22 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



23519 and 23520— Continued. 



"The wood of G. benthami is reddish brown and very much esteemed. 

 d is used for the same purposes as that of '-'. ferrea and differs from 

 it very little, [f we consider what Rumphius says aboul thai of <:. cele- 

 bica i... we may regard it as established that all the Garcinias with a 

 white juice have reddisb brown or honey-colored wood superior to thai of 

 tlio other species of Catvinia. This observation is important for forest 

 cultivation." (Extract from Pierre's Forest Flora of Cochin China.) 

 23520. Gabcinia celebica L. 



"This tree grows very quickly and without difficulty. The leaves have 

 an a. -id flavor; the fruits remain acid a long time: their taste when 

 they are perfectly ripe is somewhat like thai of the cultivated mango- 

 Steens. An excellent jelly is made of them and a refreshing pectoral 

 Sirup which Lamarck says is in daily use al Malic. Its fruits are used 

 in dyeing, and their rind has astringenl properties and serves to make 

 Vinegar. A viscid, milky, yellowish juice runs from incisions made in 

 the tree, which gives a species of gum. This mangosteen grows naturally 

 in the Has! Indies and is also found in the island of P.oiirhon and in 

 several of the Ant [lies. 



•■ ii is ool a very tail tree and has a large tufted top. The branches 

 are glabrous, a little striate, slightly tetragonal, and covered wilh a 

 grayish or dull red hark. The leases are opposite, numerous, oval- 

 lanceolate, pointed at the two cuds, glabrous, green on both sides, much 

 narrower and less thick than those of the cultivated mangosteen. The 

 flowers are unisexual and home on different plants. The female flowers 

 are terminal, solitary, hard] pedunculated. Tin- fruit is globular, of a 

 yellowish red or saffron color, sometimes violet, crowned by the stigma : it 

 is a little hit larger than the ' pomme d'apl,' which it resembles in form. 



"The yellow juice which comes fr incisions in this mangosteen 



gives n kind of aromatic resin, soughl after for medicinal purposes. The 



fruit furnishes a balsamic acid, and the bark tannin." [Extract from 



tin Medical Flora of tin Antilles, by Descourtilz.) 



"These two species of Garcinia were introduced for testing as stocks on 

 Which to grow the mangOSteen, which is notably one of the weakest rooted 



plants of this genus." i FairchUd.) 

 23522 to 23525. 



From Chungking, west china. Presented by Rev. J. F. Peat. Received 

 August 24, L908. 

 Seed of each of the following. Varietal descriptions by Mr. n. T. Nielsen. 



23522. Glycini hispida (Moench) Maxim. Soybean. 

 Greenish yellow with dark hiluin. 



23523. Glycine hispida (Moench) .Maxim. Soybean. 

 Black. Similar in appearance to No. L9183. 



23524. VlGNA SESQriPEDALIS (L.) W. F. Wight. 

 Red. 



23525. Pisum abvense L. Field pea. 



23526. Gossypium eorsutum L. Cotton. 



From Caracas, Venezuela. Presented by Dr. E. Andre, Port of Spain, 

 Trinidad. British West Indies. Received August 28, 1908. 

 "A curious variety." {Andre'.) 



" Lint medium short staple length, drag very fine, of great strength. Prob- 

 ably a tropical cotton adapted to only tropical regions." ( D. N. Shoemaker.) 



23527. Musa paradisiaca L. Banana. 



From Ambos, Camarines, P. I. Presented by Mr. William S. Lyon, 

 Manila, P. I. Received September 8, 1908. 

 " Seed of an edible species. The fruit is large and well flavored and the fari- 

 naceous seeds are quite tender and eaten, not rejected, when the fruit is ripe. 

 They do not harden until the fruit begins to decay. It is one of our many 

 14S 



