April 21, 1897.] 



Garden and Forest. 



153 



of south and south-eastern Arizona is very interesting on 

 account of the number of species represented and the vary- 

 ing- preponderance of species on the different ranges. The 

 forest area of the Chiricahua Mountains is about 150 square 

 miles. This area extends almost continuously from the 

 Mexican line to Apache Pass, a distance of about forty 

 miles. I think it safe to estimate the average width of this 

 forest belt to be nearly four miles. The Yellow Pine of the 

 more northern mountains here gives place almost entirely 

 to a form having longer and broader leaves. This Yellow 

 Pine is the prevailing tree of the Chiricahua Mountains. 

 The Arizona Pine, Pinus Arizonica, is abundant in many of 

 the canons, but nowhere forms a preponderance of the 

 forest growth. The Chihuahua Pine, P. Chihuahuana, a 

 tree entirely unknown north of the Santa Catalina Moun- 

 tains, is frequent at intermediate elevations between the 

 Nut Pine, P. cembroides, and the Yellow Pines. On these 

 mountains two species of White Pine come together, one, 

 P. flexilis, being a northern species, while the other, P. 

 strobiformis, is a southern species. The White Pines 

 occur as scattered specimens or in groups of a dozen or 

 more trees at the heads of the canons and along the summit 

 of the range. On no part of the mountains do they add 

 materially to the forest growth. It is worthy of note that 

 a number of groves of Arizona Cypress occur in the canons 

 on the western slope of this range. 



The estimated forest area of the Huachuca Mountains is 

 about thirty square miles. This is an irregular, broken 

 area covering the slopes of the higher peaks and extending 

 -in places some distance down the canons. Nowhere are 

 the forests of these mountains as dense or valuable as 

 those of the Chiricahua Mountains. A few restricted areas 

 on the northern slopes are, however, fairly well timbered 

 with the different species of Yellow Pine, namely, Yellow 

 Pine, Southern Yellow Pine and the Arizona Pine. A 

 scattered growth of Chihuahua Pine is found on these 

 mountains just below the Yellow Pines. A few scattered 

 trees of White Pine, Pinus flexilis, are found in the higher 

 canons. But one species of Nut Pine, P. cembroides, is 

 found in this range. 



The Santa Rita Mountains have a forest area of about 

 thirty-five or forty square miles, centering about the high 

 peak known as Baldy. These forests are of a denser 

 growth than those of the Huachuca Mountains, but the 

 same species are common to the two ranges, and in the 

 same relative proportions. In relation to forest growth 

 these two ranges are more alike than any of the ranges of 

 southern Arizona. 



Probably twenty-five square miles would represent the 

 entire -forest area of the Rincon Mountains. The forests 

 here are unusually uniform, and consist almost entirely of 

 the Arizona Pine, Pinus Arizonica. It is interesting to note 

 that the Yellow Pine, P. ponderosa, the prevailing tree on 

 all the other ranges of southern Arizona, rarely occurs on 

 these mountains. The Nut Pine, P. cembroides, is abun- 

 dant, and the Chihuahua Pine is not infrequent. 



The Santa Catalina Mountains are very broken and 

 irregular, the highest point, Mount Lemon, reaching the 

 altitude of 10,100 feet. The area of timber on this range is 

 in the neighborhood of fifty square miles. All the higher 

 portions are more or less thickly covered with Pine, Fir and 

 Spruce. On the northern slope of Mount Lemon are grow- 

 ing the largest specimens of Douglas Spruce I have ob- 

 served in the territory. At this locality, in a number of 

 places, this species is the prevailing tree, many of the speci- 

 mens being from five to six feet in diameter. Yellow Pine, 

 Pinus ponderosa scopulorum, is the prevailing Pine. In 

 these irregular, broken mountains are found all the species 

 of Pines known to occur in the mountains of southern 

 Arizona, with the possible exception of the southern White 

 Pine, P. strobiformis. 



