130 



which produce aerial shoots penetrate the sand easily*, but 

 the clay only with difficulty. Salsola Arbuscula was also more 

 vigorous, its branches and leaves being less stiff when it grew 

 amongst the dunes. 



7. Desert at Kis Kala on the right bank of the Amu 

 Darya. June 23. 1899. This locality has previously been re- 

 ferred to (p. 75). 



Kis Kala is one of the many ruined castles along the 

 Amu Darya; it stands on the summit of a table-topped moun- 

 tain. (The rock, a kind of limestone, cannot unfortunately 

 be determined, as the sample I collected has disappeared). 

 Round the mountain itself lie great accumulations of detached 

 gravel and stones. The soil of the desert is partly sand forming 

 small dunes, partly gravel with coarse sand and many stones. 

 Of these two soils the sand carries the richer growth, and low 

 shrubs of the following species occur: Haloxylon Ammoden- 

 dron (thick - stemmed 1 2 metres high) Salsola Arbuscula, 

 Calligonum sp., Ephedra alata, Ammodendron sp. and Reau- 

 muriaoxi an a (very scattered), Tamarix hispida, stunted specimens 

 of Salsola subaphylla. Near the river, and only there, Lycium 

 ruthenicnm is abundant and aids in the formation of dunes 

 1 2 metres high. Along with it are other plants restricted to 

 the river-banks such as Phragmites communis and Erianthus 

 Ravennae. On the loosest sand in the desert Aristida pennata 

 grows, but only a few occur and these are small and poorly 

 developed; the sand-drift in this locality is very slight and 

 the soil is not loose enough for it. Alhagi Camelomm, on the 

 contrary, is found in great numbers, besides withered stems 

 of Phelipaea. The following species were also collected: Agrio- 

 phyllum latifolium, Heliotropium sogdianum, Salsola sogdiana 

 and aperta, dry or thorny plants, true sand-desert plants; 

 in addition we found Euphorbia Turczaninowii, Halimocnemis 

 macranthera and villosa, Aeluropus littoralis. These last species 

 are characteristic for this locality as they are halophytic in 

 type; the three first named are succulent-leaved plants, the 

 species of Halimocnemis being very grey on account of their 

 hairs, the grass Aeluropus is a characteristic plant of the salt- 

 desert (p. 52). These plants indicate that the soil is shallow 

 and the ground-water not deep, and with this is correlated 



