to the gods.” Nehrling says his trees grew to 12 feet in 3 years “and 
began to flower profusly in June and July, the flowers appearing along 
the trunks and large branches in large sessile clusters, remaining one 
strongly of those of the Ixoras.” The Saracas thrive near water, 4in 
Malaya right on the edge of streams, “and their dark fibrous roots, 
beset with nodules, trail out in bundles in the running water. 
They will grow most strongly in shady places, beneath tall trees, in 
damp but well-drained ground.” Macmillan lists S. indica along with 
S. declinata as among the world tropics’ most beautiful flowering 
trees. My botanist correspondent at Karachi, India, wrote me: 
“Saraca indica is very common in India and can easily grow in Stuart.” 
The seed loses viability quickly which accounts for the rarity of the 
tree in Florida. 
SARACA CAULIFLORA. This also is a native of India. It is 
rather shrubby in growth with a short trunk and lots of stiff, slender, 
upward branches and short, spready lateral branches. According to 
Sturrock: “This deciduous small tree is very showy when bare of 
leaves, with its small stemless clusters of scarlet flowers set along the 
branchlets. A hardy tree for general planting.” A mature specimen of 
S. cauliflora is blooming every year at the Fairchild Tropical Garden 
and small plants have been distributed to members in recent years. 
I have received others through the Bureau of Plant Introduction P. I. 
78609. They put on a great show, according to Dr. David Fairchild, 
and should be in every south Florida garden. This tree is closely 
related to if not identical with another which is rarely seen in Cali- 
fornia, Schotia latifolia. In my yard I have also a fine small specimen 
of another relative, Schotia brachypetala but it is not yet old enough 
to blossom. It too has red flowers. 
CASSIA SP. My No. 1018. I am not sure of this identification. 
The seed was sent to me from a mid-Pacific island with this 
notation: “A beautiful red-and-yellow flowering tree, reaches to 25 
feet high.” The seed pod was papery, 4”x5”, contained 18-20 seeds. 
LAFOENSIA ACUMINATA. (Lythraceae). Some years ago I 
received this seed from Bogota, Colombia, under the name Calyplectus 
speciosus. In northern South America they have two families of trees 
with beautiful flowers that are closely related to and very suggestive 
in appearance of the Queen’s Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia speciosa). 
These two families, entirely unknown in the United States, are 
Physocalymma and Lafoensia. Both have panicles of showy flowers 
and. are beautiful trees. Physocalymma flowers are purple-red, while 
the bloom of one Lafoensia is described as “flesh-red and yellow.” What 
the flower color of L. acuminata will be, remains to be seen when 
these seedlings bloom. I have never seen the tree even mentioned in 
any reference book except Macbride’s “Flora of Peru.” 
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