612 XXX. SAMYDACEAE 



It seeds freely, and natural seedlings often spring up in great abundance, 

 standing moderate shade and often forming dense pure thickets : in some of 

 the teak plantations of Burma natural rej)roduction springs up freely and forms 

 a lower story to the teak. The factors influencing natural reproduction have 

 not been studied in detail. Seedlings raised at Dehra Dun succumbed to frost, 

 which, however, is not met with in their natural habitat. The tree coppices 

 well ; an average of 3 shoots j)er stool was recorded in coppice measurements 

 in the Rangoon plains forests. The wood is tough and elastic, but is apt to 

 develop small cracks in seasoning. It is an excellent fuel. The rings are 

 distinct on a smooth cross-section. A specimen from Burma showed 9 rings 

 per inch of radius, giving a mean annual girth increment of 0-7 in. 



ORDER XXXI. DATISCACEAE 



TETRAMELES, R. Br. 



Tetrameles nudiflora, R. Br. Vern. Jermala, bondale, Kan. ; Ugad, Mar. ; 

 Ghini, Tam., Mai. ; Thitpok, Burm. ; Baing, U. Burm. 



A lofty deciduous tree with a long clean bole and immense plank buttresses 

 at the base. Bark greyish white, fairly smooth. This tree is a conspicuous 

 one in moist tropical and evergreen forests in the eastern sub-Himalayan tract 

 and outer hills. Western Ghats and Nilgiris, and in Burma, towering above 

 the evergreen vegetation. Gamble records a tree measured by him in the 

 Buxa forests, Bengal, 154 ft. high and 15 ft. in girth. It sheds its leaves about 

 January, and the new leaves do not appear until late in the hot season or early 

 in the rains. The yellowish green flowers, which appear in February-March 

 when the tree is leafless, are much sought after by bees, which often build 

 their hives in this tree : the capsules ripen in April-May, and the small seeds 

 are carried to a distance by the wind. The rate of growth is rapid, but no 

 detailed records are available. The wood is whitish, soft, rather coarse, and 

 not durable ; in southern India it is used for dug-out canoes, after treatment 

 with fish oil to increase its durability : it is also used for rough packing-cases 



ORDER XXXII. CACTACEAE 



OPUNTIA, Mifl. Prickly pear. 



The name ' prickly pear ' has been given to certain species of Opuntia 

 introduced from South America. The commonest species naturalized in India 

 is 0. Dillenii^ Haw., with flat succulent jointed branches, long sharp spines, 

 and tufts of bristles ; the flowers are bright yellow tinged with red. A red- 

 flowered species common in the neighbourhood of Madras is said to be 0. 

 spinosissima, Mill. 



Prickly pear was introduced into India, it is believed, less than a century 

 ago, but it has spread with such rapidity in the drier parts of the country, 

 particularly in the Deccan and southern India, that it is now one of the most 

 noxious weeds with which the forest officer has to contend. Provided it is 

 kept in check it is an extremely good hedge plant, pieces of the stem and 

 branches stuck in the ground quickly taking root, spreading and forming an 



