26 



SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



34494 to 34496— Continued. 



is not thick or tough, and to eat the fruit the basal end is usually torn off, 

 exposing the aril, which, with a slight pressure on the apical end of the fruit, 

 slides into the mouth. The flavor is inildlv subacid and somewhat vinous, 

 pleasant, but rather lacking in character. An oblong, flattened seed is inclosed 

 in the aril. 



"General form oblong elliptical; weight averaging about 1 ounce; length 

 If inches, breadth l^;. base rounded or slightly tapering; apex rotmded or 

 slightly tapering; stem slender, short; pedtmcle 8 to 10 inches long, woody, 

 medium stout, bearing three to ten fruits; surface covered with slender, soft, 

 fleshy spines under 1 inch in length; color rich crimson or crimson maroon, 

 yellowish when not fully ripe; pericarp one-sixteenth to one-eighth of an inch 

 thick, firm, greenish; aril whitish, transparent, about one-fointh inch thick, 

 meaty, very juicy; seeds, one, large, oblong, compressed, pointed at the apex, 

 the aril adhering to it closely; flavor subacid, \inous, pleasant." 



34495. Baccaurea motleyana Muell. Arg. Rambe. 

 ''A tree of rather large size, native of the Malay region, and commonly planted 



in gardens in Singapore and Penang. It forms a dense umbrageous head of 

 foliage and is of very s^tii metrical growth. The leaves are oval, entire, dark 

 green in color, about 6 inches in length and 4 inches in breadth. The fruit, 

 which is produced in great profusion in long pendent clusters on the old wood, 

 may be described as follows: General oval form, sometimes slightly elliptical; 

 average weight, three-fourths of an ounce; length, 1 to 1^ inches; breadth, three- 

 fomths to seven-eighths of an inch; base rounded or tapering almost imper- 

 ceptibly; cavity none; apex rounded or tapering slightly, basin none; calyx 

 persistent in the form of three linear-lanceolate brownish sepals, which fre- 

 quently drop off when the fruit is handled: stem medium, stout, short; panicle 

 sometimes 12 inches long, bearing from five to ten fruits; surface smooth, cov- 

 ered with a thin grajTLsh tomentum; color light straw, ^vith occasional small 

 patches of russet; skin one-eighth to one-fourth inch in thickness, of tough, 

 leathery texture; pulp whitish, translucent, soft, melting, very jtiicy; seeds 

 normally three, but one or two of them frequently abortive or imperfectly 

 developed, oval to elliptical, somewhat compressed and grooved, and of rather 

 large size; flavor subacid, resembling that of a fully ripe gooseberry, pleasant; 

 season. August to September. It is one of the commonest fruits in the Penang 

 markets. It does not seem to be esteemed by Etiropeans, however, and can not 

 be considered to possess more than ordinary merit." 



34496. Laxsium domesticijm Jack. Duku. 

 "There are two distinct forms of this species, the langsat, or lanzon, as it ia 



known in the Philippines, and the duku, or doekoe. The duku, the larger and 

 better of the two, is one of the finest of the Malayan fruits. Although not equal 

 to the mangosteen or so popular among the natives as the rambutan, it is a com- 

 mon tree in gardens and along the roadsides, and the fruit is common in the 

 markets. The duku does not 'appear to occur in the Philippines, although the 

 langsat is said to be common in the southern islands. In the Federated Malay 

 States, however, it is much more popular than the langsat. The normal form 

 of the duku is spherical; although fairly uniform in shape, there is much differ- 

 ence in the size of the fruits, the smallest being not over an inch in length, while 

 the largest are over 2 inches. The skin is slightly furrowed longitudinally, is a 

 dull brownish yellow in color, and covered with gra\ish tomentimi. The skin 

 is quite thick and. although tough and leathery- , is readily peeled off, exposing 

 the whitish, translucent flesh, divided into five segments resembling the cells 



