34 



SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



53122 to 53175— Continued. 



53174. ToRKESiA ODORATA (L.) Hitchc. Poace£e. Holy grass. 



Hoi If grass, vanilla grass, or Seneca grass, native to Canada and the 

 northern United States. It is sweet scented owing to the presence of 

 coumarin. The Indians use the grass to make fragrant baskets. 



Received as Hierochloe odorata, wliich is now referred to Torresia 

 odorata. 



53175. Tbollius europaeus L. Ranunculacese. Globeflower. 



A liardy herbaceous perennial 15 inclies high, with lemon-yellow 

 globular flowers 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Native to wet upland meadows 

 of northern Europe. 



53176. DiosPYROs conzati-ii Standi. Diospyracese. Persimmon. 



From Cerro Espino, Oaxaca, Mexico. Seeds presented by P. C. Standley, 

 United States National Museum. Received May 16, 1921. 



" Zapote negro months, collected at Cerro Espino, April, 1921, by Prof. C. 

 Conzatti. The fruit is said to be better than that of Diospyros ehenaster." 

 (Standley.) 



A tree of particular interest on account of the exquisite flavor of its edible 

 fruit, 4 centimeters in diameter and 2 centimeters long. In quality it is com- 

 parable w^itli the chico-zapote (Achras zapota). It is green skinned and much 

 smaller than the common black sapote. Propagation of this magnificent tree is 

 relatively simple on account of its vigor and the altitude at which it thrives, 

 1.000 meters above sea level. (Adapted from Boleiin de la Direccion dc 

 Estiidios Biologicos, vol. 2, No. 3, p. 316.) 



53177 to 53217. 



From Eciuulor. f '(ille<:-tevl by Wilson Popeiioe. Agricultural Explorer of the 

 Depiirtment of A.uriculture. Received April 6, 1921. Quoted notes by 

 Mr. Popenoe. 



53177. Bekbekis quinduensis H. B. K. Berberidace;Tp. Barberry. 



"(No. 585a. Hacienda La Esi>eranza. near El Angel, Province of Carchi, 

 Ecuador. February 15, 1921.) Seeds of Espino. A very pretty species of 

 Berberis, siiiiilai 1o cue obtained in Cui'd namarea. From the mountains 

 of Carchi Province, nt about 12,000 feet elevation. This Is one of the 

 handsomest wild barberries I have seen in Ecuador. It makes an 

 arborescent shrub up to 10 or 12 feet high, and has large, glossy, stilf, 

 dark-green leaves. The flo^^■ers, wh ch iire prtMlueed in racemes about 3 

 inches long, are oi-ange-yellow and half an inch broad. They are fol- 

 lowed by smail clusters of oval, blue-black fruits. The species is worthy 

 of a trial in the southern United States, where it may prove to be 

 of value as an ornamental." 



53178. Onoseeis salicifolia H. B. K. Asterace?e. 



"(No. 5S2a. Conraqui, near Ibarra. Ecuador. February 10, 1921. ) Seeds 

 of a low-growing, delicate plant which is abundant on dry r,ocky slopes 

 in northei-n Ecuador at alt tudes of 6,000 to 9 000 feet. It rarely sur- 

 passes S inches in height ; the lively pink, daisylike flowers, about 2 

 inches broad, are borne on slender stems rising a few inches above the 

 foliage. It flowers profusely and is reconuiiended for trial as a border 

 plant in the United States. It can probably be cultivated as an annual, 

 though here it is, I believe, at least a biennial and probably a perennial." 



53179. Chlquikaga INSIG^•IS Plumb, and Bonpl. Asteraceje. 



"(No. 5S7a. Hacienda La Rinconada. Province of Carchi, Ecuador. 

 Febiuary 15, 1921.) Seeds of Chuquiragna, from the paramo at an 

 altitude of about. 12,000 feet in Carchi Province. This plant, abundant 

 on the high paramos of Ecuador, is said to have been sacred to the 

 Incas. It is an unusually' handsome thing and seems to me worthy 

 of cultivation in other countries as an ornamental. It is a slender, half- 

 shrubby plant, stiffly erect in habit, and reaching to 6 feet in height. 



