 
  of 
  plants. 
  In 
  Hong 
  Kong 
  much 
  

   reforestation 
  has 
  been 
  carried 
  on 
  by 
  the 
  British, 
  and 
  the 
  appearance 
  

   of 
  that 
  island 
  contrasts 
  sharply 
  with 
  that 
  of 
  adjacent 
  islands 
  and 
  

   the 
  mainland. 
  The 
  red 
  pine 
  {Pinus 
  massoniana) 
  occurs 
  widely 
  

   throughout 
  south 
  China, 
  usually 
  planted 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  widely 
  spaced 
  

   on 
  the 
  mountains, 
  but 
  sometimes 
  as 
  groves, 
  and 
  occurs 
  spontaneously 
  

   as 
  a 
  forest 
  tree 
  in 
  the 
  mountains 
  of 
  Fukien 
  and 
  Chekiang. 
  The 
  wide 
  

   spacing 
  of 
  the 
  planted 
  trees 
  encourages 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  side 
  

   branches, 
  which 
  are 
  eventually 
  cut 
  off 
  (pi. 
  2) 
  and 
  used 
  as 
  fuel 
  in 
  

   brick 
  and 
  lime 
  kilns. 
  The 
  groves 
  are 
  needed 
  for 
  geomantic 
  or 
  "fung- 
  

   shui" 
  purposes, 
  to 
  propitiate 
  the 
  evil 
  spirits 
  which 
  are 
  popularly 
  sup- 
  

   posed 
  to 
  infest 
  the 
  country 
  (pi. 
  4, 
  fig. 
  1). 
  

  

  Another 
  common 
  tree 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  is 
  the 
  banyan, 
  of 
  which 
  there 
  

   are 
  several 
  species 
  (pi. 
  5, 
  fig. 
  2). 
  These 
  trees 
  have 
  little 
  use 
  as 
  fuel 
  

   or 
  timber. 
  Hence 
  they 
  grow 
  unmolested, 
  spreading 
  wide 
  over 
  the 
  

   villages 
  and 
  temples 
  their 
  huge 
  branches 
  from 
  thick, 
  gnarled 
  and 
  fur- 
  

   rowed 
  trunks, 
  which 
  rise 
  from 
  a 
  broad, 
  often 
  exposed 
  base 
  of 
  tangled 
  

   roots. 
  Palm 
  trees, 
  mostly 
  cultivated, 
  can 
  be 
  seen 
  in 
  places, 
  and 
  

   clumps, 
  groves, 
  and 
  even 
  small 
  planted 
  forests 
  of 
  bamboo 
  add 
  much 
  

   to 
  the 
  picturesqueness 
  of 
  the 
  landscape. 
  Planted 
  or 
  possibly 
  spon- 
  

   taneous 
  along 
  the 
  muddy 
  tidal 
  canals 
  and 
  channels 
  of 
  the 
  delta 
  occurs 
  

   the 
  water 
  pine 
  {Glyptostrohus 
  pensilis), 
  a 
  close 
  relative 
  of 
  the 
  bald 
  

   cypress 
  of 
  our 
  southern 
  swamps. 
  Strangely 
  enough 
  this 
  species 
  has 
  

   been 
  found 
  in 
  abundance 
  growing 
  spontaneously 
  on 
  hilltops 
  in 
  

   Kiangsi 
  Province 
  in 
  middle 
  China. 
  Our 
  own 
  cypress 
  will 
  also 
  grow 
  

   in 
  much 
  drier 
  situations 
  than 
  in 
  its 
  characteristic 
  swamp 
  habitat, 
  

   especially 
  with 
  human 
  encouragement. 
  

  

  The 
  vegetation 
  of 
  Kwangsi 
  Province 
  is 
  very 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  

   Kwangtung 
  but 
  has 
  more 
  forests 
  and 
  perhaps 
  a 
  few 
  more 
  Indo- 
  

   Chinese 
  species, 
  at 
  least 
  in 
  the 
  south. 
  (See 
  pi. 
  3). 
  Extensive 
  

   botanical 
  collections 
  have 
  only 
  rather 
  recently 
  been 
  made, 
  and 
  as 
  yet 
  

   little 
  has 
  been 
  written 
  of 
  the 
  vegetation 
  of 
  the 
  province 
  as 
  a 
  whole. 
  

  

  