1588 
eaten. (5) The dried fermented roots are pounded In 
a mortar and sifted to a white flour which Is boiled 
to form a starchy paste. This doughy mass, wrapped In 
banana leaf, constitutes one of the principal foods 
of the natives. The flour Is wrapped In banana-leaf 
containers weighing from 15 to 25 kilograms each. I have 
not found any of the bitter cassava; all plants which 
I have tasted are sweet. The fully matured crop forms 
an open thicket 6 to 10 feet high. At Nyanza, a leaf 
spot seemed to be the only disease, and this, although 
abundant, caused very little damage." (Shantz.) 1 
Per8ea americana (Lauraceae), 50680. Avocado. From San 
Jose, Costa Rica. Cuttings collected by Mr. Wilson 
Popenoe, agricultural explorer. "(No. 395.) Avocado No. 
45, from the residence of Margarita Munoz.Thls avocado 
was called to my attention by Don Anastasla Alfaro, 
director of the National Museum. He recommends it. as 
one of the finest known to him. and a variety of un- 
usually late ripening season. The parent tree, which 
stands in a small, back yard, about 10 feet from a 
house, Is. 30 feet high, slender in form, with a 
straight trunk 15 Inches thick at the base, branched 
8 feet above the ground. At this time (June, 1920) 
the fruits are not half grown, but judging by their 
present appearance and a plaster of Paris model made 
last year by Sr. Alfaro, It is possible to say that the 
fo^m Is oval to broad pyrlform, and the size up to 1 
pound in weight. The color is said to be green, the 
seed not unreasonably large, and the flesh of excellent 
quality. The season of ripening is September to No- 
vember, sometimes to December. Most of the avocados In 
this region ripen in August and September. The tree is 
a heavy bearer, the fruits sometimes being produced in 
clusters of two or three." (Popenoe.) 
Schizostachyim .p. (Poaceae), 50648. Bamboo. Prom 
Bultenzorg, Java. Plants presented by Dr. J. C. Kon- 
ingsberger, director, Java Botanic Garden, through 
Mr.K.Heyne, Department of Agriculture. Late in 1915, 
Mr. L. C. Westenenk, a resident of Benkulen, Sumatra, 
while on a trip through the highlands of Kroe, found, 
this solid-stemmed bamboo. Material was sent to the" 
garden of the Museum of Economic Botany, Bultenzorg. 
' where it grew abundantly, flowered, and fruited. This 
bamboo forms a thick stand about 7 m. (24 ft.) high; 
the green stems are 3 cm. (more than an inch) thick, 
with joints about 25 cm. (10 Inches long). (Adapted 
from Teysmannia, vol. 30, p. 346.) 