The forest area of Arizona south of the Colorado plateau 

 is, in round numbers, about 600 square miles. The total 

 area of Arizona south of this plateau is about 75,000 square 

 miles. From this it would appear that the Pine forest area 



of southern Arizona is considerably less than one per cent, 

 of the entire area. If we include the forests of Mesquite 

 and other deciduous trees along the watercourses and in 

 the lower parts of the canons the total forest area would, of 

 course, be slightly larger. 



University of Arizona, Tucson. J. H . loumey. 



Foreign Correspondence. 



London Letter. 



Phajus Cooksoni. — This is generally accepted as one of 

 the most valuable plants that we owe to the skill of the 

 hybridist, but its merits were never so fully revealed as by 

 the specimen exhibited last week by the raiser, Mr. N. 

 Cookson, of Wylam, Northumberland ; this was a large 

 mass carrying numerous large, healthy leaves and eighteen 

 strong erect spikes a yard high, each supporting numerous 

 rose and brown-purple flowers. I find this plant becomes 

 unhealthy if kept in a tropical temperature, whereas in the 

 intermediate house it is quite happy. 



Odontoglossum crispum Luciani. — A first-class certificate 

 was awarded to a beautiful variety shown under this name 

 by Monsieur Linden, Brussels ; the flowers were nearly 

 four inches across, broad in the segments, white, shaded 

 with rose and heavily blotched with purple-brown. The 

 plant shown was small and bore only one small spike ; 

 there is, therefore, every prospect of its proving a still more 

 valuable acquisition when cultivation has put some strength 

 into its pseudo-bulbs and spikes. Connoisseurs voted it of 

 first quality. 



Epicattleya matutina. — This is a new hybrid obtained 

 by Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons from Epidendrum radicans 

 crossed with Cattleya Bowringiana, the latter being the 

 mother parent. The stems and general character of the 

 hybrid are much more like those of the Epidendrum than 

 the Cattleya, and the flowers, which are about two inches 

 across, are yellow, tinged with vermilion, while in the 

 three-lobed red and yellow labellum there is still less evi- 

 dence of the Cattleya's influence. Those who hold that 

 prepotency is on the side of the female have strong evidence 

 to the contrary in this hybrid. 



Cirrhopetalum robustum is now flowering for the first 

 time at Kew. It is a remarkable species, its leaves and 

 flowers being much larger than those of any other species 

 known, the former being about twelve inches by four inches 

 and the latter four inches long, the width of the segments 

 being correspondingly large ; they are borne in umbellate 

 clusters seven inches through, and they are yellowish green 

 with a dark red oscillating lip. The species was first 

 described by Mr. Rolfe in 1893 from a plant introduced 

 from New Guinea. C. graveolens, Bailey, is a synonym. 



An Orchid Society. — It is reported that Manchester Or- 

 chid fanciers are about to form a society in the interests 

 of their cult and entirely independent of any other society. 

 "An entrance fee of three guineas and an annual subscrip- 

 tion of one guinea thereafter is suggested, but this and 

 other matters are subject to approval of the meeting to be 

 called at an early date. It is estimated that within a radius 

 of thirty miles of Manchester the Orchid wealth of the 

 country is centralized." If this society will limit its opera- 

 tions to such matters as the spread of a taste for Orchids, 

 their cultural requirements, etc., nothing but good can come 

 of it, but if it enters into rivalry with the Royal Horticul- 

 tural Society and Kew with regard to nomenclature and 

 certificates, it may prove more vexatious than useful. 



Lathyrus splendens. — In Garden and Forest, 1894., p. 274, 

 I asked for more information about this California!! Pea, 

 the "Pride of California." According to Mr. Orcutt, and on 

 p. 294, 1 was told that it had not proved hardy in the north- 

 ern states. Nor has it proved hardy or ever shown any- 

 thing like comfort out-of-doors here, but about two years 

 ago I planted a seedling in a bed of sandy soil in a low, 

 airy greenhouse, and this has proved quite a success. It 

 has thrown out hundreds of shoots with healthy pinnate 

 leaves, and from all the strongest of them numbers of 



