JANUARY 1 TO MAECH 31, 1921. 



35 



in a climate much like that of Washington, D. C, and is unaffected by tem- 

 peratures of 0° to 110° F. These seeds were collected in Thrace, near the 

 base of the Gallipoli Peninsula, where the plant is very common; it has a 

 vertical range from sea level to 3,000 feet, the highest mountains in the dis- 

 trict where it is found. The tree is adapted to a wide variety of soils, growing 

 vigorously in beach sand, lowland silts, residual sandy and clayey soils, and 

 on rocky surfaces with little soil. 



" The bush grows to a height of 6 to 10 feet. I saw one individual, probably 

 of the same species, that had a trunk 8 inches in diameter and was 20 feet high. 



*' To get the acorns before the crows and magpies beat me to them, I had to 

 pick them before they fell naturally." (Capps.) 



For previous introduction, see S. P. I. No. 30389. 



52507. DioscoREA alata L. Dioscoreacese. Yam. 



From Crescent City, Fla. Presented by H. D. CoUette, who grew it from 

 material from the West Indies supplied by Samuel Rosen, New York City. 

 Received February 24, 1921. 

 " Cuttings of a yam with yellowish flesh, somewhat moist, but of good quality 

 for preparing mashed yam." (R. A. Young.) 



52508. Raphanus sativus L. Brassicacese. Radish. 

 From Tientsin, Shantung, China. Seeds presented by Mr. K'ung, through 



H. S. Conard, Grinneil, Iowa. Received February 24, 1921. 

 Lo-pu. A very 'sweet' radish from Tientsin, Shantung, China." {K'ung.) 



52509. Eriogonum wrightii subscaposum S. Wats. Polygonacese. 



From Ness, Neston. England. Seeds presented by A. K. Bulley. Received 

 February 24, 1921. 



A low perennial found in the high montane belt of southern California. The 

 leafy branches are short, forming a close, dense mat, from which arise the 

 short flowering stems. The bright-pink flowers are clustered near the ends of 

 the stems and form a sharp contrast to the mat of small white woolly leaves. 

 (Adapted from Jepson, A Flora of California, pt. 4, p. 415.) 



52510 to 52513. 



From Bangkok, Siam. Seeds collected by J. F. Rock, Agricultural Ex- 

 plorer of the United States Department of Agriculture. Received Febru- 

 ary 17, 1921. Quoted notes by Mt. Rock. 

 52510. Dtospyros mollis Griffith. Diospyracese. 



" One of the most valuable dye plants in Siam. The Chinese import 

 yearly 3,000,000 ticals ($804,000) worth of silk, pay the duty on it, and 

 all for the purpose of dyeing the silk black ; every bit is again exported. 

 There are large but rather primitive dye factories here. It is said 

 that the Chinese have tried to grow the tree in China but were not suc- 

 cessful. I have seen material dyed black which had been washed 

 twice a week for three years and it certainly was still as black as 

 black could be. The dyeing is said to be a laborious process. The fruit 

 must be still green when collected for dyeing purposes; it is mashed 

 in water and the material is dipped into it, the water is then thrown 

 away, and the pulp is pressed and placed again in water; this process 

 is repeated many times. The material must be dried in the sun after 

 each dipping. It is difficult to secure ripe seeds, as the fruits are col- 



