JANUARY 1 TO MARCH 31, 1927 



70933 to 70954— Continued. 



70953. Zea mays L. Poaceae. Corn. 



No. 965. Georgetown, McCarthy Island, 

 Gambia. January 9, 1927. A corn found on 

 McCarthy Island and lands bordering the 

 Gambia River where there is a 40-inch rainfall 

 and a drought lasting from October to June with 

 high temperatures from April to June. The 

 seeds are planted at the beginning of the rainy 

 season. 



70954. Ziziphus spina-christi (L.) Willd. 

 Rhamnaceae. 



No. 979. Near Kudang, Gambia. January 

 7, 1927. A bush or small tree with round fruits 

 which when ripe are sweetish and remind one of 

 the true Chinese jujube. It should be grown 

 for stock and comparison purposes. 



For previous introduction see No. 51741. 



70955 and 70956. Sacchartjm offici- 

 nabum L. Poaceae. Sugar cane. 



From Ryam, Darbhanga, Bihar and Orissa, India. 

 Cuttings obtained from Noel Deerr, Superin- 

 tendent of Factories, MuzafTarpur, Bengal, 

 through E. W. Brandes, Bureau of Plant In- 

 dustry. Received March 14, 1927. 



It is reported that these varieties grow in 

 swampy land or land that has been flooded. 



70955. Kewali. 



70956. Semari. 



70957. Sacchartjm officinartjm L. 

 Poaceae. Sugar cane. 



From Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa. Cut- 

 tings obtained by H. H. McKinney, Bureau of 

 Plant Industry, with the Allison V. Armour 

 expedition. Received March 12, 1927. 



No. 1132. January 25, 1927. A Liberian strain. 



70958. Hyphaene thebaica (L.) Mart. 

 Phoenicaceae. Doum palm. 



From Kerewan, Gambia, West Africa. Fruits 

 collected by David Fairchild, agricultural 

 explorer, Bureau of Plant Industry, with the 

 Allison V. Armour expedition. Received 

 March 1, 1927. 



No. 980. January 10, 1927. A palm about 30 

 feet high which is noted as the only branching palm. 

 It grows in sandy and clay soils and is distributed 

 from Upper Egypt to central Africa. The stems of 

 old trees are sometimes forked three or four times. 

 The beautiful yellowish brown fruits are borne in 

 long clusters of one to two hundred. In Upper 

 Egypt the poorer classes eat the fibrous fruit husk, 

 which tastes much like gingerbread but is rather 

 hard. The hard tough wood is used for domestic 

 utensils. It is one of the most striking and pic- 

 turesque of the palms and is capable of withstanding 

 severe droughts. 



For previous introduction see No. 66656. 



70959 to 70965. 



From China. Scions obtained by F. A. McClure, 

 agricultural explorer, Bureau of Plant Industry. 

 Received February 23, 1927. 



and 70960. Diospyros kaki L. f. Dio- 

 spyraceae. Kaki. 



70959. No. 962. Kanchow, Kiangsi. De- 

 cember 15, 1926. A variety producing 

 medium large, somewhat flattened, squar- 

 ish fruits with few seeds which are orange- 

 red when ripe. They are usually ripened 

 artificially to remove the astringency. 



No. 963. Kanchow, Kiangsi. De- 

 cember 15, 1926. The same as No. 962 

 [No. 70969], but from a different tree. 



70959 to 70965 — Continued. 



70981 to 70964. Prunus mume Sieb. and Zucc. 

 Amygdalaceae. Japanese apricot. 



Bud wood from trees growing in the orchards 

 of Lingnan University, Canton. January, 1927. 



. 70961. No. 982. Hang mui. A variety char- 

 acterized by its distinctly upward-pointing 

 branching habit and golden-yellow fruits. 



For previous introduction see No. 62316. 



70962. No. 983. Wang wat mui. A variety 

 said to have especially large flowers. 



For previous introduction see No. 62314. 



70963. No. 986. Hung mui. A variety dis- 

 tinguished by reddish bark, rather slender 

 branches, pink flowers, and red fruits. 



For previous introduction see No. 62315. 



70964. No. 990. Taaimui. A variety said to 

 have large fruits. 



For previous introduction see No. 62312. 



70965. Pyrus sp. Malaceae. Pear. 



No. 965. Kanchow, Kiangsi. December 15, 

 1926. Chan paak. lei. A variety widely culti- 

 vated in China, with medium-sized subglobular 

 fruits of fair quality. 



70966. Berberis bergmanniae acan- 

 thophylla C. Schneid. Berberi- 

 daceae. Barberry, 



From San Francisco, Calif. Seeds presented by 

 Eric Walther, Golden Gate Park. Received 

 March 4, 1927. 



An evergreen bush, up to 6 feet high, with 

 leathery spiny leaves 2 inches long and black berries. 

 Native to western China. 



For previous introduction see No. 34552. 

 70967 to 70993. 



From China. Seeds collected by F. A. McClure, 

 agricultural explorer, Bureau of Plant Industry. 

 Received Feburary 24, 1927. 



70967. Acacia confusa Merr. Mimosaceae. 



No. 992. Collected during the autumn of 

 1926 from trees growing on the Lingnan Uni- 

 versity Campus, Canton. Toi waan seung sz. 

 A very rapid-growing, ornamental tree with 

 ball-like clusters of fragrant yellow flowers which 

 appear twice a year. 



70968. Actinidia sp. Dilleniaceae. 



No. 979. Yeung to. From a plant appar- 

 ently half under cultivation, north of Kanchow, 

 Kiangsi Province. December 14, 1926. A 

 scandent shrub, 3 to 4 meters high, bearing large 

 dense clusters of brownish oblong fruits, the size 

 of guinea eggs, which have green flesh of a pleas- 

 ant subacid flavor. 



70969. Astragalus sinicus L. Fabaceae. 



No. 533. Hung fa tsz tsoi, Chong uen fa. A 

 low-growing legume native to Kwantung Prov- 

 ince and cultivated as a green-manure crop in the 

 Linchow district. It is also eaten as a green 

 vegetable by the natives, though in small quan- 

 tities. Livestock, particularly cows and horses, 

 are not allowed to graze in it, because it is said 

 to be fatal to them if large quantities are eaten. 



70970. Bauhinia sp. Caesalpiniaceae. 



No. 975. Obtained near Wanan, Kiangsi 

 Province. December 12, 1926. A climber, 3 to 4 

 meters in length, with tough hooks which are 

 its means of clinging to support. 



