Mat 4, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS CHRONICLE. 



297 





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made of the wood of E. tomentoea, a tree of 



smaller growth 



The large, tuberous roots of 



young roots, which is much used for binding the 

 heads of arrows to the shafts, and is a favourite 



Dolichos brachypus are pounded and thrown into material solely because of the red colour it as- 

 ponds to kill fish. Pterocarpus angolensis, a " 



small to medium-sized tree, is known to the 



settlers as bloodwood, in consequence of the deep, 

 reddish-brown colour of its heart wood, which 

 Mr. Swynnerton describes as " the wood par 

 excellence for hoe handles and stamping sticks 

 for maize." So hard is it that it spoils the edge 

 of the axe in working it. Yet, like the soft, 

 spongy woods of the Erythrinas, he tells us 

 that "it makes a good 'live* pole, posts 

 of any size growing readily on being placed 

 in the ground." As is the case with 

 its 



ground." 

 West Coast 



is ine case 

 ally, Pterocarpus erinaceus, 

 and the East Indian species, P. marsupium, and 

 P. santalinus, a blood-like resinous sap exudes tree, is used as a substitute for soap for wash- 



sumes on drying, for it is not unusually strong." 

 An infusion or decoction of the bark is also used 

 in colic. Brachystegia Bragaei is described as a 

 small to medium-sized tree, but sometimes at- 

 taining a considerable height. The bark is largely 

 used as a substitute for rope, and, when beaten 



Formerly, it was employed for 



De- 

 scribing the large thorns on the branches of 

 Acacia Gaffra, he says these huge, boss like knobs 

 with a sharp point in the centre, that had fallen 

 from the branches, were very troublesome to his 

 barefooted carriers. The bark of Albizzia versi- 

 color, a large, straight-growing ynd attractive 



A 



soft, for bags. 



the manufacture of clothing and blankets. 





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Fig. 146.— collarette dahlia holyrood : ruby colour tipped with 



gold, "collar" clear yellow. 





from the trunk, which the natives use for rub- 

 bing on the skin, where it is allowed to remain 

 for two or three days, at the end oE which time 

 it is removed, and is said to have cured any skin 

 eruption. The black-heart wood of Dalbergia 

 melanoxylon, which is described as a larae shrub, 

 is much used for snuff boxes. The roofcTof Pelto- 

 Pnorum africanum, also a large shrub, are boiled 

 oy the natives, and the fluid drunk for the cure 



°t colic. That the leaves of Cassia Petersiana 

 are muc h used as a medicine by the natives is 



noteworthy in view of the fact that C. acuti- 

 ;, and C - angustifolia furnish the senna 



coar^f 06 - t U is curious also to rea <i how the 

 Tn*\l 6 ° f Bauhini * reticulata is obtained, 



mv. "T t0 Which ifc h P ut " M - Swynnerton 

 cavA«T USUall y finds traces of filled-in «• 



thlnSS T ld 5 he r00ts of these trees > «h«° 

 natives have been digging for the bark of the 



ing clothes, for which purpose the outer bark is 

 removed and the inner bark crushed. 



In the Order Combretaceae, which is mostly 

 characterised by the hardness of its woods, it is 

 singular to note that the timber of Combretum 

 arbuscula is soft and useless, except for firewood 

 and the making of beehives. The roots are boiled 

 and the infusion used for preparing gruel, which 

 is believed to cure pains in the chest, &c. They are 

 also boiled with other roots and leaves, and used 

 for inducing perspiration in fevers, the patient 

 leaning over the steaming pot, with a blanket 

 covering him on all sides to the ground. The 

 wood of Terminalia sericea is described as being 

 durable, and the bark as having a curious netted 



appearance. 



The Natural Order Myrtacese is represented by 

 four species of Eugenia, only two of which, 

 namely, E. cordata and E. owariensis, furnish 



edible fruits, much relished by the natives. The 

 wood of the first named species, which is known 

 to the English settlers as the Water Tree, and 

 grows to a height of 30 feet before branching, is 

 much used by the natives for building huts. 

