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HORTICULTURE. 



Seasonal Notes for March. 



By H. F. Macmillan. 



(Illustrated by the "Candle Tree:" Parmentiera cereifera, Seem.) 



Rainfall in inches: — Peradeniya 4*49; Colombo 4'75 ; Ratnapura 8 - 96; 

 Galle4"27; Trincomalie 1'tJO ; Jaffna .95. 



At no other period of the year are gardens in the lowconntry subject to such 

 apparent drawbacks as during the month of March. The oppressive weather preva- 

 lent then is not only unpleasant to ourselves, but also unfavourable to such horti- 

 cultural pursuits as afford us most pleasure or profit. At the time of writing, 

 middle of February, signs of the dry weather are already evident. The lawns are 

 turning brown, and general foliage plants assume a parched and dusty appearance. 

 With wonderful regularity various trees now assume distinct but unaccountably 

 varied seasonal characteristics ; some completely shed their leaves, others suddenly 

 change their old for new foliage, whilst others drop their leaves, aud at once burst 

 forth into a profusion of blossom. The tall and stately Red Cotton trees {Bombax 

 malabaricum), bare of leaves but covered with scarlet flowers, now become conspi- 

 cuous objects in the landscape ; the shuttlecock-like flowers, whose fleshy calyces are 

 eaten by many people in India and Burma, form when they drop a beautiful red 

 carpet under the trees. Ceara -rubber trees (Manihot Glazwvii) usually shed their 

 leaves and remain bare for about three weeks, whilst many of the older Hevea (Para- 

 rubber) trees also become almost defoliated before developing flowers. 



Fruits in Season.— The season for most fruits is not yet commenced, but the 

 following may be obtained in limited quantities : Pineapples, Pomegranates, Bullock- 

 hearts, Bael-fruit and Wood-apple. Of less well-known fruits the West Indian " Star- 

 apple" (Chrysophyllum Cainito), the South American " Mammee-apple " (Mammea 

 americana) and the Coco-plum (Chrysobalanus Icaco) ripen their crops at this period. 



Flowers in Season. —Some of the most beautiful of flowering trees confine 

 their annual display of blossom to February and March. Conspicuous examples of 

 these are Tabebuia speetabilis, a small shrubby tree of tropical America with masses 

 of bright yellow funnel-shaped flowers ; Cassia grandis or " Horse Cassia," also of 

 South America, with a profusion of delicate pink blossoms ; Saracca declinata, a 

 Malayan tree with most handsome, large heads of orange-yellow flowers, produced 

 on the stem and older branches. The Jacaranda mi mo sac folia, a small tree with 

 blue to violet flowers, Amherstia nobilis of Malaya (considered the most beautiful of 

 flowering trees), and the gorgeous " Flamboyant" {Poinciana regia) are now in their 

 full glory. Some of the Sterculia family also afford a striking floral display at this 

 season, notably Sterculia colorata, an indigenous tree from the drier parts of Ceylon, 

 said to be sacred to the Veddahs, and ■Sterculia acerifolia, known as the Australian 

 "Flame Tree." Myriocarpa longipes is a shrubby tree from South America with 

 very large handsome hispid leaves, which is now a striking object on account of its 

 peculiar inflorescence : this consists of numerous delicate thread-like strands, 2§ to 3| 

 feet long, which hang gracefully from the branches, each strand bearing countless 

 minute flowers. Amongst ornamental trees some are undoubtedly more attractive 

 in fruit than in flower. Few objects for instance in the vegetable kingdom are more 

 striking when in fruit than the curious " Candle Tree" {Parmentiera cereifera) intro- 

 duced from tropical South America. The fruits resemble wax-candles so closely that 

 the uninitiated may at first readily believe that the tree exists for the sole purpose 



