FLORA. In the north and northeast are found tropical woodlands, to the south and west of which are scattered forests containing most of the species usual in the warm temperate zone. The slopes of the Andes are well wooded, espe cially with thorny and shrubby plants, as are the banks of the Parana and the rivers flowing from the west into the Paraguay; although the trees do not attain great size. Palms are a distinctive feature of the base of the Sierra de Cordoba and of the northwestern foothills. The pampas, in the wet season, are covered with clover and thistles, or with tali grass and flowers, gay verbenas, geraniums, etc.; but here, as well as on the Gran Chaco, there is little to form thickets, except mimosas and cacti. The algaroba, a shrub resembling a honey locust, is widely distributed: it is used for fence posts; from the pulp of the pod are made a kind of flour, and, by fermentation, an intoxicating liquor called Chiea. Patagonia has herbs, shrubs,
cacti, some tufty grass, brambles, and copse; hut is almost treeless, except in the south, and even there but four species of trees are found, two of them being beeches. Among the in digenous trees and plants are the quince, aloe, coca, cinchona, (o• Paraguay tea), manioc, the prickly pear. with edible fruit; the Cactus fotiosits, on which the cochineal insect feeds, and a shrub harboring an insect yielding a handsome green dye. The apple-tree, introduced from Chile by the Indians, flourishes in the southwestern Provinces; the grape is extensively grown in the western Provinces of Rioja,San Juan, and 'Mendoza; the Province of Salta is famed for its bananas and coffee; and the peach, fig, orange, and walnut are grown in many parts. The scarcity of wood in some Provinces compels the use of dry thistles and peach-tree cuttings for fuel.