CHAPTER IX 



THE FLORA OF THE SINO-MONGOLIAN 

 FRONTIER 



IN this chapter, which cannot be considered 

 as more than a very superficial account of 

 the flora of the country along the Chinese frontiers 

 of Mongolia, an attempt is made to give the general 

 reader some idea of the subject. 



Notwithstanding the ever-increasing deforestation 

 of the wooded areas, the yearly close cropping of 

 the smaller herbage by the natives and their half- 

 starved flocks in less favoured districts, the general 

 dryness of the climate over vast stretches of 

 country, and the recurring droughts, sometimes 

 extending over periods of two or three years, 

 there exists a wealth and variety of vegetable 

 forms, the proper identification of which would 

 take a lifetime. 



Hitherto only the fringes of the subject have 

 been touched by specialists, and there is very little 

 in the way of works of reference to aid the would- 

 be explorer in this vast field of research. 



The following notes may therefore be of interest 



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