United States Department 0

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT 0 INVENTORY No. 82 Washington, D. C. Issued June, 1927 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED BY THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN PLANT INTRODUCTION, BUREAU OF PUNT INDUSTRY, DURING THE PERIOD FROM JANUARY 1 TO MARCH 31,1925 (S. P. I. NOS. 62231 TO 63489) CONTENTS Page Introductory statement 1 Inventory 3 Index of common and scientific names 55 INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT ORE THAN 1,200 lots of plant material were received during the three M months represented by this inventory, a total well above the average maintained for the last few years. Much of this material was sent in by the four agricultural explorers who were pursuing their activities in eastern Asia, northern Africa, and western South America. The Province of Chihli, China, and especially the vicinity of Peking, has continued to be a very fertile field for agricultural explorations, and from this region P. H. Dorsett has sent in a steady stream of promising plant immigrants. Of special interest are scions of a number of large-fruited varieties of the Chinese jujube (Zlziphus jujuba, Nos. 62352^62354, 62562, 63322, 63323, 63476), because of the increasing demand for this fruit among the growers in the South- western States and California. The jujube has shown itself to be adapted for growing in semiarid regions having long, hot summers and mild winters. As a candied fruit, processed in sugar sirup and dried, its popularity is steadily increasing. Other fruits represented in Mr. Dorsett's collections are peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, pears, and persimmons. There are also included many locally developed strains of cereals and vegetables and a number of herbaceous and woody ornamentals. From Ecuador a number of interesting lots of plant material were sent in by Wilson Popenoe. These include scions of a peach (Amygdalus persica, No. • 62551), a medium-sized freestone which may prove adapted to subtropical climates, and scions of the capulin cherry {Primus scrotina, No. 62553) from the old Gonzales tree at Catiglata. This tree, famous throughout the Ecuadorian highlands, bears cherries of unusually large size. The capulin cherry is very closely related to the wild black cherry of the eastern United States and may prove suitable for growing in the Southeastern States, where other cherries do not thrive. In southeastern China F. A. McClure continued his investigations of the economic flora of that region and sent in an interesting collection of scions of the Japanese apricot (Prunus mumc, Nos. 62311-62318). Our previous experience with the ornamental forms of Prunus mume has been that a few of the double-flowering and large-flowered sorts may be of special value because of their habit of blooming in the spring even before the forsythias, but as they are doubtfully hardy as far north as Washington, D. C, it may be necessary to confine their cultivation to the southern United States. Mr. McClureVs collection includes some very promising large-flowered forms. 22520 — 27 1 1 2 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED While traveling through Europe, David Fairchild, in charge of this office, visited some of the leading nurseries and arboreta in France and England. As a result of his visits there has been sent in propagating material of a large number of rare and promising trees and shrubs, mostly from the cooler parts of eastern Asia. Doctor Fairchild also visited Algeria, sending in from that country, among other things, seeds of the argan (Argania spinosa, No. 62660), a large drought-resistant evergreen tree of western Morocco which grows in very rocky soil and bears an abundance of light-yellow plumlike fruits eaten by stock. The seeds yield an oil which can be used for cooking. A firlike tree from western China (Keteleeria davidiana, No. 62254) should be of interest. It is a tree of pyramidal habit which sometimes becomes 100 feet tall, and it has glossy green foliage. Two excellent evergreens previously introduced from this region which have found a place in American horti- culture are the Chinese juniper {Juniperus chinensis) and the white-barked pine (Pinus bungeana)* Mention should also be made, in this connection, of the East African juniper {Juniperus procera, No. 62395), which Doctor Sargent, director of the Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain, Mass., considers the hand- somest juniper in the world. It may be sufficiently hardy to grow in Florida and southern California. Gladiolus breeders wTill be especially interested in the introduction of a number of indigenous species from South Africa (Gladiolus spp., Nos. 62653, 62857- 62860). The rapidly increasing interest in this group of ornamentals should stimulate attempts to create new varieties by crossbreeding. A remarkable collection of rice varieties (Oryza sativa, Nos. 62523-62550) wTas presented by H. Ando, Director of the Imperial Agricultural Experiment Station at Nishigahara, Tokyo, Japan. These varieties, purebred through selec- tion, had been grown at the station for several years and include both early