Quercus] CVII. FAGACE^ 625 



Several species of Sect. Pasania : lappacea, acuminata^ pachyphylla and 

 fenesfrata have uniform very fine rays, numerous and equidistant. Wavy 

 soft, more or less concentric bands of wood-parencliyma (often very narrow) 

 in most species. Wood-fibres witli bordered pits. ^ fl. in drooping catkins 

 or erect spikes, perianth of 3-8 segments, more or less connate at the base, 

 stamens as many as or twice the number of segments, a rudimentary ovary in 

 some species. $ fl. on erect axillary, often very short spikes, each fi., or^in 

 a few species a pair of fl., in an involucre of numerous bracts or scales, which 

 in fr. coalesce and form a cup or a bag entirely enclosing the nut and are often 

 connate into concentric belts. Ovary 3-celied, styles 3, stigmatose on the 

 inner surface or at the apex only, often red. Cotyledons thick fleshy, remain 

 underground when germinating, starch as a rule the reserve substance. 

 Species about 300, Europe, Mediterranean region, Asia, ITorth America. 

 TJiitcha^ Burm. and in Upper Burma Zagat and Metlein are used indis- 

 criminately for several species. 



Sect. i. LepidobalaniLS. Spikes unisexual, $ simple, lax, mostly pendulous, 

 deciduous, usually fascicled. Fruiting spikes short, often with 1 or 2 acorns 

 only, rachis softly hairy, not libbed. Cup hemispherical, bracts imbricate, 

 tips free, L. usually serrate or lobed. 



A. Mature 1. hairy or tomentose beneath. 



1» Q. semecarpifolia, Smith; Wall. PL As. Ear. t. 174; Brandis F. Fl. 

 t. 64 ; King in Ann. Grard. Calc. ii. t. 15a ; Collett Simla Fl. 474, fig, 152. 

 Vern. Banjar, Haz.; Kharshu^ Hind.; Maru, Kreo^ Ohamba; Z7ior, Bash. 



A large gregarious tree, sometimes leafless for a few weeks in spring, bark 

 dark grey, cut by shallow cracks into small more or less 4- sided scales, shoots 

 and young 1. softly rusty-tomentose. L. rigidly coriaceous, glabrous and dark 

 green above, generally hairy on the underside, entire or (on young trees always) 

 dentate with long spinescent teeth, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, blade 2-5 in., pet. 

 very short, see. n. generally bifurcating and branching. S catkins fascicled, 

 2-6 in. long, perianth-segments obtuse, ciliate. 5 spikes short, few-fld., styles 

 3-5 linear, recurved. Fr. usually solitary, on the previous year's wood, glabrous, 

 1 in. diam., black when ripe, base enclosed by the 'thin concave cup. 



Kuram valley 9-11,000 ft. Himalaya, 8-10,000 ft., occasionally descending to 6,500 

 and ascending to 12,000 ft. East Manipnr on the Burma frontier, 8-10,000 ft, — China. 

 New 1. and £. April- June. The fr. ripens Aug.-Sept. of the next year, 15 months after 

 flowering. Seeds profusely every second year, but a few trees here and there hear 

 acorns every year. Trees that hear acorns do not shed L that year, whereas those 

 which produce <J ii. are generally leafless by the middle of May (Kanjilal 338). 2. Q. 

 Bex, Linn. ; King Ann, ii. t. 17. — Syn. Q. Baloot^ Griif. Vern. Balut^ Afg. ; Breh^ Kun. 

 Kuram valley 6,500-9,000 ft., common. Hills north of the Peshawar valley at 3,500 ft. 

 Ohitral, 6-8,000 ft. Arid valleys of the inner Himalaya, on the upper Jhelam, Chenab, 

 Ravi and Sutlej, 3-8,500 ft. In the Sutlej valley the lower limit : Chergaon and Panwi, 

 the upper : Teiing and Purbni. — Mediterranean region. Afghanistan. A middle-sized 

 evergreen tree, often only a shrub, branchlets, petioles and underside of 1. densely grey- 

 pubescent with stellate hairs. L. coriaceous, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, entire or with 

 large spinescent teeth, blade 2-3 in. long, pet. short, sec. n. not prominent. Anthers 

 hairy. Acorns 2-3 on a peduncle 1-2 in. long, nuts at first nearly enclosed in the 

 •cup, scales hoary, closely appressed. G-amble, p. 672, mentions a tree from the Chumbi 

 valley which, he thinks, may possibly be this species. 



3. Q. Griffithii, Hook. f. & Thorns. ; King Ann. ii. 1. 18. Thitcha^ Lower, 

 Metlein^ Upper Burma. 



A large deciduous gregarious tree, bark silvery grey, branchlets and young 

 1. pale-, often rusty-tomentose, L. coriaceous, underside usually pubescent, 

 obovate or oblanceolate, blade 6-9, pet. \-\ in., stout, sec. n. 14-18 pair, 

 prominent, nearly straight, terminating in large triangular serratures. Fr. 

 solitary or in short spikes, cup hemispherical, | in. diam., scales closely 

 :appressed, nut |-| in. long, nearly cylindric. 



Bhutan. Khasi and Kaga hills. Manipur. Hills of Upper Burma, east of the 

 Irawadi. Hills between the Sitang and the Salween^ south as far as Lomatee. common 



S S 



