1872
ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM.
BART III.
take. Indeed, the tree of this species in Loddiges’s arboretum was upwardsof 15 ft. high in 183-1. Q. lyrata is a native of the southern states ofNorth America; where, according to the younger Michaux, “ it is never seenin the long narrow marshes which intersect the pine barrens, but is foundexclusively in the great swamps on the borders of the rivers, which are oftenoverflowed at the rising of the waters, and are inaccessible during threequarters of the year.” It is not mentioned by Catesby,and appears to havebeen first described by Walther, in his Flora Caroliniana. It was introducedinto England in 1786, but is seldom met with in collections. The wood,though inferior to that of the white and post oaks, is more compact thanwould be supposed from the swampy nature of its native habitat : it will,however, grow on dry soil; and the elder Michaux states that, even in loosesandy soil, it grew faster than any other oak in his nurseries. (Hist, desChenes, No. 3.) The younger Michaux says that “ this species is the largestand most highly esteemed among the oaks that grow in wet grounds. Theacorns I sent to France, though sown on uplands, have produced flourishingplants, which bear the winter of Paris without injury.” (North Amer. Syl.,i. p. 42.)
§ iv. Prinus. Chestnut Oaks.
Sect. Char., Sfc. Leaves dentate, dying off of a dirty white, or of a yellowishorange. Bark white, rough, and scaly. Fructification annual. Cup im-bricate. Nut oblong, generally large.
S 13. Q. Pra'xus L. The Prinus, or Chestnut-leaved, Oak.
Identification. Lin. Sp. PI, 1413.; 'Willd. Sp., 4. p. 439.; Ait. Hort. Kew.,5. p. 290.; N. Du Ham.,7. p. 164.; Michx. FI. Bor. Amer., 2. p. 195.
Spec. Char., §c. Leaves oblong-oval, more or less pointed, nearly equallytoothed. Cup somewhat scaly; nut ovate. (Michx. FI. Bor. Amer., ii.p. 195.) Trees, varying in height from 20 ft. to 90 ft.; and one of thevarieties a low shrub. In the climate of London the trees grow freely,and promise to attain a considerable size. In general form, they are ashandsome as any of the American oaks; but their foliage dies off'with verylittle colour, what there is being generally of a whitish or brownish yellow.
Varieties. These are by some authors treated as species; but they are soobviously alike in their leaves and bark from their infancy upwards, thatthere does not remain a single doubt in our minds of their being onlyvarieties. However, for the sake of those who think otherwise, and also tomark the peculiarities of each variety, we shall give the identifications,synonymes, and descriptions to each.
I Q. P. 1 palustris Michx. FI. Bor. Amer., ii. p. 196., Quer., No. 5. t. 6.,Lodd. Cat., ed. 1836; Q. P. palustris Michx. N. Amer. Syl., i. p. 46.t. 8., oar Jig. 1735., and the plate of this tree in our last Volume ;Q. Prinos L. Sp. PL, 1413,, Willd. Sp. PL, p. 439., Ait. Hort.Kew., v. p. 290., Pursh FI. Amer. Sept., ii. p. 633., N. Du Ham., vii.p. 164., Smith in Rees’s Cycl., No. 47.; Q. castanemfoliis, &c., Pluk.Aim., 309., Phyt., t. 54., Cat. Carol., i. t. 18. The Swamp ChestnutOak, the Chestnut white Oak; and, near Philadelphia, the whiteOak. — Leaves on longish footstalks, obovate. Fruit very large. Cupmoderately hollow, distinctly scaly. (A. Michx.) This tree, accord-ing to the younger Michaux, is, in the southern states of NorthAmerica, generally from 80 ft. to 90 ft. high, with a straight trunk,rising clear of branches, and of nearly the same thickness to theheight of 50 ft.; then spreading into a broad tufted head; andforming altogether one of the most beautiful and majestic trees ofthe American forests. The leaves of Q. P. palustris are of a shininggreen above, and whitish and somewhat wrinkled underneath; theyhave rather long footstalks; and are from 8 in. to 9 in. long, and from4in. to 5in. broad; obovate, and terminating in an acute point.