Anacardiaceae-Aquifoliaeeae. 



Branches fer-uginous at the ends; leaves impari-pinnate, v/ith 2 to 6 pairs of leaflets, 

 the rachis 10 to 30 cm long, terete, not margined, petiolate in the lower third or fourth; 

 leaflets oval or oblong, more or less acute or acuminate, 5 to 15 cm long and 2.5 to 8 cm 

 wide, almost sessile, feather veined, downy underneath, subglabrous above; panicle ter- 

 minal, very large and compound, very dense, 30 cm long, many flowered, flowers small 

 yellowish, calyx 1 mm, deeply 5-cleft, tomentose; petals 5, 2 mm, obovate, glabrous or 

 ciliate; anthers 5, ovoid, obtuse, on very short filaments, styles 2 to 3, short, with capi- 

 tate stigmas; fruit 3 to 4 mm, ovoid, somewhat flattened, tomentose. 



The Neneleau, or Hawaiian Sumach, is a small tree of 15 to 25 feet in height. 

 It sometimes sends up numerous shoots from the roots and thus forms dense 

 clumps of great extent. The trunk is seldom a foot in diameter and is vested in 

 a smooth bark ; the leaves are pinnate, of a bright green with red veins and peti- 

 oles, and when it is in flower is quite an attractive looking tree. The flowering 

 panicle is terminal rusty tomentose, and very dense. The flowers are very small 

 and pale yellow. The Neneleau is strictly of the lowland and lower forest zone 

 between 600 to 2000 feet elevation, and may be found in more or less isolated clus- 

 ters. On Kauai it grows above Makaweli together with the Kukui {Aleurites 

 moluccana) , Sapindus oahuensis, Pisonia, etc., while on Hawaii it is most com- 

 mon all along the road back of Hilo. It is also found in Kona and back of the 

 Waimea village. On Maui it grows on the windward (Kailua) and leeward 

 slopes of Haleakala (at Auahi), together with the Puhala {Pandanus odoratissi- 

 mus), and it is not uncommon in Nuuanu Valley, on Oahu. 



The wood of the Neneleau is soft and very light, of a yellowish gray color, and 

 has a rather coarse grain with darker streaks. It, however, is tough and is 

 largely used for ox plows by the ranchers. 



In North Kona above Kailua, Hawaii, there is a large grove of Neneleau, 

 though now almost dead, due to a fungus pest which has also made its appear- 

 ance in Hilo. 



The species of which this Hawaiian tree is a variety is a small tree whose 

 habitat is in the outer Himalaya Mts., from the Indus to Assam, growing at an 

 elevation of 6000 feet, and on the Khasia Mts. at altitudes between 3000 and 

 5000 feet. The fruit is used by the hill tribes of the Himalaya as a remedy for 

 colic. From the pulp which surrounds the drupes, the omlu, a vegetable wax, 

 is prepared by the Nepalese,. which is similar to the Japanese wax of com- 

 merce. The Neneleau, however, is peculiar to Hawaii. 



AQUIFOLIACEAE. 



Of the family Aquifoliaceae only about 176 species are known, of which more 

 than 170 belong to the genus Ilex. The remaining species belong to 3 genera. 

 The center of distribution of Ilex is in the central and southern part of America, 

 with nearly half as many specie-s in Asia and a few in the Pacific Isles. One 

 genus (Nemopanthes) is North American, while the genus Phelline and others 

 belong to the Australian floral region. 



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