Common Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

essed around each seed. The oblong flattened Florida including Florida Keys, Bermuda, and
ero\vn seeds are inch long Pods are procl~iced tliro~~gllout West Indies. Also from British Honin
great quantities, long persistent on the bnulclies, dunts through Gtitral America and South
lute in openin-g, remaining after the leaves are America to Brazil.
shed. Flotvenng from April to September and OTHER COBIMON ~~~~s.-lengua de mujer, lenwith
f twits nearly through the year.
gua riperina, casia amarilla, acacia, aroma, nmor
The sap\rood is whitish, and tlie heart\rood light pliit6nico ( Puerto Rico) ; woman's-tongue, tibetyellowish
brown to light brown. The wood is tree (Virgin Islands) ; chachd (Dominican Repubmoderately
hard, coarse-grained, strong, and fairly lic) ; algarrobo de olor, aromn fmncesa, forestina,
durable. It seasons well .and ~vorlts and polisl~es cabellos de tingel, mGsico (Cuba) ; acacia, canjuro
easily. In Puerto Rico used only for fuel and (El Salvador) ; pisquin, muche, carbonero de somposts.
Else\vhere the wood !~ns been employed for
furniture, paneling veneering, turnery, and gen- $
eral construction. 'he bark has served m tanning,
and n few- parts of the tree in medicines.
P~pagatecl readily from seed, the t~ves gm\v
nvell In dry areas, where they are sufficiently hardy
to become naturalized. Reported to be tolerant
of salt spray and suitable also new seashores.
Planted for shade and ornanient along roadsides
and around houses, and naturalized in pastures and
on hillsides in the moist and dry coastal regions
of Puerto Rico. Also in Culebm, Vieqnes, St.
Croix, St. Thomas, St. John, and Tortola.
RAXGE.-Native probably of tropical Asia including
India and Burma but now widely planted
and natuAlized through the tropics. Southern
armuche, dormil6n (Colombia) ; barb& de
cabal ero, samdn (Venezuela) ; lebbek lebbek albizia
(United States) ; lroko (United dtates, commerce)
; tibet-tree woman s-tongue, sins-tree
(English) ; black-ebony (Bermuda) ; singer-tree,
whistling-bean (Bahamns) ; shack-shack, West-
Indies-ebony, East-Indian-~ralnut (Trinidad) ;
tcha-tchn, bois noir (Haiti) vieille fille Guadeloupe)
; barba di junkumnn (Dutch West I ndies) ;
corn~iio de negro (Brazil).
The peculiar rattling sound produced by the contintla1
movement of the dry pods in the mind is the
origin of the common name of woman's-tongue
(lengua de nlujer) and in Cuba the more pleasant
one. m6sico (musical).
The generic name is spelled also ABizzia.
LEGUME FAMILY (LEGUMINOSAE)
MIMOSA SUBFAMILY (MIMOSOIDEAE; MIMOSACEAE)
61. Albizia, tall albizia Albizia procera (Roxb.) Benth.'
This exotic tree of relatively recent introduction
is planted along roadsides and in gardens. It is
identified by : (1) twice pinnate leaves (bipinnate)
1-2 feet long, wit11 many oblong leaflets reddish in
color when first produced, 3/4-1% inches long and
5/16-5/g inch wide, short-pointed at both ends and
very oblique at base; (2) showy flowers numerous
in wliitish balls with many spreading stamens
about 7/g inch across; and (3) thin flat pods 3-7
inches long and nearly 3/4 inch broad, rich red but
turning to brown, containing a central row of
C+12 elliptic flattened green-brown seeds about 1/4
inch long. From acacia amnrilln (Albizia Zebbek
(L.) Benth.') it differs in having smaller flowers
rind seed pods and in the larger number of lateral
axes in the leaf, &7 pairs.
A rapidly growing deciduous tree becoming
80-60 feet tall with'stmight trunk 1-2 feet in dl-
aineter, few b~nnches, and spreading thin crown.
The bark is smoothish, varying from very light
brown to whitish or light greenish gray. Inner
bark is soft and pinkish with a strong, peculiar,
bitter, astringent, and irritating taste. The stout
twigs are greenish brown, wit11 many small longi-
t udinal ridges.
The yellow-green axis of the alternate leaves
1,ral.s nn elliptic gland 1/4 inch long on upper side
near the enlarged base and 4-7 pairs of slender
lateral axes (pinnae). There nre 6-14 pairs of
leaflets with short stalks I/lo inch long on each lateral
axis. The thin leaflet blades with the side
nearer nxis much broader, not toothed on edges,
the upper surface dull green, and the lower surface
pale gray green and inconspicuously hairy.
Flowers are borne on several lateral axes (racemes)
3-9 inches long near the end of a twig.
An individual flower is stalkless and nearly y8
inch long, including the stamens, and has a greenish
5-toothed calyx tube about y8 inch lon
whitish narrow corolla nearly inch long inc 7; ud- a
ing tube and 5 pointed hairy lobes; many white
threadlike spreading stamens about 7/16 inch lon
united into a tube ,en lover part; and pistil wit
small narrow ovary and threadlike style.
The pods, long-pointed at both ends, contain
6-12 seeds and have an enlarged dark spot outside
each seed. Later the split o en along 1 side to
expose the papery wa f Is and re 7 ease the seeds. At
maturity the large masses of red pods against the
green foliage are showy, and then the brown dead
open pods remain on the tree for some time, until
tlie 15-hole tvig bearing the pods is shed. These
and fallen leaves make undesirable litter in
$I"
a\\ ns and gardens. Recorded in flower in August
and September and in fruit from Januar to June.
The sapwood is whitish to light ye i low, and
g: