THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [February i, 1882. 
OEDRELA TOONA, i?< 
0. hexandra, Wall. 
Toona. Hind. Sans. 
Toon. Mahe. Beng. 
Kooruk „ 
Loodh? Sans. 
Cuveraca „ 
Toon maram. Tam. 
"Wunjooli maram „ 
Maha iimbo Ubia. 
Tunna. Beng. 
Thit-ka-do. Buem. 
Thundu Can. 
Tunda „ 
Suoia mara „ 
Toon tree Eng. 
Bastard cedar „ 
„ mahogany. Eng 
This large and valuable tree grows in varying abundance 
at the foot of the Himalayas, also in the north-eastern 
provinces and to the south, in Bengal and in both Penin- 
sulas of India. It is rare in the Central Provinces. In 
the Panjab it grows up to 2,500 to 4,800 feet with 7 to 
12 feet in girth. Its growth is there rapid, its darkish wood 
is not subject to worm or warp, looks well when properly 
polished, and is there a favourite for cabinet work. Mr. 
R. Thompson says it grows to a large size in the outer 
moist valleys of Kumaon and Ghurwal, and hill-men will 
not sell their trees. In the hill provinces, it is used as 
posts, panels, and carved fronts of hill-houses, also, turned 
into miik and water pitchers. In Kumaon, trees with girths 
of 12 to 16 feet, yield planks up to 3 feet broad, but 2 
feet is the average. Flowers white, but yield a rich yellow 
dye. It is said to be abundant in Travancore. A speci- 
men of wood sent by General Oullen, as of this tree, 
showed the grain and polish remarkably well ; it was 
however, of a brighter colour, and apparently of a denser 
quality than any met with in the market, inducing a doubt 
as to its being of the same species. It was stated to be 
abundant, 25 miles north-east of Trevandrum. It is found 
in the Mysore and Salem jungles in large quantities also 
along the crest of the ghats from Travancore to Goa. In 
Coimbatore, it is a valuable timber tree of large size, and 
its reddish-coloured wood it is used for cabinet-making 
purposes. It or an allied species is known also in Coim- 
batore under the name of Wunjooli maram ; but, as this 
is a very heavy and strong hard wood, said to be admir- 
ably fitted for pestles and mortars and other purposes 
demanding great strength, but not for cabinet purposes, 
Dr. "Wight suspected Roxburgh's toona and the Wunjooli to 
be different trees. Dr. Gibson reports that he had found 
this choice tree in one situation, viz., inland of Koorsulee ; 
but adds, it probably exists all along close below the ghats. 
At another place, he says that it is not a common tree, 
in the Bombay forests, but is found in some of the greenwood 
jungles about the ghats, and also in the hill range abutting 
on the Bajpooree Creek to the south. The wood is a choice 
one for cabinet purposes, but is not used for any others, 
except for house beams, when it is procurable in sufficient 
quantity. In the raees of the south Konkan and lower 
Oauara the tree is more common. It is, in as far as he 
was aware, never found inland. And, again, he says it grows 
abundantly in some of the deep ravines in western Ivandeish 
and it grows in the ravines of the Concan. In Ganjam 
and Gumsur. where it is known as Mahalimbo, its extreme 
height is 70 feet, circumference 5 feet, and height from 
the ground to the intersection of the first branch, 22 feet. 
Under this tree's name, Captain Sankey describes a Nagpore 
timber as averaging 10 to 12 feet long and 3J to 4^ feet 
iti girth, and selling at 16 annas the cubic foot. At the 
Tambur river, in East Nepaul, the vegetation in some spots 
is exceedingly fine, and several large trees occurred. Dr. 
Hooker measured a Toon tree (Cedrela) thiity feet in girth 
at five feet above the ground. Southwards, Lieut. Nuthall, 
quoted by Captain Munro, mentions toon as one of the 
woods of Arracan under the name of ''thit-kn-do." A 
tr' p is found, also, Dr. Braudis tells us, on the hills and 
on the plains offftitish Hurmah. plentiful in some districts, 
and if not identical with the Toon of Bengal, cejtainiy 
nearly related to it. 
lie ft 
jf til, 
ftili- 
avfrage length of Hie trunk to the first bran, 
and average girth meaturtd at 0 feet from 
in 8 feet. It sells in Burmab at 8 annas per c 
irill be n-en ir m the above, thai it haR a 
fhrongbonl India, common in ilie north' r) 
ffibere it is mode into furniture of nil kinds, 
admired for it- closi-giain and beautiful co 
bJiii^. though lighter than and not eo close 
mahogany, to which it is deemed equivalent. It is used 
all over India by cabinet makers for furniture. It is 
called Bastard Cellar from the aromatic resin, exuding 
from it, resembling that of the American cedar. It is 
■ ften sola in Madras under the general name of "Clntta- 
gong wood," and is tbe most valuable of the woods 
known by that commercial name. It has an erect Lunk 
of great height ;.nd size with smooth gray bark. The 
flowers are very numerous, small, white, and nagiant like 
honey. The seeds are numerous, imbricated, winged. It 
seems probable that the trees kno»n "commercially/' as 
Toon are, at least different species ; but all ihe woods sold 
under this name, ar- red-coluured, of varying hues. The 
Gumsur "Mahalimbo" wood, said to be tnis tree, and to 
be tolerably common, is described as not liable to be 
attacked by insects, aai. is, on that account, used lor 
making boxes; &e. The fruit and bark are used medicin- 
al!, for fever and rheumatism. 'J he bark is powerfully 
astringent, but not bitter. The native physicians use it 
in conjunction with the powdered nut of the taasalpinia 
bonducella, an intense bitter. M. Nees Vod Esen heck has 
pui dished an account of some experiments on the hark, 
winch indicated the existence of a resinous astringent 
m..tter, a brown astringent gum, and a gummy brown 
extractive matt, r, resembling ulmine. The bark was 
used iu Java by Blunie in epidemic fevers, diarrhoea, and 
other complaints. horsfield gave it in dysentery, but 
only in the last stage, wl en inflammatory symptoms had 
disappeared. Its flowirs*, in conjunction with tafflower 
(Koosuniba) are used by the inhabitants of Mysore, for 
dyeing ihe beauiful red colour called there Gul-i-uari. 
—Boxb. i 635 Drs. Wight, Hooker, Mason Gibson, CUgluorn, 
Stewart,AinsLi< , O Hhaugh,>ssy, McCledand, Lieut. Co .Lake, 
M.E.J. R.,CapUd s Macdonald, Sankey, Mr. B. Thompson. 
Voigt. 137. 
CEDRELA TOONA var. SERKATA. 
Royle. 
Dimri 1 
Drab ( 
Drawi J Hazara. 
Drawa J 
Tuni limd. 
Deri Panjab 
(.-biti sirin „ 
Der. Chenab, Lahore 
j Dori Lahore, 
1< Bisra Panj. 
Guidar „ 
{fii }Sutlej,Bea, 
Khishing, Kanawar. 
Khanam. 
I 
'Ihe leaves of this are always saw-edged (serrated) in 
which alone it differs from C. toona Roxb. Its wood is 
often red but is of more o^en texture and lighter in 
colour than (J. tuona, and standswater well. In Kanawar 
it is used for bridges, and in some places the hoops of 
sieves are made from it. The wood has a fcetid smell 
when fresh : an ordinary leaf is 30 inches long. — Dr. J, 
L. Stewart, p. 34. 
The Cultivation of Tea in the United States. An 
ingenious correspoi.dent of the- South Florida Journal* 
writes to that journal as follows on the subject of tea 
cultivation: — "More than ten years since, I first saw the 
tea plaDt growii g successfully on the ground of Dr. A. 
H. Bruce, of Sylvan • ake. toon after that I requested 
some plants to he sent to m,- from the Agiicultural De« 
paitment at Washington, which was promptly done by the 
excellent commissioner, Mr. Le Due. I planted them in 
a soil which -was a medium between white >and pine and 
muck, near Silvor Lake, Ora ge County, Florida. With 
but lit tie fertilising or cultivation, they are now about 
four feet high, being each a cluster of dark green leaves 
and branches, not having lost a leaf either from drought, 
heat, or ftvst, wiihout any protection, and having ripened 
seed , resembling pilmetto, except that it is in pods of 
three* or tour seeds each. I have tried it repeatedly in 
the teapot, and while the drink was palatable, it seems to 
want he flavour and colouring which the Chinese know 
so well how to give it. I am fully satisfied that by im- 
poiting Chi ese labourers tea plants of several varieties 
may bo grown with the fullest success." The idea of 
Amer can grown tea requiring- the colouring as weil as 
the flavour of China tea is an original one, which the 
cor o-pondfiit of the South Florida Journal ought to have 
lull credit for,— Jndmn papa: 
