ENG-1961 — Page 392

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NATURAL HISTORY

Camellia was discovered in 1955 and named Camellia grantham- iana in honour of the Governor, at the time, Sir Alexander Grantham. Only one tree has so far been found, on the edge of a wooded ravine near the Jubilee Reservoir, bearing handsome white flowers 54 inches across, with a dense cluster of golden stamens in the centre.

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Many local shrubs and a few herbs have very beautiful fruits in striking colours. The Ardisia, the Chloranthus and several wild hollies have brilliant red berries; the large orange-like fruits of Melodinus, the smaller fruits of Strychnos, the wild kamquat and the winged fruits of the Gardenia are orange in colour. Numerous yellow fruits with elusive names abound on the hillsides, one of which is the Maesa. There are many inconspicuous green fruits and berries; one of these is the Mussaenda, the Buddha's Lamp. Many berries are black with a bluish waxy cuticle, but probably the only true blue is that of the Dichroa, a well-known medicinal plant. Several species of Callicarpa and Dianella bear purplish fruits, while those of the Raphiolepis (the so-called Hong Kong Hawthorn), the wild jasmine and the wild persimmon are black. The remarkable star-like fruit of the Sterculia turns crimson in late summer and split open to disclose jet black seeds. At a distance these open fruits look like large red flowers.

There are several very poisonous plants which should be better known to the general public: two species of Strychnos which have very brightly coloured fruits resembling small oranges; one species of Strophanthus which has conspicuous fruits, unmistakable because of their large size and horn-like shape; and one species of Gelsemium which is the most poisonous of local plants. The latter is a climber with dense terminal clusters of yellow flowers, each about half an inch in diameter, blooming towards the end of the year. All parts of the plant contain the alkaloid gelsemidine, which is a spinal poison. It is said that as little as twelve grams of leaf constitute a fatal dose, and that death follows within a few hours. It is sometimes used by country people to commit suicide. Wild edible fruits include a wild jack-fruit (Artocarpus), the fruit of the rose-myrtle, wild bananas and raspberries. Several species of persimmon are wild, but their fruits are too astringent to be eaten raw.