[2 7 



PUNTUMIA ELASTICA FLOWERING IN 

 JOHORE. 



Funtumia elastica is not a tree that has so far done very well in 

 the Malay Peninsula. It seems to be unsuited to our soil and 

 climate, and is very badly damaged by caterpillars. Recently 

 however, I saw quite a fine little tree in a garden belonging to 

 Rajah HlTAM NONGCHIE of Johor, which had attained a height of 

 about 12 or 14 feet and a girth of stem of a foot. Its leaves were 

 larger and deeper green than one usually sees them and quite free 

 from the attacks of caterpillars though a neighbouring plant had 

 been badly attacked and was stunted in growth. The tree had also 

 produced flowers, and when I saw it was producing a fresh crop 

 of buds. It had not fruited. The soil it was growing in was very 

 sandy and dry. 



H. N. RIDLEY. 



LE CAOUTCHOUC EN INDO-CHINE. 



This is a nicely illustrated work of 260 pages by Messrs. C. and A. 

 Spire on the native rubber plants of French Indo-China. It com- 

 mences with descriptions and figures of Ecdysanthera rosea, Para- 

 barium Tournieri,P. latifolium, P. spireanum, P. Quintareh P. 

 napeense, P. verneti, P. linocarpum and others Parameria glanduh- 

 feria, Aganonerion polymorphum, Michrechites Jacqueti, Xyhnabana 

 Reynaudi X. minutiflora and X. spirei. Chonemorpha gran- 

 dieriana, C. Megacalyx, C. Griffithii, Nonettea cochmchtnensts, 

 Amalocalyx microlobus, Rynchodia Capusii, Aganosma Harman- 

 fana, Melodinus Toumieri, Bousigonia mekongensis, and B. angusti- 

 foha, Pottsia cantonensis several species of Ervatamia, Holarrhena 

 Ichnocarpus frutescens. 



Many of these are hardly to be classed as rubber-vines as their 

 product is poor and scanty. The Parabariums, seem to give 

 good rubber, which on analysis of several kinds give 82-22 to 88' 4 5 

 Per cent, pure rubber of good quality. 



Chonemorpha Griffithii, a plant which occurs on Penang hill 

 |? v e 90-05 but its rubber was sticky and evidently very poor stutt. 



Kylmbarias and Nucrechites, are the species recommended to 

 ^ propagated. There is some difficulty in preventing the Anna- 

 tes f rom destroying the vines by cutting them to death and as 

 to * a 1 S are smaller thar > Landolphia and very twisted it is dimcuit 

 of 7, p or to remove the bark without injury. The treatmen 

 ^aviH e k by p ° undin S in a mortar als0 USed f ° f Land ° lphia 

 plarJr ; u L bber -vines do not seem really very inviting as cultivated 

 Pott ' Th ° Se we h *ve in the Peninsula Chonemorpha Griffiths 

 lchno JT° n J ensis < a ver y weed y thin S) P^amerias, Ecdysanthe r as 

 anv „ r r us frutescens, are slow growers, and never seem to ana 

 * n > ^eat size. Willughbeias and Urceolas a more likely group of 



