837 
Branches erect, plume-like , clothed with flat, round- 
pointed, linear leaves,,; .from one •-■sixteenth to three-six- 
teenths inch long. Flowers densely; set ln slender racemes 
three to eight inches long(,,;;which, germinate the branchlets 
all oyer the top of the shrub; eaeh flower is about one- 
fourth inch long, produced in the axil of a bract longer 
than itself; petals narrow, pink or pinkish white. Sta- 
mens ten; seeds feathery. Native of Europe, Himalaya, 
Afghanistan, etc.; cultivated in England since 1582. I* 
Inhabits river banks,, mountain streams, and other sandy, 
occasionally inundated places, where it often fills the 
ground over long distances. Closely allied to Tamarix 
(from which it differs chiefly in the more numerous and 
united stamens), it is not so ornamental as various mem- 
bers of that genus. It is easily propagated by cuttings 
made of stout wood of the current year placed in sandy 
soil in he open ground in October. It flowers from May 
to August." (W. J. Bean, Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the 
Br itls h Isles, vol. 2 , p . 90.) 
Phaseolus mungo L. (Fabaceae . ) 39589. Seeds of urd from 
Manila. Presented by Mr. William S. Lyon. "Seeds of a 
native Phaseolus. I lay no claim to its virtues as a seed 
producer; indeed I have it growing cheek by jowl with a 
number of other species and find it relatively inferior as 
such, but as a cover crop, I have wholly discarded all the 
scores of leguminous plants I have tested in favor of 
this. I have made distribution of the seeds to a number 
of abaca planters and they are most enthusiastic oyer its 
utility in young hemp (Musa utills) plantations. Like my- 
self they have all come to discredit cowpeas, and all vel- 
vet beans, Lyon included, for the reason that in good 
soils the growth of the cover crop is so exuberant that 
except at great outlay for labor, any plants under one 
meter tall are smothered out of existence. On the other 
hand, ln old plantations, and which are fairly well shaded, 
the cowpeas and velvet beans make a spindling and ineffi- 
cient growth to accomplish the main purpose of choing out 
a number of objectionable weeds and grasses, which, not- 
withstanding the shade, flourish to the detriment of the 
abaca. I have more than an acre now in my rose garden and 
for two seasons have grown this bean to the exclusion of 
all others. It makes a low spreading mat about a foot 
thick and not much disposed to climb. The result is, I am 
able to plant two crops a year among my dwarf rose bushes 
without choking them, with a marked saving in cultivation 
and irrigation, as well as a marked improvement in the 
quantity and quality of the flowers obtained." (Lyon.) 
Pfdogacanthus thyrsiflorus (Roxb.) Nees. (Acanthaceae . ) 
39653. Seeds from Darjeeling, India. Presented by Mr. 
