MISCELLANEOUS FRUITS 439 



of Allen M. Groves at Miami, Florida, suggest that the 

 difficulty may be due to lack of the necessary insects to 

 effect cross-pollination. It has been observed, however, that 

 occasional plants uniformly bear heavily, and the vegeta- 

 tive propagation of such eliminates all danger of unpro- 

 ductiveness. 



There are as yet no named varieties in the trade. 



Another species of carissa, and one which is sometimes con- 

 fused with C. grandiflora, is C. Arduina, Lam. (C. bispinosa, 

 Desf., Arduina bispinosa, L.). This can be distinguished from 

 C. grandiflora by the smaller size of the flowers, which are only 

 \ inch broad in place of nearly 2 inches, with the corolla-seg- 

 ments much shorter than the tube ; and by the oblong-obtuse 

 fruit, which is only \ inch in length and contains one or two 

 lanceolate seeds, instead of fifteen or twenty circular ones. 

 The species is not commonly cultivated in the United States, 

 but is said to be used as an ornamental plant in Cape Town, 

 South Africa. 



The karanda (Carissa Carandas, K. Sch.), a species common 

 in India, has been introduced into the United States, but is 

 not often planted either in California or Florida. It is dis- 

 tinguished from C. grandiflora and C. Arduina by the corolla- 

 lobes being twisted to the right instead of to the left in the bud ; 

 by the oblong or elliptic-oblong leaves with rounded or obtuse 

 tips ; and by the spines being simple in place of bifurcate. Its 

 fruits are less than an inch long, and contain three or four 

 seeds. They are used in India for pickles and preserves. 



THE RAMONTCHI (Fig. 58) 

 (Flacourtia Ramontchi, L'Herit.) 



While it must be listed among the minor fruits, the ramon- 

 tchi (more commonly known in the West Indies as Governor's- 

 plum) is not devoid of interest and merit. It is an excellent 



