51 



3874. Phcenix dactylifera. Date. 



From Algeria. Received through Mr. Walter T. Swingle, October 10, 1899. 



3875. Viola tricolor. Pansy. 



From New York. Presented by Mr. M. Beaulieu, of Woodhaven, N. Y., January 

 23, 1900. 



Madame Perret. A new strain of giant pansy. 



3876. Raphanus sativus. Radish. 



From Sakurajima, Japan. Received through the kindness of Mr. T. Okohira, 

 secretary of the Japanese legation, Washington, D. C, October 11, 1899. 



Daikon. A very choice and carefully selected winter radish, extensively used for 

 food in Japan. This variety reaches perfection only in the extreme southern part of 

 the country; it may accordingly be of use as a fall or winter crop in the Southern 

 States. In Japan many methods of cooking and preserving are known, and if the 

 vegetable is found to thrive in the South an account of these may be printed later 

 and a larger amount of seed imported for distribution. 



The following notes were furnished by Mr. Okohira regarding the methods of 

 cultivation followed in Japan: 



"This kind of radish grows in a small volcanic island named 'Sakurajima,' or 

 'Island of Cherry Blossoms,' in Kagoshima Bay, Kiushu, Japan. The climate there 

 is generally warm and the soil is remarkably fertile, much like that of Florida and 

 Georgia. Roots 3 feet in circumference are frequently produced, and the radish is 

 noted for its excellent flavor. The seeds are planted about the end of September. 

 The ground is carefully and deeply plowed, making the beds about 3 feet wide, while 

 five or six seeds are planted together in spots 1 foot apart. In a garden containing 

 one-fortieth of an acre it is practicable to apply a mixture of 200 to 300 pounds of 

 artificial manures, and in a month after the vegetables sprout diluted night soil is 

 used once or twice. The weak and sickly plants should be removed, thus leaving 

 the finest one alone at each spot, and before they grow too large the ground should 

 be hoed over a few times. The harvest usually takes place after a few frosts have 

 occurred." 



3877. Palm. 



From Greytown, Nicaragua. Received through Mr. E. P. Alexander, October 

 17, 1899. 



Coyal. Distributed. 



3878. Palm. 



From Greytown, Nicaragua. Received through Mr. E. P. Alexander, October 

 17, 1899. 



Loillo. Distributed. 



3879. Ginkgo biloba. Ginkgo. 



Seeds collected on the grounds of the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 Washington, D. C. , October, 1899. Introduced into this country from China or 

 Japan seventy-five or eighty years ago. 



This splendid deciduous tree attains a height of 60 to 70 feet. It has a straight 

 trunk with a pyramidal head. The leaves are in tufts of four or five, surrounding a 

 scaly terminal bud. They are fan shaped, leathery, with notched ends, and have 

 numerous closely set forking veins like those of the maidenhair ferns. When ripe 

 the seed has an outer fleshy covering, and a thin shell surrounding a somewhat gelat- 

 inous, oily kernel. 



The seed may be planted in autumn in drills, and protected during the winter by 

 a light covering. It is preferable, however, to plant in spring in like manner, the 

 seed being kept over winter in a cool, dry place. The seedlings should be grown in 

 the nursery row for two or three years and then planted permanently. 



The ginkgo or maidenhair tree, as it is commonly called, is one of the cleanest and 

 best for avenue planting. It makes a good shade, holds its foliage well, is less affected 



