THE PINE.
701
Order 21. Conif'er^e, Jussieu. —The Fir Tribe.
CoNACEjE or Pinacejr, Lind.
E
s 8rntial Character.— Flowers monoecious or dioecious. Males monandrous or^onatlelpl ious ; each floret consisting of a single stamen, or of a few united, collected! n a deciduous amentum, about a common rachis; anthers two-lobed or many-lobed,bursting outwardly; often terminated by a crest, which is an unconverted portion ofJ? e scale out of which each stamen is formed ; pollen large, usually compound.females in cones. Ovary spread open, and having the appearance of a flat scaleH^titute of style or stigma, and arising from the axil of a membranous bract.^vule naked; in pairs on the face of the ovary, having an inverted position, andinsisting of one or two membranes, open at the apex, and of a nucleus. Fruit con-ning of a cone formed of the scale-shaped ovaries, become enlarged and indurated,a,| d occasionally of the bracts also, which are sometimes obliterated, and sometimes[Wend beyond the scales in the form of a lobed appendage. Seed with a hard crus-^ceous integument. Embryo in the midst of fleshy oily albumen, with two or"■any opposite cotyledons; the radicle next the apex of the seed, and having an0 r?anic connexion with the albumen. Trees or shrubs, with a branched trunkbounding in resin. Wood , with the ligneous tissue marked with circular disks.^aves linear, acerose or lanceolate, entire at the margins ; sometimes fascicled inbb’isequence of the non-developement of the bracts to which they belong; when* s cicled, the primordial leaf to which they are then axillary is membranous, andJ> (t " Wr aps them like a sheath. (Lindley).
bERTiES.—Every part of coniferous plants contains an oleo-resinous juice, which? le ‘ds by distillation a volatile oil, differing often in odour but agreeing in compositione; ‘ch species. This juice is a local irritant, and acts as a powerful stimulant toe vascular system and the organs of secretion (especially the kidneys and thebcous membranes). Moreover, it appears to possess a specific influence over theerv ° us system: for oil of turpentine, in large doses, has operated as an inebriantm soporific; savin is said by Orfila ( Toxicol. Gin.) to act on the nervous system;the leaves of yew are narcotic.
Pi'nus, Decandolle.— The Pine.
Sex. Syst, Monoecia, Mouadelphia.
c om ° TANY ‘ Cen. Char .— Flowers monoecious. Males — catkins racemose,§t * )a ct, and terminal; squamose ; the scales staminiferous at the apex.i)ij^ ews two I the anthers one-celled. Females—catkins or cones simple,pleated with acuminate scales. Ovaries two. Stigmas glandular.tli e 6s the cone oblong, club-shaped, woody; umbilicato-angular att tl(; a pex. Seeds [nuts, Dec.] in pairs, covered with a sharp-pointed155 “ ra ne. Cotyledons digitato-partite. Leaves two or many, in thetr ee ® s heath (Decandolle and Dubuy, Dot. Gall.) Hardy, evergreen
1- Pi'nus sylves'tris,lAnn. L. D.; Wild Pine or Scotch Fir. —w es hi pairs, rigid. Cones ovato-conical, acute; young ones stalked,w rve( l, as long as the leaves ; generally in pairs. Crest of the anthershep SIna h. Embryo live-lobed. ( Bot. Gall.) Highlands of Scotland ,ip * ara , Norway, and other northern countries of Europe . FlowersWn of ant ^ June. A tall, straight, hard, long-lived tree, determinately1)*^.. e d. Its wood is the red or yellow deal. It yields common tur -f r % iar , and pitch.
Hri„f nus Pinas'ter, Aiton, Lambert; P. maritima, Decand; Thehij^ er or Cluster Pine. — Leaves twin, very long, rigid, pungent, fur-W a at the base with a reflexed scale. Cones oblong-conical, obtuse,Slt iooth, bright, shorter than the leaves. Scales bristly. {Bot. Gall.)