The carob (_Ceratonia siliqua_) is indigenous in Syria, and probably also in the northern countries of Africa, whence it presumably spread to certain parts of Asia Minor, to Greece, the Greek Islands and Southern Italy. At the time of Christ, and for some centuries later, this tree was known to the Greeks by the name of keronia or keratea, being the Greek for horns, and is given to the locust or carob bean from its supposed resemblance to goats' horns. It is also known in different parts of Cyprus under the following names; teratsia (a corruption of keratea), xylokeratea, kountouroudia, koutsoupia and charoupia. The last named is of Arabic origin (kharroub) and the same root of the word is common all over Europe. Moreover, the fruit varies slightly according to locality, and develops local characteristics which have acquired for it distinctive local names; thus in Kyrenia District we have templiotiké and kyrionitiké, in the Karpas there is the sarakine (introduced by Saracens?) and elsewhere the vaklitiké and komboté. This bean or pod, which when ripe is of a chocolate colour, contains from 6 to 10 hard seeds, embedded in a sweet, pithy, honey-like substance which imparts the flavour so much appreciated by animals. The carob tree belongs to the natural order Leguminosæ, sub-order Caesalpinæ, and is the only species of the genus _Ceratonia_. It is an evergreen, long-lived tree, growing to a height of 30 ft. and sometimes even to 50 and 60 ft. It thrives in most kinds of soil, especially in porous, marly and even volcanic soils, but not in marshy lands. Owing to its long tap root it resists drought well, and is to be found growing well in rocky land such as is common in many of the carob areas of Cyprus. It is very generally found intermixed with the olive tree and up to about the same altitude. A succession of flowers is produced from July to September or October, and in favourable years up to December and even later, and in July-August the tree bears both flowers and ripe fruit. The collection of the latter commences about mid-August, the exact date being annually fixed separately in each district by the Commissioner. This is done in order to prevent the fruit from being stolen. Recent investigations made by the Agricultural Department go to prove that the fruit-producing carob tree of Cyprus is really hermaphrodite, though there yet remains much room for investigation and the point is not finally settled. The others are true male trees. The hermaphrodite carob trees which form practically the whole of the fruit-producing trees of the Island are cleistogamous (_i.e._ self-fertilised before the calyx opens) and short-stamened.