by Woon Younq Chun

During last year, the National Southeastern University at Nanking conducted a botanical expedition in the province of Chekiang which threw considerable new light on the phytogeography of this country. Several important trees hitherto recorded only from Western and Southern China were discovered for the first time in Eastern China in the highlands of Chekiang. Several other genera of restricted distribution had their ranges greatly extended as a result of this expedition. Among the more important trees whose recent discovery upturned established conceptions of plant distribution, together with their ranges, are Pseudotsuga Sinensis Dede (Chinese Douglas Fir)-Yunnan; Tsuga Chinensis Franchet (Chinese Hemlock)-Shensi, Hupeh, Szechuen; Keteleria Fortunsi Carriers-Fukien, Kwangtung; Fokienia Maclurei Merrill-Fukien; Pagus Engleriana Seeman (Chinese Beech)-Shensi, Hupeh, Szechuen, Yunnan, Kweichow; Liriodendron Chinense Sargent (Chinese Tulip Tree)-Kiangsi, Hupeh. The occurence of Pseudotsuga and Pagus in a coastal province of Eastern China opens up new fields for speculation.

The very careful work of the collector, Mr. R. C. Ching, brought to light from 25 to 30 undescribed species. Of these by far for the most important are the two species herein described. The genus Halesia in Syraceae consisted of 3 species confined to America. The discovery of a fourth species in this country is as important as unexpected. The genus Torreya in Taxaceae (Yew family) consisted of four species of local description, one in Florida, one in California, one in Japan and one in China. Strange as it may seem, the newly discovered species is more closely allied to the Californian species than to the others. Asiatic plants having an affinity with plants of the west coast of North Amrica are few indeed.

The original Latin description of the following described trees appeared in the Journal of the Arnold Arboretum, Vol. VI., 1925.

HALESIA MACGREGORI sp. nov.

Silver-Bell

Allied to Halesia carolina Linnaeus (Mohrodendron carohnum Britt.) which differs in its usually broader, stellate pubescent leaves, and in its usually obovoid fruit.

Medium sized tree to 24 m tall, wholly glabrous when mature excepting the bud scales which are ciliate on the margin and minutely and sparingly stellate pubescent on the back. Bark of trunk gray, smooth. Branchlets slender, purplish red-brown. When young, glabrous, be- coming dark grey the second year. Young buds narrowly conical, with shiny brown scales. Leaves deciduous, thinly membranous, shortpetiolate, denticulate with gland-tipped teeth, variable in size and shape, elliptic-oblong, sometimes narrowly elliptic or ovate elliptic, usually cuneate, rarely subrounded at the base, acuminate to cuspidtae-acuminate at the apex, light green with channeled midrib and slender laterial veins, finely reticulated above, paler green and more or less shiny and less distinctly reticnlated beneath with slender raised midrib often reddish when young, 3.5-8.5 cm long, 1.8-3 cm wide; petiole 6-JO mm long. Flowers not seen. Fruit solitary or 2-3 together in axmary clusters on last year's branch, pendulous on slender peduncles 8-12 mm long, oblong- elliptic to broadly obovate or almost orbicular 2.5-3.5 cm long and 1.8-2.5 cm wide with 4 longitudinal wings, somewhat succulent and yellowish when young, becoming dry and pinkish-yellow when ripe, marked by a long or short style and the remnant of the persistent calyx at the apex, cuneate, rounded or abruptly cuneate at the base, the stone narrowly cylindric, with 4 rounded flattened ridges alternating with the wings, usually 1-celled and 1-seeded by abortion.

Chekiang; Collector, Ching Ren-chang.
The discovery of a species of Halesia in this country makes another addition to the list of genera formerly thought to be purely American and subsequently also found to be endemic in this country. Some of the genera of woody plants now known to be common to American and China, occuring no where else, are: Sassfras, Liriodcni'ron, Hickoria, Nya8a, 8ymphoricaroos and Halesia.

This species is named in compliment to Mr. Donald MacGregor, Superintendent of Parks and Open Spaces, Shanghai, who, in the course of over twenty years' unceasing effort, has introduced numerous valuable plants, both foreign and native, much to the enrichment of Chinese gardens. Although the flowers have not been seen, judging by the size of fruits, they should be much larger than those of the American species, and correspondingly more beautiful. The flowers of this genus hang down in numerous drooping clusters, each flower resembling a large snowdrop with clear white petals, very showy when in bloom. This silver-bell will no doubt be very generally grown as an ornamental subject when introduced into cultivation.

ToRREYA JACKII sp. nov.

Closely allied to the western North American Torreya californica Torrey (Tumion californicum [orrey] Greene) which differs mostly in its shorter, usually straighter leaves revolute at the margin, and in its ovoid or oblong-ovoid fruit.

A small tree to 8 or 12 m tall and about 20 cm in diameter of trunk, or more often, a large, much-branched, bushy shrub, bearing fruits when quite young. Branches ascending with spreading or somewhat pendulous branchiets, forming a somewhat irregular, or symmetrically rounded crown. Bark of trunk gray, somewhat fibrous, peeling off in thin, irregular flakes exposing the brownish inner bark. Branchiets of the year green, becoming greenish-brown, then shiny red-brown the second and third year, finally changing to dull grey. Leaves stiff, arranged in two ranks, slightly pointing forwards, linear, falcate, gradually tapering to a spine-pointed apex, slightly contorted at the base, flat, the margin not revolute when dry, dark shiny green with a shallowly grooved and inconspicuous midrib above, yellowish green and with two narrow, whitish stomatiferous bands one on each side of the slightly elevated midrib beneath, 3.5-9 cm long, but usually 6-8 cm long, 3-4 mm wide, very aromatic when bruised, or burned, giving off a fragrance like that of sandalwood oil. Flowers not seen. Fruit (immature) about 2 cm long, obovoid, greenish, covered with a glaucous bloom - sessile or nearly so, subtended at the base by several thick shiny chestnut-brown scales; seed deeply ruminated. Wood fairly hard, very fragrant with an odour like sandalwood oil; sapwood pale brown; heartwood dark brown.

Chekiang; Collector, Ching Ren-chang.
This species is named in honour of Professor John G. Jack of the Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University.

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