Hume — The Flowers of Diospyros Kaki L. F. 127 



1913, with the result that staminate flowers have been 

 discovered on several horticultural varieties, such as 

 "Taber's No. 23," "Taber's No. 129," "Okame," 

 "Masugata," "Siang" (S. P. I. 21910), "New Sien" 

 (S. P. I. 22368), S. P. I. No. 27037 and an unknown vari- 

 ety found near Eagle Lake, Fla., which will be referred 

 to as the Eagle Lake tree. On some of these varieties 

 the appearance of staminate flowers is sporadic and in- 

 fluenced by unknown causes, while on other varieties 

 they appear as regularly as the trees bloom. 



So far as can be determined no mention has been 

 made in either American or European literature of the 

 occurrence of perfect flowers on D. Kaki. They are 

 doubtless rare and our own observations are in accord 

 with this belief. Perfect flowers were discovered in 

 April, 1910, on three, different, two-year-old, "Okame" 

 trees and on two trees of ' ' Taber 's No. 23 " of the same 

 age. In April, 1913, they were found on four-year-old 

 trees of "Siang," and "Taber's No. 129" and on two- 

 year-old trees propagated from the Eagle Lake tree. 

 They are so different from either the staminate or pis- 

 tillate flowers that when once known, they may be readily 

 recognized by their external characters. 



Location of Flowering Twigs. 



All three types of flowers, of D. Kaki, are borne on 

 shoots of the current season's growth and open shortly 

 after the shoots and leaves are developed. In North 

 Florida the blooming period usually occurs during the 

 first three weeks in April. In some seasons it may be- 

 gin as early as March 26th and it sometimes ends as late 

 as May 7th. Delayed blooms may occasionally be found 

 even at later dates. 



The staminate flowers are usually borne on small, 

 rather weak shoots which develop from lateral buds on 

 last year's branches. On the strong vigorous twigs 

 which develop from the buds at or near the end of the 

 same branches, the pistillate flowers of the same trees 



