CHAP. CXIU.

CONl'FKKiE. Pj'A'I/S.

2207

about 50 ft. high. They werereceived from the Hammer-smith Nursery, and marked inthe garden with the name of P.uncinata ; but, in 1834, conesw’ere produced, when they werefound to be those of P. Pallas-iana. Both these trees, Mr.

Nevin informs us, are equallyrobust and vigorous ; but theone throws out its branches inthe most grotesque and luxu-riant manner, with a knottystem, while the other has anelegant cypress-like form. Mr.

Niven has sent us specimenswith cones of both varieties;but the cones of these speci-mens do not appear to differin the least. There is a treein the Horticultural Society’sGarden, considered there as thetrue P. Pallasidnff, which hasborne cones, and of which Jig.

2089. is a portrait, to our usualscale; but it is evidently notthe P. Pallasidnu of Lambert,but rather some other varietyof P. Laricio less different fromthe species. There is anothertree in the same garden, mark-ed P. taurica, which has notborne cones; and, though itdiffers somewhat in habit fromthe tree marked there P. Pal-las iana, being more fastigiate,we have no doubt it will befound, when it comes to pro- ,duce cones, to be some otherslight variation of P. LaricioIn rare species, of every kind,it is very natural to take ad-vantage of slight shades ofdifference, and to hold them out as varieties, which, in species that arecommon, would be altogether neglected. For example, there might bemany very distinct varieties selected from Scotch pine woods, quite as dif-ferent from one another as the different varieties and subvarieties of P. La-ricio; but, as P. sylvestris is a very common tree, no cultivator thinks itworth his while to bring its varieties or variations into notice.

Description. “ A large tree, about the size of P. sylvestris, but mucli morespreading, sending out numerous large, declining, and horizontal branchesfrom the summit to the base; the lower branches almost equalling the trunkitself in size. Bark cracked, rugged, brown, scaling off. Wood compact,white, brownish red in the centre, resinous, very knotty. Leaves in twos,crowded, erect, rigid, semi-cylindrical, glabrous, somewhat shining, light green;5 in. long; roughly serrulated on the margin,canaliculate above, furnished at theapex with a sharp cartilaginous mucro; sheaths short, about Jin. long,round,covered externally with loose scales, membraneous, and torn on the margin;

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