MISCELLANEOUS NUTS. 105 



CASHEW (Anacardium occidentals L.). 



This is a tropical plant, but has fruited iu southern Florida, into which State 

 Colonel Codrington, of De Land, introduced it. The nut is about an inch long and is 

 kidney shaped. It is borne 011 the thickened end of the pear-shaped fleshy stalk. 

 This stalk is sometimes eaten, but it is said to be less pleasant in flavor than the infe- 

 rior kinds of the mango, which is surely not a high commendation. It is suggested 

 by Woodrow, in his Gardening in India, that if the trees which bear only the best 

 flavored fruit were propagated by inarching as the mango is, a welcome addition to 

 esteemed kinds of fruit might be obtained. 



The tree is of spreading habit of growth and enjoys a moist climate. The outer 

 covering of the nut consists of a shell within a shell ; the outer one being smooth and 

 ash colored. Between the two shells is a caustic black juice. The kernel is oily, very 

 pleasant in flavor, and wholesome. It is in common use as an article of food in tropi- 

 cal countries, being made into puddings, roasted, and in various ways prepared for the 

 table. A black gum, similar in character to gum arabic, exudes from the bark. It has 

 produced fruit at Lake Worth, Fla., specimens of which were received at this office. 

 In the United States it has been grown more as a curiosity than for its fruits. . 



LEECHEE (Nephelium litchi Cambess). 



This fruit is best known in the United States as " Litchi" or " Leecaee" and as it is 

 a product generally on sale at the Chinese shops in different cities it is also called Chi- 

 nese nut. Thus obtained it is in its dry state, round in form, with a rough, thin, scale- 

 like brittle rind or shell, of a dull brown color, and pulp or aril that is brown and 

 sweetish, surrounding a rather large central seed. In select varieties this fruit is in 

 size as large as a hen's egg; and in its fresh state, when the pulp is whitish or tinged 

 with pink, it is said to have a refreshing acid taste. The tree is of small growth with 

 evergreen lanceolate leaves and small greenish white flowers. It is a native of China 

 and is being tested in Florida, where it proves to be tender, and where it offers but 

 little encouragement of withstanding even occasional frosts. In India, the tree is said 

 to love moisture and to thrive only where there is an equable climate and absence of hot 

 winds. Theodore L. Meade, of Oviedo, Fla., writes that this tree grows well there, but 

 suffers much from frost. In the winter of 1888-89 a temperature of 27 cut his tree 

 back but little, while 21 killed it to the ground in March, 1890. Specimens of this 

 fruit that were grown by Charles Amory, at Sanford, Fla., were on exhibition at the 

 rose and strawberry show of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, June 26, 1883, 

 of which Eobert Manning says: "I tasted it and found the flavor excellent. The dry, 



dark-colored pulp of the dried fruit is, when fresh, a light-colored gelatinous pulp." 



i 



RAMBUTAN (Nephelium lappaceum L.). 



The Rarnbutan, or Rambostan, of India is an Indian tree belonging to the same 

 genus and produces a fruit similar to Leechee. In California and Florida either ought 

 to succeed where the other is found to be hardy. It has not yet been tested in this 

 country. 



TALLOW NUT (StilUngia sebifera Michx.). 



This tree was introduced from China and is growing near the coast in South 

 Carolina and Georgia, where it attains the height of 20 to 40 feet. The tree may be 

 propagated by cutting's. The nut is best appreciated in China, where alone its prod- 

 ucts are properly prepared. Those interested may find in the United States Agricul- 

 tural Report for 1851, pages 54-59, an instructive letter from Dr. McGowan on the 

 methods of elaborating the product of this nut in China. The nuts yield 30 per cent 

 of oil suitable for lamps, though inferior to some other vegetable oils for this purpose. 

 The most valuable portion is the tallow, of which there is a yield of 8 per cent. 



