﻿8 
  SEEDS 
  AND 
  PLANTS 
  IMPORTED. 
  

  

  mapped 
  region 
  are 
  great, 
  but 
  they 
  were 
  made 
  even 
  greater 
  by 
  the 
  fact 
  

   that 
  the 
  region 
  mentioned 
  is 
  the 
  very 
  boundary 
  line 
  between 
  the 
  Rus- 
  

   sian 
  and 
  the 
  Chinese 
  Empires 
  and 
  that 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  Kulja, 
  or 
  Hi, 
  

   district 
  was 
  a 
  subject 
  of 
  international 
  dispute 
  between 
  the 
  two 
  

   countries. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  journey 
  through 
  the 
  alkali 
  desert 
  Mr. 
  Meyer 
  secured 
  some 
  

   promising 
  desert 
  poplars 
  and 
  cuttings 
  of 
  that 
  important 
  drought 
  and 
  

   alkali 
  resistant 
  tree, 
  the 
  tamarisk 
  (Nos. 
  30930 
  to 
  30933), 
  to 
  which 
  

   enough 
  attention 
  has 
  not 
  yet 
  been 
  paid 
  by 
  dwellers 
  in 
  desert 
  regions 
  

   who 
  are 
  looking 
  for 
  cover 
  plants 
  and 
  sand 
  binders. 
  Crossing 
  the 
  

   Tien 
  Shan 
  Range 
  he 
  reached 
  altitudes 
  of 
  13,000 
  feet 
  and 
  traveled 
  

   through 
  forests 
  of 
  the 
  rare 
  spruce 
  Picea 
  obovata 
  sclirenkiana, 
  a 
  form 
  

   which 
  may 
  have 
  a 
  distinct 
  future 
  as 
  a 
  park 
  and 
  avenue 
  tree 
  in 
  the 
  

   elevated 
  semiarid 
  regions 
  of 
  this 
  country 
  where 
  the 
  Norway 
  spruce 
  

   fails. 
  On 
  March 
  16 
  and 
  17 
  Mr. 
  Meyer 
  discovered 
  wild 
  apricot 
  and 
  

   wild 
  apple 
  trees 
  (Nos. 
  30946 
  to 
  30949 
  and 
  30952) 
  standing 
  in 
  2 
  feet 
  of 
  

   hard-frozen 
  snow 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  side 
  of 
  an 
  otherwise 
  barren 
  mountain 
  

   near 
  Tugai. 
  In 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Chong 
  Djighilan 
  River 
  groves 
  of 
  

   these 
  wild 
  fruits 
  occur, 
  the 
  slow-growing 
  trees 
  varying 
  in 
  all 
  possible 
  

   ways. 
  They 
  grow 
  in 
  the 
  company 
  of 
  birches, 
  sea 
  buckthorn, 
  haw- 
  

   thorn, 
  and 
  other 
  northern 
  species, 
  and 
  Mr. 
  Meyer 
  is 
  forced 
  to 
  the 
  

   conclusion 
  from 
  his 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  wild 
  orchards 
  which 
  he 
  saw 
  there 
  

   that 
  these 
  wild 
  species 
  will 
  give 
  rise 
  to 
  strains 
  of 
  very 
  much 
  hardier 
  

   varieties 
  of 
  both 
  these 
  orchard 
  fruits 
  than 
  any 
  we 
  now 
  possess. 
  Our 
  

   apples 
  and 
  apricots 
  have 
  no 
  doubt 
  come 
  to 
  us 
  from 
  their 
  wild 
  homes 
  

   through 
  the 
  mild 
  regions 
  of 
  Europe, 
  and 
  this 
  reaching 
  back 
  to 
  the 
  

   original 
  wild 
  hardy 
  forms 
  can 
  not 
  fail 
  to 
  be 
  of 
  importance 
  to 
  the 
  

   breeders 
  who 
  are 
  interested 
  in 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  hardier 
  varieties. 
  

   Owing 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  took 
  two 
  months 
  for 
  the 
  cuttings 
  to 
  reach 
  

   Washington 
  (though 
  gathered 
  in 
  March 
  they 
  did 
  not 
  reach 
  here 
  

   until 
  May 
  17), 
  it 
  proved 
  impossible 
  to 
  save 
  them. 
  Arrangements 
  

   for 
  their 
  reintroduction 
  are 
  under 
  way. 
  

  

  Some 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  plants 
  which 
  were 
  secured 
  on 
  this 
  trip 
  are 
  an 
  

   ornamental 
  Euonymus 
  (No. 
  31276) 
  from 
  the 
  Hi 
  Valley, 
  which 
  is 
  

   likely 
  to 
  be 
  hardier 
  than 
  E. 
  radicans, 
  so 
  much 
  used 
  on 
  the 
  walls 
  of 
  

   our 
  houses; 
  a 
  valuable 
  collection 
  of 
  the 
  named 
  varieties 
  of 
  winter 
  

   melons 
  of 
  the 
  Casaba 
  type 
  (Nos. 
  31335 
  to 
  31352) 
  from 
  the 
  sand 
  dunes 
  

   of 
  Tcharjui; 
  two 
  yellow-flowered 
  alfalfas 
  from 
  an 
  altitude 
  of 
  4,000 
  to 
  

   7,000 
  feet 
  (Nos. 
  30954 
  and 
  30955); 
  two 
  wild 
  currants 
  from 
  Idin-Kul 
  

   (Nos. 
  30943 
  and 
  30944) 
  ; 
  a 
  collection 
  of 
  hardy 
  willows 
  for 
  park 
  plant- 
  

   ing 
  in 
  the 
  Northwest 
  (Nos. 
  30923 
  to 
  30929) 
  ; 
  and 
  a 
  collection 
  of 
  five 
  

   varieties 
  of 
  apricots, 
  one 
  of 
  them 
  a 
  dark-red 
  sort, 
  from 
  Bis-Karim 
  

   (Nos. 
  30628 
  to 
  30632). 
  

  

  Mr. 
  C. 
  V. 
  Piper, 
  of 
  the 
  Office 
  of 
  Forage-Crop 
  Investigations, 
  tempo- 
  

   rarily 
  detailed 
  to 
  the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  Insular 
  Affairs 
  of 
  the 
  War 
  Depart- 
  

  

  242 
  

  

  