48 



SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



36662 to 36675— Continued. 



36672. HoLCUS sorghum L. Sorghum. 

 {Sorghum vulgarc Pers.) 



"(No. 1900a. Tan hwa, Cliihli Province, China. September 1, 1913.) A 

 dwarf variety of sorghum with large, dense heads and white grains. Fit for 

 regions having short growing seasons. ' ' 



36673. Chaetochloa italica (L.) Scribner. Millet. 

 {Setaria italica Beauv.) 



"(No. 1901a. Tan hwa, Chihh Province, China. September 1, 1913.) A 

 short-season variety of bird's millet having dense ears. Chinese name Hsiao 

 mi tze. Fit for regions having short growing seasons. ' ' 



36674. Panicum miliaceum L. Proso. 

 "(No. 1902a. Tan hwa, ChihU Province, China. September 1, 1913.) A 



variety of proso of low growth, early ripening habits, and big yield. Fit for 

 regions having short growing seasons. Chinese name Huang mi.'^ 



36676. AvENA NUDA Hoejer. Oat. 

 "(No. 1903a. Ta shiang yang, Chihli Province, China. August 1, 1913.) A 



good variety of hull-less oats, much cultivated in the higher mountain regions 

 of northern China. A coarse flour is made from it, which is eaten in the form 

 of noodles, dumphngs, and cakes. Chinese name Yu mei. Especially worth 

 trying in the intermountain sections of the United States. May be of great 

 value to oatmeal manufacturers." 



36676. Phoenix dactylifera L. Date. 

 From Egypt. Brought over by Prof. S. C. Mason, of the Bureau of Plant Industry, 

 who receiA^ed it as a present from Sheik Abbes Mohammed Ahmed, Elsheikh 

 Issa, Keneh, Egypt, November 1, 1913. 

 Mosque. "As the Arabic name, rendered 'The Date by the Land,' referring to its 

 being a seedling tree growing by the border of a cultivated field, is an awkward one, 

 I prefer to name this the Mosque date, as half of the fruit and offshoots of the original 

 tree had been vowed to his mosque by the owner. The fruit is sUghtly softer than 

 semidry and incUned to be a bit sticky. It is of medium size, yellow, ripening to 

 amber brown, thin skinned, the flesh very rich and sugary, the seed small. I con- 

 sider that it has no superior as a packing date among all Egyptian varieties. ' ' ( Mason.) 

 Offshoot. 



36677 and 36678. 



From Peking, China. Collected by Mr. Frank N. Meyer, Agricultural Explorer 

 for the Department of Agriculture. Received November 28, 1913. 



36677. CoLocASiA sp. 



"(No. 1036. Peking, China. November 3, 1913.) A dry-land taro, or dash- 

 een, cultivated in North China. The Chinese call the large main conns * males, ' 

 and these are considered much coarser than the cormlets, which are called *fe- 

 m^ales.' The latter are especially appreciated when served boiled and steamed 

 hot with molten sugar over them. Chinese name Uto or Yutao.^^ (Meyer.) 



"This variety is similar to those previously received from Japan and North 

 China and is of a quahty greatly inferior to some of those from warmer regions." 

 (R. A. Young.) 



36678. LiLiUM sp. Lily. 

 "(No. 1040. November 3, 1913.) A Chinese Uly, said to come from southern 



China. The scales are eaten boiled in soup, sweetened with honey or sugar, 

 and this is considered a very fine dish. Chinese name Pai gho.'' ' ( Meyer. ) 



