1337 
Boehmeria macrophylla (Urticaceae) , 46080. Prom 
Darjeellng, India. Presented by Mr. G. H. Cave, Di- 
rector, Lloyd Botanic Garden. A pretty shrub with 
narrow, dentate leaves, 6 to 12 Inches in length, and 
very long, drooping flower spikes. It is a native 
of Upper Burma and northeastern India, where it as- 
cends to an altitude of 4,000 feet. The wood is light 
reddish brown and moderately hard, and the bark yields 
a good fiber which is used for ropes and fishing 
lines. (Adapted* from J. S. Gamble, Manual of Indian 
Timbers, p. 658, 1902.) 
Cajan indieum (Fabaceae), 46050.. Pigeon-pea. From 
New York, N. Y. Purchased from S ./ Ros en. "The pigeon- 
pea, or guandu, supposed to be a native of India, is 
cultivated widely for food In the tropics and subtrop- 
ics. It is perennial In frostless regions, but is 
usually cultivated as an annual. About ten months 
are required to mature the seed. Frost kills the 
plants. There are many varieties of pigeon-peas, some 
suitable for food and some not. Being a legume, the 
crop is valuable for soil improvement as well as for 
.the seed. The plant develops into a large, semi -woody 
bush reaching a height of from 5 to 10 feet. When 
grown for seed, plant 2 or 3 seeds In each hill, in 
four-foot rows, and 3 feet apart in the row, thinning 
later to one plant in a hill. Pigeon-peas are resist- 
ant to excessive rains in the tropics, and the seed 
does not rot when planted as is the tendency with 
some other leguminous crops. Although the skin of 
the pigeon-pea is a little tough the flavor of the 
peas is good. They are cooked like ordinary shelled 
beans, that is, soaked overnight and then parboiled 10 
to 15 minutes with a little soda in the water; boiling 
for one hour or a little more after this usually cooks 
them completely." (Young.) 11 The Hawaiian Experiment 
Station, 1 at Halkee on the island of Maul, has grown 15 
acres of this pea as a forage crop; and Mr. Krause 
informs us that the practice is to cut the upper third 
of the plant, which bears practically all the pods , cure 
this like hay on portable hay-curing trucks, and, af- 
ter 7 to 10 days, mill it by the hammer-throw process. 
The meal is as fine as alfalfa meal, and is used as a 
base with ground cane tops, corn meal and molasses 
(35$ of the meal being used) . This has a feeding value 
higher than that of alfalfa. It is cut twice and the 
plants are in their prime the third year. The yields 
range from 3 to 4 tons 6f cured pigeon-pea tops per 
