dlAPTKR XIV 



Tin: U : X(;AX 



1 he lungan has been described us the monk" of the 

 sapindaceous group of fruits. A Singapore Chinese was endeavor- 

 ing to make a simple but distinctive comparison of these four fruits. 

 He said, '* The rambutan is the long haired gentleman of the group; 

 he has Mowing locks. The pulassan has his hair cut modern style. 

 The lychee has had the clippers put on his head. But the lungan, 

 with head closely shaven, is the Buddhist priest of the four." This 

 description applies only to the general outside apparance of these fruits 

 with relation to length of setae or smoothness of skin. It indicates 

 that, unlike any of the others, the outside surface of the lungan is 

 smooth. 



'["he lungan is the most cold-resistant fruit of the group and 

 will be found growing farther north than the lychee, and at higher 

 altitudes. It requires perhaps a little less care than the lychee and 

 individual trees growing in a semi-wild condition are seen more often 

 than lychee. It is a taller, higher-headed tree, with branches and 

 flower spikes growing more upright than those of the lychee and with 

 bark characteristically its own. The fruits are much smaller than 

 lychee but the leaves and the flowers are conspicuously larger. 



'["he fruit is round, or nearly so, and when ripe is yellow. The 

 fruit clusters are usually much more crowded than those of the lychee. 

 It fruits about a month later that the medium late varieties of lychee, 

 the best varieties appearing in the month of August. It is consumed 

 by the Chinese in considerable quantities. They believe that this 

 fruit is not so strengthening as the lychee but prize its medicinal value 

 very highly. The aril is certainly less fleshy than that of the lycher 

 and much more vinous in taste. The seed is invariably large and there 

 are no varieties with shriveled seed as in the lychee. The seed is 

 usually black or sometimes brown and is said to look like a. "dragon- 

 eve " , whence the fruit <jets its name. 



Hl'3 



