FAGACEAE. — CASTANEA 195 



Rep. Spec. Nov. X. 241 (1911). — Schneider, III. Handb. Laubholzk. II. 



899, fig. e-f (1912). 

 Castanea crenata Henry in Elwes & Henry, Trees Great Brit. & Irel., IV. 



854 (pro parte, non Siebold «& Zuccarini) (1909). 

 Castanea saliva, var. Bungeana Pampanini in Nuov. Giorn. Bot. Ital. n. ser. 



XVII. 250 (1910). 



Kiangsi: Ruling, thickets, alt. 1300-1500 m., July 29, 1907 (Nos. 

 1529, 1542; bush or small tree, 1-5 m. tall). Western Hupeh: 

 Ichang, hillsides, 30-1100 m.. May, October 1907 (Nos, 507, 374; bush 

 0.6-2.5 m.) ; Changyang Hsien, hillsides and woods, alt. 1000-1600 m., 

 July, August and September (Nos. 374", 3667) ; Changlo Hsien, woods, 

 alt. 1300-1600 m., July 1907 (No. 3665; tree 5-10 m. tall, girth 0.6- 

 1.5 m.). Patung Hsien, woods, alt. 600-1200 m., June and October 

 1907 (No. 3618; tree 6-13 m. tall, girth 0.6-2 m.); Hsing-shan Hsien, 

 woods and thickets, alt. 1300-2000 m., June and July 1907 (Nos. 3660, 

 3666, 3659; bush or small tree, 1.5-13 m. tall) ; Fang Hsien, woods and 

 thickets, alt. 1000-1600 m., June 8, 1907 (No. 3664; bush or small tree, 

 2-8 m. tall); without locality, A. Henry (Nos. 2867, 5800% 6046). 

 Shensi: "mountains near Tze-wu Hsien, south of Sian Fu," Sep- 

 tember 1, 1914, F. N. Meyer. Chekiang: vicinity of Ningpo, 1908, 

 D. Macgregor; near Hanchou, June 1907, June 26, 29, 1915, F. N. 

 Meyer (Nos. 441, 1479, 1486). 



This Chestnut is very abundant on the hills and mountainsides throughout the 

 Yangtsze Valley from the neighborhood of Ningpo in the east to eastern Szech'uan 

 in the west. It also grows in the provinces of Shensi and Kweichou, but Wilson 

 does not remember meeting with it in western Szech'uan. Usually it is a bush or a 

 low bushy tree, but under very favorable conditions it forms a shapely tree from 

 12 to 15 m. tall, with spreading branches and a trunk from 1 to 1.5 m. in girth. 

 The species is well distinguished by the under side of the leaves, which is more or 

 less densely lepidote and glabrous or nearly so, except on the primary and second- 

 ary veins, which are villose. The branchlets in their first year are usually more 

 or less densely clothed with a short velvety pubescence, but occasionally they are 

 nearly glabrous. The winter-buds are small, conical to subglobose and pubescent. 

 The leaves vary much in size, shape and dentation ; the upper surface is deep green 

 and the under side pale green and often more or less glaucescent, more especially 

 when young. The ripe fruit is variable in size and contains from three to six 

 small nuts, which have a peculiarly sweet and pleasant flavor. In the ripe in- 

 volucre the spines are pale straw color, often tinged with purple and are sparsely 

 villose. 



It has been known for a long time that two distinct species of Chestnut grew in 

 China. Abel {Narr. Journ. China, 165 [1818]) was the first European to write of 

 a shrubby Chestnut with small fruits, and he observed it near the city of Tatung 

 on the lower Yangtsze River. Fortune (Residence among Chinese, 51 and 144 [1S57]) 

 speaks of two kinds of Chestnuts which grow near Ningpo and mentions that he sent 

 seeds of both to India. Later (in Gard. Chron. 1860, 170) Fortune tells of having 



