Sicielenia. ] MELIACEJB. 75 



The following measurements of Suhuranpur trees are taken from an article in the 

 Indian Agriculturist, of the 1st June 1876: 



Trees planted in 1827-28 measured in .May 1873, at 3 feet from ground: 

 No. 1 . . .90 inches. \ 

 2 . . . 77 /Height, 80 to 100 fert. 

 3 . . . 72 V Average girth, 88 

 4 . . . 101 \ inches. 

 5 . . . 101 ) 

 Trees planted in 1839 measured in May 1873, at 3 feet from ground : 



No. 1 . . .57 inches. Height, 55 feet. 



2 . . . 40 } 50 



Trees planted in 1842-43 measured in May 1873, at 3 feet from ground : 

 No. 1 . . .40 inches. ) 

 2 . . . 33 [ Height, 50 to 70 feet, 

 3 . . . 24 ) 



The first five vary from 3 to 4 rings per inch of radius, averaging 3 '41 rings. 

 second pair 4 to 6 478 



third three 5 to 8 6'09 



from which it would seem that the growth gets faster as the trees get older. As the 

 1827-28 and 1839 trees were from plants sent up from Calcutta, the age has been 

 taken at 47 and 36 years respectively, the 1842-43 plants were from seedlings, and were 

 consequently 30 years old. Taking the Calcutta and Saharanpur trees together, we 

 have a mean growth of 4 ! 94 rings per inch of radius as the mean of 13 trees, or an 

 age of 58 years corresponding to a girth of 6 feet. The growth in Calcutta is much 

 faster than this, as the Calcutta average gave 36 years corresponding to a girth of 

 6 feet. 



The weight of Mahogany varies much. Tredgold gives for Honduras wood 

 35 Ibs. and for Spanish Mahogany 53 Ibs., and Fowke gives 52 Ibs. as the weight of 

 Jamaica mahogany. Our specimen cut from one of the trees destroyed in the 1864 

 eye-lone gave 45 Ibs. Tredgold gives for the value of P. for Honduras wood 637, 

 for Spanish Mahogany 425 ; Fowke gives for Jamaica wood 546. Laslett's experi- 

 ments give the following results : 



Weight. Value of P. 

 Cuba Mahogany, 6 experiments, bars 7' X 2" X 2" (6 



feet between supports) . . . . .48 Ibs. 642 

 Honduras Mahogany, 6 experiments, bars 7' X 2 lf 



X 2" (6 feet between supports) . . . . 41 601 

 Mexican Mahogany, 6 experiments, bars 7'x2" 



X 2" (6 feet between supports) . . . . 42 587 

 In Europe the wood is, perhaps, used more extensively than any other for furniture ; 

 it is also used in ship-building. On account of its rapid growth and the great value 

 of its wood, the tree should be grown whenever practicable in the tropical regions of 

 India. In the Calcutta market it fetches from 6^ to 8 annas per superficial foot of 

 planking one inch thick ; and in London from 4>d. to 1*. 6d. 



The difficulty in propagating Mahogany in India arises mainly from the want of 



seeds. In the Saharanpur gardens the trees, as stated above, have never seeded. As 



-, far as it is now known, one or two trees in private gardens near Barrackpore, and two 



- or three trees belonging to Government on the Barrackpore road, have been seeding 



-ionally for many years past. One tree in the Barrackpore Park, and an ola. 



damaged and gnarled tree in the Calcutta Botanic Gardens, which, however, was 



blown down in the cyclone of 1864, have also seeded, but not freely. Whenever these 



trees did seed, the seeds have been regularly collected and sown. 



All attempts to propagate the Mahogany by cuttings have failed. It has, how- 

 ever, been propagated to a considerable extent by means of layers, and trees raised 

 from layers are believed to be much more likely to produce seed early than seedlings ; 

 but from their tendency to form low branching bushes, it is feared that they will 

 not yield much valuable timber. It has, therefore, been found necessary to depend 

 upon the West Indies for supplies of seed as yet, and for some years past supplies 

 have been received and the seedlings regularly distributed, chieily in Bengal. 



Ibs. 

 E 1361. Calcutta Botanic Gardens 45 



