ANACAKDIACEAE. — RHUS 177 



fruits agree exactly with those of R. punjabensis. In cultivated plants from four 

 to six years old the wing on the rhachis is very pronounced and continues down 

 its whole length. The differences, however, are not always obvious, but until 

 more is known of the distribution of these plants it is convenient to keep the Chinese 

 as a distinct variety. 



This Sumach is abundant in the thickets and margins of woods in western 

 Hupeh and Szech'uan as a small tree with a short, relatively thick trunk covered 

 with dark grey, moderately smooth bark. The numerous branches are spreading 

 and form a flattened round head. In autmnn when laden with pendulous panicles 

 of dark red or crimson fruit this tree is very attractive. 



Colloquially this tree is known as the " Hung-fu-yang " and the galls which 

 are produced on the leaves and at the ends of the young shoots are sometimes 

 distinguished as " Tu-pei-tzu," but more usually are called " Wu-pei-tzu," though 

 this name strictly speaking belongs to the galls produced on the leaves of Rhus 

 javanica Linnaeus. 



A picture of Rhtis punjabensis, var. sinica will be found under Nos. 562 and 

 596 of the collection of Wilson's photographs and also in his Vegetation of Western 

 China, Nos. 447, 449. 



Rhus Potaninii Maximowicz in Act. Hort. Petrop. XI. 110 (1889). 

 — Diels in Bot. Jahrb. XXIX. 432 (1900); XXXVI. Beibl. No. 

 LXXXII. 71 (1905). — Pampanini in Nuov. Giorn. Bot. Ital. n. ser. 

 XVII. 416 (1910). 



Rhus Henryi Diels in Bot. Jahrh. XXIX. 432 (1900). 



Rhus sinica Koehne in Mitteil. Deutsch. Dendr. Ges. XIX. 102, fig. 5 (non 

 Diels) (1910). — Schneider, III. Handb. Laubholzk. II. 1022, fig. 603 (1912). 



Western Szech'uan: west of Romi-chango, woods, alt. 2500- 

 3000 m., July 4, 1908 (No. 3319; tree 8 m. tall, flowers whitish); 

 Sintu Hsien, roadsides, alt. 600 m., May 18, 1908 (No. 3318=^; small 

 tree 3-6 m. tall) ; west and near Wen-ch'uan Hsien, woods, alt. 2000- 

 2600 m., July 1908 (No. 3317"*; tree 6 m. tall); Tsa-ku-lao, August, 

 A. von Rosthorn (No. 2554). Eastern Szech'uan: Wushan Hsien, 

 A. Henry (No. 5529^). Western Hupeh: without locality, August 

 1901 (Veitch Exped. No. 1177, fruit only) ; without locality, A. Henry 

 (Nos. 5529", 5903). Shensi : Tai-pei-shan, 1910, W. Purdom; " Thui- 

 kio-tsuen," September 25, 1897, G. Giraldi; " Monte Qua-in-san," 

 July 16, 1897, G. Giraldi; "Monte kin-qua-san," July 10, 1897, 

 G. Giraldi. 



This is a critical species very closely allied to R. punjabensis Stewart, from 

 which it is not easy to distinguish it in herbaria. Nevertheless from the behavior 

 of the living trees it is apparent that they are distinct species. In herbaria R. 

 Potaninii may be distinguished from R. punjabensis by its glabrous shoots, its 

 slightly larger flowers, its fewer and more glabrous leaflets which are distinctly 

 petiolulate and usually oblique at the base and by its unwinged leaf-rhachis. 



In the woods of western Hupeh R. Potaninii is usually a tree of moderate size, 



