518 XXVII. COMBRETACEAE 



The tree extends into the open scrub forests of the diy zone of Upper 

 Burma, but even outside that zone it is characteristic of certain dry types of 

 poor open bamboo forest on shallow soil, where the trees attain small dimen- 

 sions. This type is exemplified in parts of the Ruby Mines district, where 

 the chief associate species are ,Xylia dolahriformis , Pterocarpus macrocarpus, 

 Diospyros burmanica, Acacia Catechu, Adina cordifolia, Odina Wodier, and 

 others, with Terminalia Oliveri in the drier parts ; the chief bamboo is Dendro- 

 calamus strictus. In the dry zone proper the rainfall varies from 22 in. to about 

 50 in., but it is doubtful if the tree occurs in tracts where it is less than 30 in. 

 The geological formation consists mainly of soft sedimentary imaltered 

 sandstones and shales. Terminalia tomentosa is common, but its gTOwth is 

 stunted : its chief associates are Terminalia Oliveri, Tectona Hamiltoniana , 

 Acacia Catechu, A. leucophloea, Buchanania latifoUa, Diospyros hiirmanica, 

 Odina Wodier, Schleichera trijuga, and sometimes Xylia dolahriformis of small 



size. 



A variety with larger leaves and fruits (var. macrocarpa, Kurz) is charac- 

 teristic of indaing forest, chiefly on laterite, in association with Dipterocarpus 

 tuherculatus, Pentacme suavis, Shorea ohttisa, Melanorrhoea usitata, Buclmnania 

 latifoUa, Diospyros hurmanica, and other species. Where the soil becomes 

 stiff and clayey Terminalia tomentosa becomes the predominating species and 

 may form entirely pure crops, often of an open description with a soil-covering 

 mainly of grass. 



Leaf-shedding, flowering, and fruiting. In northern India the leaves 

 usually commence falling in January or February, and by March or April, 

 and in dry places as early as February, the trees are leafless, though the dead 

 leaves sometimes hang on the trees for some time. This is one of the latest 

 forest trees to acquire its new foliage, and in northern India the new leaves 

 only begin to appear about the end of June. Farther south they appear 

 about April-May. The panicled spikes of small whitish flowers appear about 

 July in northern India and about May-June farther south. In the early part 

 of the rainy season a forest of Terminalia tomentosa is a beautiful sight with 

 the masses of whitish blossom against the deUcate green of the yomig foUage. 

 The fruits form rapidly, becoming full-sized by about October, though still 

 green ; they remain pale yellowish green from November to January, ripening 

 about February-March. The fruit (Fig. 201, a) has a hard bony axis with 

 five coriaceous wings, and is brown when ripe. The ripe fruit falls chiefly 

 from March to May, but many unripe fruits, usually fomid to be bitten off 

 by insects or possibly birds, fall during January-February, and turning brown 

 after falling give the false impression of being ripe. Parrots often destroy 

 much of the fruit crop prematurely. The ovary is often attacked by a Cynips, 

 wliich prevents the formation of the fruit and produces bunches of galls which 

 may be mistaken for fruits, though they have no resemblance to the charac- 

 teristic winged fruits. 



So far as tests show, the percentage of fertility of the seed is comparatively 

 low. In a number of tests carried out at Dehra Dmi the maximum percentage 

 obtained was only 45, except in one case in which 78 per cent, was obtained. 

 Possibly these poor results are due partly to the difficulty in discriminating 

 between good and bad (i. e. prematurely fallen) seed when the fruits are 



