1496 



disease or Insect; it produces two or three times a 

 year, and thrives in dry and rather poor soils, where 

 the common potato is not resistant." (Bertoni.) 



Solarium quitoense (Solanaceae) , 47951. Naranjilla. 

 From Guayaquil, Ecuador. Seeds presented by Dr. H. R. 

 Carter, assistant surgeon general , U. S. Marine Hospi- 

 tal, Baltimore, Md . , who secured them from Dr. M. E. 

 Connor, Guayaquil. "The fruit of the naranjilla is about 

 the size of a mandarin orange; it is orange-yellow, 

 but not flattened as much as the mandarin. The interior 

 resembles that of a tomato or eggplant. I was told by 

 Mr. Elizade, secretary of state of Ecuador, that it 

 grew in the warm cov.nr-ries near Quito, i. e., at a 

 lower altitude, and I feel reasonably sure that I saw 

 a growing plant in the barren country on the upper 

 Magdalena near Giradot, Colombia, but having: no oppor- 

 tunity to examine it I am not positive. This plant 

 resembled a large eggplant 4 to 5 feet high and was 

 covered with fruit, some yellow and some green. I am 

 told, by the same man, that it fruits when young, i. e., 

 the first season, and from what I heard I thought it 

 might do so from Thomasville , Georgia southward, and 

 in southern California. The fruit, which ripens in 

 July, is too acid to be eaten out of hand, although I 

 liked it, but it is used as a flavor for frescos (soft 

 drinks) and ice cream." (Carter.) 



For previous introduction and description, see 

 S. P. I. No. 42034, Plant Immigrant Bulletin, No. 118, 

 February, 1916, p. 968. 



Virola sebifera (Myristicaceae), 47966. Ucuuba . 

 From Belem, Para, Brazil. Presented by Dr. J. Simao 

 da Costa. A tree inhabiting the lowlands of the lower 

 Amazon which produces in June and July a fruit about 

 the size of a cherry with a brown paper-thin shell. 

 This fruit contains an abundance of oil and stearin 

 and, since each tree produces about 2 barrels of nuts 

 a week during the fruiting season, this seems to be a 

 promising source of soap material. The timber also is 

 valuable, being hard and dense, and reddish brown in 

 color, almost like mahogany. (Adapted from Lange , 

 Lower Amazon, pp. 34, 407, 467.) 



Notes on Behavior of Previous Introductions. 



The following letter was received January 31, 



