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V. H. C. JARRETT
by the Governor in Council, under Section 2 of the Ordinance, to the follow- ing effect:
46
CO
Azaleas.
No person shall without lawful excuse sell, offer for sale, or have in his possession or under his custody or control, any portion of any azalea whatsoever.”
It was added that the regulation was not to apply to the following:-- Whole plants grown outside the Colony and imported as whole plants; or portions of azaleas grown in private gardens and picked with the consent of the owner or occupier of such gardens: the onus to be on the defendant in every case.
The Ordinance itself provided that:
"It shall be lawful for the Governor in Council to make such regulations as he may think expedient for the purpose of pro- tecting trees, shrubs, and other plants from destruction, injury or removal."
This Ordinance is in force to-day, and it might be borne in mind that offenders, upon summary conviction, are liable to a fine not exceeding $250, and the Magistrate can order forfeiture of any severed plant or portion of a plant with regard to which an offence under the regulations has been committed.
Having said as much, we will proceed to note the plants which are on the protected list at the present time. It will be seen that only azaleas (now more usually termed rhododendrons) were given protection in 1920. This position was maintained until 1925. In the Government Gazette of June 19, 1925, the protection was extended, and ten species of plants were added to the list. The regulation of 1920 was rescinded, insofar as it re- ferred to
any azalea whatsoever," and the following plants were given protection:
CL
1. Cypripedium purpuratum.
Enkianthus quinqueflorus.
2.
All azaleas.
3.
4.
Ixora chinensis.
5. Lilium Brownii.
6.
Litsea citrata.
7.
Bauhinia Blakeana.
8. Manglietia Fordiana.
9.
Pavetta indica.
10. Spathoglottis pubescens.
II.
Arundina chinensis.
It is important to note that this is the list which applies at the present That it requires further amending is the general opinion of those whom the writer has approached on the subject. It may not be inappro-
day.
:
ΙΟΙ
The Protection of Wild Plants in Hong Kong
priate, therefore, to proceed to a discussion of the present list as well as of such plants as could be added.
The first impression of most persons must be one of surprise that two seemingly common ground orchids, Spathoglottis and Arundina, are protect- ed. There must be scores of residents qualifying for prosecution every year when these plants are in flower! But that they deserve protection is the writer's firm conviction: if they appear common to-day, and they certainly seem to be steadily on the increase, may we not attribute some of that for- tunate circumstance to their inclusion in the list? If there is any comment to offer, it is to regret that several more species are not under the ban. But we shall come to that later.
It is not intended to give a long or detailed description of each plant protected under the Ordinance-scientific descriptions would probably be out of place in an article intended for popular consumption, and most of the plants in the list must be familiar to nearly everyone nowadays. A short summary of each species (taking them in the order of the official list, for the sake of convenience) should suffice. An extract from Dunn and Tutcher's Flora of Kwangtung and Hong Kong" (referred to as D. and T.) is appended in each case.
CYPRIPEDIUM PURPURATUM:
This is the very pretty and somewhat rare orchid found growing on rocks or nullah banks, flowering from November to December.
The plant
is a herb, with dark green leaves blotched with purplish markings, or sometimes with white patches. The flower is about three inches in diameter, on a thin stem, purple petals lighter at the tips, spotted and streaked with claret-colour, and a white upper sepal streaked with purple and green, the lower sepals united to form a purple cup-shaped process, somewhat resembling the tropical pitcher plant. full description of this orchid, the "Lady's slipper orchis," is given in an illustrated article in the first issue of the "Hong Kong Naturalist" (Vol. I, p. 15).
[D. and T. page 270, Paphiopedilum purpuratum, Pfitz: Cypri- pedium purpuratum Lindl.; Benth. Flora Hongkongensis p. 364].
THE AZALEAS :
A
These plants are well known, and more popularly called Rhododen- drons. They range from the very common R. indicum, which dots our hillsides, and varies from deep red to pink; through mauve and white species, to the large, magnificent R. Championae, found on the summit of the Peak, at Maonshan, and elsewhere, with pale flowers tinged with pink, and scented. D. and T. pages 154, 155, in which nine species are listed, six of them local, and briefly described |.
ENKIANTHUS QUINQUEFLORUS:
It
This pretty bush is another familiar growth of our hillsides. flowers in February, the characteristic bunches of drooping bells, a delicate Protection has main- pink in colour, being a temptation to the rambler. tained its hold in most areas: the plants sold at Chinese New Year are im-
The Hong Kong Naturalist.
May 1932.
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