174 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE NATIONAL HERBARIUM. 
Laurel puero. 
A tree from all parts of the island; height, 45 to 50 feet (14 to 15 meters); diam- 
eter, 20 to 25 inches (50 to 62 centimeters); wood, yellowish, hard; specific gravity, 
0.628; used in building houses. Also called *“‘ azafran.’’ (Exp. 1857.) 
Perhaps this should be ‘‘ laurel puerco.”’ 
Laurel sabino. See Magnolia splendens; also Talauma. 
Color, clear olive-brown. Ducts occurring singly, evenly diffused in one or two 
irregular lines, between the indistinct medullary rays. A straight-grained wood 
similar in color to, but finer-grained than the heart of the tulip and cucumber tree 
of the United States. -(Hill and Sudworth, p. 28.) 
Laurel savino. 
A tree from all parts of the island; height, 40 to 45 feet (12 to 14 meters); diam- 
eter, 20 to 25 inches (50 to 62 centimeters). Wood, greenish, hard; specific grav- 
ity, 0.750; used in building houses. Probably another name for ‘‘ laurel sabino.”’ 
(Exp. 1857.) 
Lawsonia alba. See Lawsonia inermis. 
(Stahl, 4: 122. 
Lawsonia inermis. HENNA. RESEDA. 
Family Lythraceae: a glabrous shrub, 2 meters high, with white flowers; natur- 
alized from Egypt and Syria in Jamaicaand Antigua. Yields a yellow dye, much 
used by the Egyptians and Arabs as a cosmetic for the palms of the hands, finger 
nails, and hair, also for the tails of horses, and for coloring cloth a dull red. 
‘‘Keyptian privet ’’ and ‘‘ Jamaica mignonette tree’’ are additional names. Cul- 
tivated in gardens in Porto Rico. Specimens have been collected near Guanica. 
Tt will grow without irrigation in extremely dry situations and has been suggested 
asa hedge plant. (Stahl, 4: 122, as L. alba.) 
Lechecillo. See Chrysophyllum glabrum. 
A wild tree, 40 feet (12 meters) high, with edible fruit. The trunk 12 inches (30 
centimeters) in diameter. The wood is rose-colored, hard, and breaks with a 
vertical fracture. Its common use is for shelying in houses. It is used also for 
making a fine charcoal for forges. (Grosourdy, 2: 394.) Specific gravity, 0.883. 
(Exp. 1857. ) 
Leche prieta. 
A wild tree from the interior of the island, 20 feet (6 meters) high, with a trunk 
27 inches (67 centimeters) in diameter. It furnishes a compact, rose-colored 
wood that is very difficult to break. Its common use is for shelving in houses. 
(Grosourdy, 2: 394.) 
Lechicillo. 
Probably another spelling of ‘* lechecillo.”’ 
Asmall tree, abundant on mountain slopes near streams. The fruit is eaten by 
the natives, while the wood is very softand notused. The specific gravity, accord- 
ing to Captain Hansard; is 0.79. 
Lechoncillo. 
Captain Hansard gives this wood a specific gravity of 0.80. It is probably the 
same as lechicillo. 
Lechosa. See Carica papaya. 
Lemon. See Citrus limonwm. 
Lengua de vaca. See Elephantopus scaber and Sansevieria sp. 
Leonotis nepetaefolia. MoLinIL1o. PLATE XLIV. 
A herbaceous annual of the mint family, 15 to 30 inches (37 to 75 centimeters) 
high; the large bur-like flower clusters are very peculiar, and when covered with 


