PINACEAE. — CUNNINGHAMIA ' 51 



Matsumura in Bot. Mag. Tokyo, XV. 139 (1901). — Matsumura & Hayata 



in Jour. Coll. Sci. Tokyo, XXII. 399 {Enum. PI. Formos.) (1906).— 



Pampanini in Nuov. Giorn. Bot. Hal. n. ser. XVII. 231 (1910) ; XVIII. 



105 (1911). — Dunn & Tutcher in Kew Bull. Misc. Inform, add. ser. 



X. 256 {Fl. Kwangtung & Hongkong) (1912). — Patschke in Bot. Jahrb. 



XLVIII. 672 (1913). 

 Belis lanceolata Sweet, Hort. Brit. 475 (1830). 

 Raxopitys Cunninghamii Nelson, Pinaceae, 97 (1866). 

 Araucaria lanceolata Hort. ex Parlatore in De CandoUe, Prodr. XVI. pt. II. 433 



(quasi synon. Cunninghamiae sinensis) (1868). 



Kiangsi : near Kiukiang, foothills of the Lushan range, alt. 300 m., 

 common, August 1, 1907 (No. 1740; trees all small). Western 

 Hupeh : north and south of Ichang, forming woods, alt. 30-1300 m., 

 abundant, April and November 1907 (No. 794; tree 6-25 m. tall, 1- 

 3 m. girth); " Monte Triora," alt. 1950 m., September 1907, C. Sil- 

 vestri (No. 104). Western Szech'uan : south-east of Tachien-lu, alt. 

 1600 m., October 1908 (No. 794^; tree 40 m. tall, girth 6 m.); Kiating 

 Fu, alt. 350-1000 m., abundant, November 1908 (No. 794^; tree 6- 

 20 m. tall); west and near Kuan Hsien, alt. 1000 m., October 1910 

 (No. 4076; tree 13-20 m. tall, 1-1.5 girth); Shih-ch'uan Hsien, alt. 

 600-1600 m., August 1910 (No. 4651; tree 13-25 m. tall, 1-4 m. girth). 

 Yunnan: Mengtze, mountains, alt. 1600 m., A. Henry (No. 9148"). 

 Central Fokien: without locality; Dunn's Exped., April-June 

 1905 (Herb. Bot. Gard. Hongkong, No. 3511). Formosa: Tamsui, 

 A. Henry. 



This handsome tree is found all over the temperate parts of China from sea- 

 level up to 2000 m. alt. according to latitude, but does not occur where the winters 

 are severe. It is abundant in Fokien, Hunan and Hupeh and more especially so 

 in western Szech'uan where it is partial to red-sandstone and forms pure forests. 

 The trunk is mast-like; the branches numerous, slender, short and horizontally 

 spreading, giving a lax pyramidal appearance to the tree. The leaves, usually 

 dark green above, are frequently more or less glaucescent. After felling sprouts 

 spring from the old stumps and develop into new trees. This peculiarity explains 

 why this tree is still common in regions near densely populated areas. 



Cunninghamia is the " Sha-shu " of the Chinese and is esteemed the most 

 useful of all their timber trees. The wood is fragrant, soft and easily worked and 

 is extensively employed in all branches of carpentry; in general construction work 

 for pillars and planking, and as masts for native boats. It is also the principal 

 coffin wood of central and western China, the fragrant properties being consid- 

 ered to act as a preservative. In parts of western Szech'uan, notably in the Chien- 

 ch'ang valley, and in the valley of the Tung river a few days' journey west of 

 Fulin, whole forests of this tree were engulfed by an earthquake two or three 

 centuries ago. The wood of these trees is to-day mined and furnishes the most 

 valuable of all coffin material. From these logs, kno-mi as " Hsiang-mu " (fra- 

 grant wood) or " Yin-chcu-mu " (long-buried-wood), planks of huge size can be 

 cut and a coffin made of them sells for a thousand to fifteen hundred oimces of 



