APEIL 1 TO JUXE 30, 1914. 



137 



38487 and 38488— Continued. (Quoted notes by Mr. F. X. Meyer.) 

 38488. Thladiantha dubia Bunge. Cucurbitaceae. 

 From Pekiug. China. Collected April 18. 1914. 



"(No. 1217.) Tubers of a climbing cucurbitaceous plant, producing yel- 

 low flowers followed by fruits the size of hen's eggs, which become scarlet 

 when fully ripe. The Chinese plant the roots of male and female plants 

 close together so as to insure a bountiful supply of fruits. The roots of 

 male plants are said to be large and elongated, while those of the female 

 plants are small and round." 



38489. Trichosaxthes KnoLOwn Maxim. Cucurbitaceae. Gourd. 



From Peking, China. Collected by Mr. Frank X. Meyer, Agricultural Ex- 

 plorer for the Department of Agriculture. Received at the Plant Intro- 

 duction Field Station, Chico, Cal.. May 25, 1914. 

 " (No. 1218. April 28, 1914.) Tubers of a rare gourd, cultivated as an orna- 

 mental i)erennial. The fruits hre also used for medicinal purposes, when dried. 

 Chinese name Kua Hi:' (ileyer.) 



38490. HoRDEUM vuLGARz L. Poaceae. Barley. 

 From La Paz. Bolivia. Presented by Mr. John D. O'Rear. American min- 

 ister, La Paz. Received June 9, 1914. 



" Seeds of the barley generally grown over the whole Bolivian highlands, and 

 of which, as far as I have been able to ascertain, no other varieties are used. 

 It is planted, and in most cases the Indians forget all about it until time to 

 reap tbe harvest. To plant it, the ground is tilled in a primitive manner and as 

 the seed is thrown in, it is covered with about half an inch of dirt, this being 

 done especially to keep the birds from eating the seed. The planting is done 

 here in the early spring and the crop reaped in the autumn, but in many parts 

 of the country it is planted the year round and always seems to produce equally 

 well. Once planted, in some places it is watered daily, this producing the best 

 results, but in plac-es where water is scarce the irrigation is left entirely to the 

 rains. The Indians very seldom use any fertilizers, excepting now and then a 

 little manure, and almost immediately after reaping a crop they begin to plow 

 and prepare the ground for another planting of seed. After four or five 

 years they allow the ground to rest for a year. The grass is used generally all 

 over the highlands as food for cattle and especially for horses and mules, when 

 it is dry, and the grain is also fed to cattle and used for human food. The 

 barley grows to a height of about 3 or 4 feet under ordinary circumstances here, 

 ?nd it is allowed to dry thoroughly before it is cut. The thrashing is done by 

 allowing donkeys to tramp on it till the grain is thoroughly separated." 

 (O'Rear.) 



38491 and 38492. Ulmus spp. Ulmacea. Elm. 

 From Cambridge. England. Presented by Mr. R. Irwin Lynch, Botanic 

 Garden. Received June 9, 1914. 

 38491. Ulmtjs foliacea Gilib. 

 "East An{ilian elm." ( Lynch.) 



"A tree 100 feet high, represented in Great Britain by several forms 

 varying in habit from slender, cone-shaped trees to beautifully pendu- 

 lous-branched ones. The typical form is a pyramidal tree, at least up 

 to middle age, the branches often corkj-, sometimes extremely so ; young 

 shoots almost or quite without down in the adult tree, slender. Leaves 



