﻿20 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



47952 to 47954— Continued. 



47954. Babosma crentjlata (L.) Hook. Rutaceae. Buchu. 



The large-leaved buchu, the kind most esteemed in the colony, although 

 not the highest priced in London, is often distinguished as the " true 

 buchu." It is a twiggy shrub, 3 to 4 feet high, with smooth purplish 

 branchlets and leaves 1 to li inches long. The pale purplish flowers, pro- 

 duced in October and November, are very plentiful and last for a long 

 time. The uses are the same as those of B. betulina. (Adapted from 

 The Agricultural Journal, Cape of Good Hope, vol. 6, p. 147.) 



47955. Parthenium argentatum A. Gray. Aster aceae. Guayule. 

 From Saltillo, Mexico. Presented by the Cia. Explotadora de Caucho 



Mexicano, through Mr. H. C. Morgan, American consul. Received August 

 11, 1919. 

 " Seeds from the guayule plant, which yields a certain kind of commercial 

 rubber. The seeds were collected from this year's flowers." (Morgan.) 



47956. Achradelpha mammosa (L.) O. F. Cook. Sapotaceae. 

 (Lucuma mammosa Gaertn.) Sapote. 



From San Jose, Costa Rica. Presented by Mr. Carlos WercklS, through 

 Mr. Jos6 C. Zeledon. Received August 12, 1919. 



" Few other fruits are of such importance to the natives of Mexico and 

 Guatemala as the sapote, which grows wild in the forests of Guatemala, 

 Tabasco, and Chiapas. It is often cultivated, but much of the fruit consumed 

 in these regions is gathered from wild trees. Elsewhere in tropical America 

 it is planted in gardens, notably in Cuba, where it is a favorite fruit. The 

 Central American common name, zapote (spelled sapote in English), is taken 

 from the Aztec tzapotl, a generic name applied by the ancient Mexicans to 

 all soft sweet fruits. In Cuba it is called mamey sapote and mamey Colorado. 



" The sapote becomes a large tree, sometimes attaining 80 or 90 feet in height. 

 It thrives only in regions where the climate is warm and rather moist; it can 

 not stand the cold winters of California, and for some reason it has not suc- 

 ceeded in southeastern Florida, although it is apparently not the cold that 

 interferes with its growth in the latter region. The fruits are the size of small 

 muskmelons, but elliptic in form ; they have a rough russet-brown outer cover- 

 ing about an eighth of an inch thick, salmon-colored or reddish flesh that is 

 soft, melting, sweet, and of rich flavor, and a single large, elliptic, glossy- 

 brown seed. A poor sapote resembles a squash in taste, but a good one is rich 

 and pleasant flavored. The fruit is eaten fresh, or made into jam, or frozen 

 to form a sherbet." (Wilson Popenoe.) 



47957. Casimiroa sp. Rutacese. 



From Los Angeles, Calif. Budwood presented by Mr. Milo Baker. Re- 

 ceived August 21, 1919. 

 " Budwood from a tree grown from a cutting received from Central America 

 some years ago and budded into a white sapote tree. This budded tree is 

 fruiting this year for the second time. The fruit is practically seedless and 

 about the size of a smallish apple; the entire fruit is edible and very rich. 

 The tree seems to be a vigorous grower and a prolific bearer." (Baker.) 



" The cuttings received are more pubescent than those of the common Casi- 

 miroa edulis (the white sapote), and I suspect they belong to one of the other 



