﻿Inventory 48, Seeds and Plants Imported. 



Plate IV. 



Seeds of a Staple Food Product in Spain, a Few of the Numerous 

 Varieties of Chick-Pea (Cicer arietinum L., S. P. I. Nos. 43273- 

 43280). 



The chick-pea, or garbanzo of Spanish countries, is used very extensively. In some regions 

 it stands next in importance to wheat as a food plant. It is employed in meat stews 

 almost universally in Spain and is eaten as a breakfast dish in Asia Minor in the form of 

 a puree. Muffins made from chick-pea meal closely resemble corn-meal muffins. The 

 chick-pea is an arid-region plant and does not thrive where the summers are moist. Its 

 leaves are covered with sticky hairs containing oxalate of lime; this makes it somewhat 

 disagreeable to harvest by hand. In regions where it grows well it should be carefully 

 studied as an important leguminous grain crop. (Photographed by E. C. Crandall, Dec. 

 21, 1909; P6248FS.) 



