56 



G. P. IV. Collection. PlATE XXVI. 



Spondias lutca. 



HOG PLUM. 



This tree is a native of the West Indies, where it is commonly 

 called the Hog- Plum, and is used there for fattening swine. In 

 Jamaica it grows well, up to an elevation of 4000 feet. It is a 

 large, graceful tree, about 50 feet high, with spreading branches, 

 and it is particularly beautiful when in fruit. The pinnate leaves 

 are a clear green, the leaflets are ovate-lanceolate, and the golden- 

 yellow fruit hangs in clusters. It ripens in September and Octo- 

 ber. The fruit is ovoid, about i inch long; it has a smooth skin, 

 with a disagreeable odor. There is one large seed, which re- 

 sembles the husk of a ground-nut. This fruit has somewhat the 

 flavor of the pineapple, and is cooling and aromatic. To my 

 knowledge there is but one tree of this kind in bearing in the 

 Hawaiian Islands, and that is growing in private grounds in 

 Honolulu. 