and late maturing forms. Another rice collection consisting of nearly 200 varieties {Oryza sativa, Nos. 62962-63148), mostly crossbred, was presented by Yoshinori Takesaki, of the Imperial University at Kyoto, Japan. The botanical determinations of these introductions have been made and the nomenclature determined by H. C. Skeels, and the descriptive matter has been prepared under the direction of Paul Russell, who has had general supervision of this inventory. ROLAND MCKEE, Acting Senior Agricultural Explorer in Charge. OFFICE OF FOREIGN PLANT INTRODUCTION, Washington, D. C, November 22, 1926. INVENTORY1 62231. LYCOPERSICON ESCULENTUM Mill. 62235. OLEARIA FORSTERI Hook. f. As- Solanaceae. Tomato. teraceae. From Lima, Peru. Seeds presented by Dr. From Dublin, Ireland. Plants and cut- A. Weberbauer. Received January 31, tings presented by J. W. Besant, Glas- 1925. nevin Botanic Garden, at the request of Dr. Augustine Henry, College of Science. Seeds of wild-grown tomatoes, collected Received February 7, 1925. during December between Lima and Ancon on the coastal plain on stony saline soil, in A handsome, evergreen, New Zealand an almost rainless district. (Weberbauer.) shrub, about 7 feet in height, which belongs to a group closely allied to the shrubby asters. The oblong leaves have wavy mar- 62232. ECDEIOCOLEA MONOSTACHYA F. gins and are whitish below, and the insig- Mu&l. Baloskionaceae. nificant but fragrant flowers appear late From Perth, Western Australia. Seeds pre- in the fall. While this plant is said to be sented by W. M. Carne, botanist and able to endure rather low temperatures, it plant pathologist. Department of Agri- also requires a cool, moist summer. culture. Received January 31, 1925. 62236 to 62238. VIOLA ODORATA L. Collected at Wongan Hills, Western Aus- tralia, December, 1924, by C. A. Gardner. Violaceae. Violet. (Carne.) From Killalow, County Clare. Ireland. A perennial, rushlike, herbaceous plant, Plants purchased from Mrs. Stanistreet. introduced for testing as a possible source Received February 7, 1925. Notes by for paper-making material. Mrs. Stanistreet. 62236. Lady Hume Campbell. A variety 62233. ELAEOCARPUS OBLONGUS Gaertn. with very large, long-stemmed flowers, which are a soft lavender-blue and Elaeocarpaceae. very fragrant. Blooms freely and is From Guntur, Madras Presidency, India. valuable for its long flowering season. Seeds presented by William Bembower. 62237. Mrs. David Lloyd George. The Received February 3, 1925. highly perfumed flowers, borne on long The " Nilghiri mock olive" is. a tree of stems, are purple, with center petals domelike habit, with a white, well-branched shaded lavender, rose, and white. trunk. The elliptic leaves are shining 62238. Souvenir de ma Fille. A new va- green, and the white flowers appear in riety with enormous dark-violet, highly slender, axillary racemes 2 to 6 inches perfumed flowers, borne on long stems'. long. The crimson color of the autumn Good for frames or open air. foliage is very attractive, resembling that of the Virginia creeper. The tree appears 62239. Cissus STRIATA Ruiz and Pav. to be a satisfactory ornamental for sub- (Vitis striata Miq.). Vitaceae. tropical regions. (Bembower.) From Paris, France. Plants purchased from Vilmorin-Andrieux & Co., through 62234. SACCHARUM OFFICINARUM L. David Fairchild, agricultural explorer, Poaceae. Bureau of Plant Industry. Received Sugar cane. March 19, 1925. From Santiago de las Vegas, Cuba. Cut- A low, shrubby, evergreen vine, native tings presented by the agricultural ex- to southern South America. The leaves periment station, through E. W. Brandes, are small, with three to five leaflets; the Bureau of Plant Industry. Received yellowish flowers are in rather dense clus- March 25, 1925. ters. Probably tender except in the South- Hawaii 109. ern States. 1 It should be understood that the names of horticultural varieties! of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and other plants used in this inventory are those under which the material was received when introduced by the Office of Foreign Plant Introduction, and, further, that the printing of such names here does not constitute their official publication and adoption in this country. As the different varieties are studied, their entrance into the American trade forecast, and the use of varietal names for them in American literature becomes necessary, the foreign varietal designations appearing in this inventory will be subject to change with a view to bringing the forms of the names into harmony with recognized horticultural nomenclature. It is a well-known fact that botanical descriptions, both technical and economic, sel- dom mention the seeds at all, and rarely describe them in such a way as to make possible identification from the seeds alone. Many of the unusual plants listed in these inven- tories are appearing in this country for the first time, and there are no samples of herbarium specimens with ripe seeds with which the new arrivals may be compared. The only identification possible is to see that the sample received resembles seeds of other species of the same genus or of related genera.

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