﻿B. 
  P. 
  I.— 
  723. 
  

  

  SEEDS 
  AND 
  PLANTS 
  IMPORTED 
  DURING 
  THE 
  

   PERIOD 
  FROM 
  APRIL 
  1 
  TO 
  JUNE 
  30, 
  1911s 
  

   INVENTORY 
  NO. 
  27; 
  NOS. 
  30462 
  TO 
  31370. 
  

  

  INTRODUCTORY 
  STATEMENT. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  not 
  generally 
  realized 
  by 
  the 
  public 
  that 
  the 
  area 
  of 
  inhabited 
  

   country 
  on 
  the 
  globe 
  which 
  is 
  visited 
  by 
  zero 
  temperatures 
  is 
  limited 
  

   to 
  the 
  Northern 
  Hemisphere 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  tops 
  of 
  mountains. 
  A 
  tem- 
  

   perature 
  such 
  as 
  is 
  prevalent 
  on 
  our 
  Great 
  Plains 
  every 
  winter 
  would 
  

   practically 
  wipe 
  off 
  the 
  vegetation 
  from 
  the 
  continents 
  lying 
  below 
  

   the 
  equator 
  and 
  would 
  so 
  injure 
  the 
  agriculture 
  even 
  of 
  central 
  Europe 
  

   that 
  it 
  would 
  require 
  many 
  years 
  in 
  which 
  to 
  recover. 
  The 
  eucalypts 
  

   are 
  trees 
  which 
  we 
  can 
  not 
  grow 
  north 
  of 
  Florida 
  or 
  California, 
  and 
  

   yet 
  there 
  are 
  varieties 
  which 
  grow 
  well 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  coast 
  of 
  Scotland. 
  

  

  The 
  limited 
  area 
  which 
  can 
  be 
  explored 
  with 
  any 
  hope 
  of 
  obtaining 
  

   perennial 
  plants 
  hardy 
  enough 
  to 
  thrive 
  on 
  our 
  Great 
  Plains 
  should 
  

   give 
  any 
  exploration 
  of 
  such 
  areas 
  special 
  importance. 
  

  

  The 
  present 
  inventory 
  contains 
  descriptions 
  of 
  plant 
  material 
  

   obtained 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Frank 
  N. 
  Meyer 
  during 
  an 
  exploration 
  trip 
  across 
  

   the 
  great 
  Tien 
  Shan 
  mountain 
  range, 
  which 
  lies 
  between 
  Chinese 
  and 
  

   Russian 
  territory, 
  a 
  region 
  with 
  passes 
  13,000 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  sea 
  and 
  

   possessing 
  a 
  climate 
  approaching 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  upper 
  Mississippi 
  

   Valley. 
  The 
  winters 
  are 
  long 
  and 
  cold, 
  and 
  the 
  thermometer 
  goes 
  

   down 
  to 
  —20° 
  F. 
  or 
  more, 
  while 
  the 
  summers 
  are 
  extremely 
  hot, 
  

   though 
  possibly 
  not 
  so 
  long 
  as 
  those 
  in 
  our 
  Middle 
  West. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Meyer 
  left 
  Kashgar 
  in 
  Chinese 
  Turkestan 
  on 
  February 
  10, 
  and 
  

   on 
  foot 
  or 
  by 
  native 
  cart 
  he 
  traveled 
  across 
  the 
  alkali 
  and 
  sandy 
  des- 
  

   erts 
  for 
  13 
  days 
  to 
  Aksu, 
  at 
  the 
  foot 
  of 
  the 
  Tien 
  Shan 
  Range, 
  picking 
  

   up 
  some 
  desert 
  poplars 
  on 
  the 
  way. 
  Here 
  he 
  changed 
  his 
  desert 
  

   caravan 
  for 
  a 
  mountain-climbing 
  equipment 
  and 
  with 
  a 
  mounted 
  

   guard 
  climbed 
  northward 
  over 
  the 
  range 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  Awat, 
  Yengi- 
  

   Malah, 
  Kailik, 
  and 
  Tanga-Tash 
  over 
  the 
  Muzart 
  Glacier 
  to 
  Ghilan, 
  

   thence 
  eastward 
  along 
  the 
  Tekes 
  River 
  to 
  a 
  point 
  on 
  the 
  Chong 
  

   Djighilan 
  River 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  hamlet 
  of 
  Chong 
  Djighilan, 
  and 
  from 
  

   there 
  worked 
  his 
  way 
  northwestward 
  in 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Hi 
  to 
  Kulja, 
  

   spending 
  40 
  days 
  on 
  the 
  road. 
  The 
  difficulties 
  of 
  travel 
  in 
  any 
  poorly 
  

  

  242 
  

  

  7 
  

  

  