 In the large and important economic Order 

 Rubiace« there are comparatively few plants 

 described as possessing useful properties, and 

 these are chiefly of a minor character, as the fol- 

 lowing will show: Cephalanthus natalensis pro- 

 duces fruits described as being about the size of 

 a Mulberry with the appearance of a Raspberry,, 

 and having a flavour between that of Raspberry 

 and Gooseberry. The jam made from these fruits 

 is described as excellent. 



Adiana microcephala is a tall evergreen 

 tree with a straight trunk, producing a very 

 durable handsome reddish-coloured wood, whichi 



Vangueria 



is said to resist attacks from borers and white 

 ants. The roots are bitter, and are commonly 

 chewed by the natives, or an infusion made from 

 them and drunk as a remedy for colic. A similar 

 use is made of the roots of Pentas purpurea, while 

 the large, glossy, fusiform green fruits of Gar- 

 denia tigrina are great favourites with the forest- 

 monkeys, and it is comparatively rare to find 

 one which is not at least partially eaten. The 

 timber, which is whitish and very straight in 

 growth, is durable and very little touched by 

 borers. The toughness and thorny nature of Gar- 

 denia asperula has given to it an interesting use 

 (or closing kraal gatas againit lion*. In the genus 



several new species are recorded, 

 V. esculenta being one of them. It furnishes an 

 edible fruit known as the Chirinda Medlar. It is 

 of a bright gamboge colour, ripening and falling 

 from the trees in March and April. The fruit of 

 V. infausta is also much sought after by the 

 natives. It will be remembered that the fruits 

 of V. edulis are eaten in other parts of tropical 

 Africa as well as in Madagascar, and in fact in 

 most countries where the plant grows. 



Two new species of Coffea ar« described, one 

 under the name of C. ligustroides and the other 

 under that of C. Swynnertonii. Of the former 

 we read: V This is the shrub yielding Chirinda 

 coffee ; it forms the main undergrowth of the 

 Chipete Forest patch. The crop is always small, 

 though heavier in alternate years, the dense 

 shade under which most of it grows being pre- 

 judicial to heavy cropping. The berries are^ 

 eaten greedily by the forest bulbuls and robins, as 

 well as by baboons. The larvae of a large white 

 and brown longicorn beetle (Anthores leuconotus) 

 destroy this shrub, entering just above the ground 

 and completely eating out the root and base of 

 the trunk. Samples of this coffee sent by me to 

 London were valued at 80s. per cwt. at a time 

 when our cultivated Arabian coffee (grown from 

 Blantyre seed) was valued at 533." A no to 

 appended to the description of the new species 

 Coffea, Swynnertonii says: "This coffee grows 

 wild in quantities on the Juababa River, Portu- 

 guese E. Africa, at about 1,000 feet. Seed brought 

 thence a few years ago. The Coffee yielded by 

 these berries is said to be of excellent quality." 



It is singular that in such an extensive Order 

 as the Compositae, and one so varied in its use- 

 ful products, two plants only should be 

 referred to as having any application among 

 the people, and these are Vernonia natalensis 

 and V. podocoma. The first constitutes, 

 the bush tea of the settlers. It is a 

 common herb, sometimes infused in water 

 by the white settler, and used to induce perspira- 

 tion in fever; it forms a good substitute for tea 

 or coffee. V. podocoma is described as being 

 exceedingly plentiful along the outskirts of" 

 Chirinda, where in some places it forms a hedge, 

 and is attractive to Lepidoptera. The bark of the 

 roots is very bitter and is chewed for pains in 

 the chest, for which it is said to be a good cure. 

 Another plant said to have similar uses is Msesa 

 lanceolata, belonging to the Myrsinese, the roots 

 and leaves of which are boiled and the decoction, 

 drunk. J. B. Jackson, Claremont, Lympstone, 

 Devon. 



(To be continued.) 



