2322

ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM.

l’ART III.

articulated with an elevated tubercle, very short, not more than 2 in.long, rigid, rather sharp-pointed, and very soon falling off' the dried spe-cimens. Cones pendulous, cylindrical, 3 in. long; scales elliptic, obtuse,loose, somewhat wavy, cartilaginous and scarious; bright brown; ragged,when mature, on the upper margin; persistent after the seeds havedropped. Bracteoles lanceolate, acute, rather rigid, irregularly crenulatedon the margin; half the length of the scales. Seeds small, brown, firstconvex, and then flat ; wing somewhat elliptic, slightly and irregularlycrenulated at the apex; the other margin straight, thick, and revolute.{Lamb., Penn. Cyc., and observations.) Douglas describes the wood of thisspecies as being of excellent quality'; but little is known respecting the habitof the tree. It was found on the north-west coast of America , in North California ; and named by its discoverer in honour of our much esteemedfriend , Archibald Menzies , Esq.; a botanist who has introduced many valu-able species; and who, having discovered many others, of which he wasunable to procure seeds, nearly 40 years ago, has had the pleasure of seeingthem at length introduced, and brought into general cultivation. Only a veryfew plants of A. Menziesii were raised in the Horticultural Society’s Gardenin the year 1832; so that the species is at present extremely rare in thiscountry; it is, however, as we are informed by Mr. Lawson and Mr. M‘Nab,jun., much more plentiful in Scotland . The plant in the HorticulturalSociety’s Garden is nearly 3 ft. high; and there are plants about the sameheight at Highclere and Hendon Rectory. It is readily propagated by cut-tings; and plants may be procured in the nurseries at 3 guineas each.

1 9. A. canade'nsjs L. The Canada Pine , or Hemlock Spruce Fir.

Identification. Michx. N. Amer. Syl., 3. p. 185.

Synonymes. P. canadensis Lin. Sp. Pi., 1421.; P . americ&na Du Roi Harbk., ed. Pott., 2. p. 151.,Ait. Hort. Kew., 3. p. 370., Lamb . Pin., ed. 2., 1. t. 45., Smith in Rees's Cyc., No. 29.; P. zi'biesameric&na Marsh. Arb. Amer., p. 103. j Perusse, by the French in Canada ; Sapiu du Canada , Fr. jSchierlings Fichte, Ger.

Engravings. Lamb . Pin, ed. 2., 1. t. 45.; Michx. N. Amer. Syl., 3. t. 149.; N. Du Ham., 5. t 82.f. 1.; and the plates of this tree in our last "Volume.

Spec. Char., fyc. Leaves solitary, flat, slightly denticulate, obtuse, two-ranked.Cones oval, terminal, pendent, naked, scarcely longer than the leaves. (Lois.)Leaves from fin. to fin. long, and -A-in. broad. Cones from fin. to fin.long, and f in. broad; scales round-oblong, f in. long, and A in. broad.Seed very small, scarcely f in. long; and with the wing, § in. long. Nativeof North America . Introduced in 1736.

Description. The hemlock spruce, in Europe , is a most elegant tree, fromthe symmetrical disposition of its branches, which droop gracefully at theirextremities, and its light, and yet tufted, foliage. In America , while the treeis young and under 30 ft. high, it is as beautiful as in England; but, when itattains its full growth, Michaux informs us, the large limbs are usually brokenoff’ 4 ft. or 5 ft. from the trunk, and the withered extremities are seen “ staringout ” through the little twigs which have sprung out around them. “ Inthis mutilated state, by which it is easily recognised, it has a disagreeableaspect, and presents, while in full vigour, an image of decrepitude.” Thisbreaking of the limbs is attributed to the snow lodging upon the close, tufted,horizontal branches ; and it never happens to young trees, the wood of whichis more elastic. (See p. 2137.) Michaux adds that the woods in the northernstates are filled with dead trees of the hemlock spruce; but he is unable tosay whether they have been killed by an insect, or by some other cause. Thedead moss-grown trees of this species, he adds, “ which stand moulderingfor 20 or 30 years, deform the forests of this part of the United States ; andgive them a gloomy and desolate appearance.” This species has the pecu-liarity of sometimes ceasing to grow at the height of 2 ft. or 2 ft. 6 in. In thisstate, says Michaux, it has a pyramidal shape, and its compact tufted branchesadhere to the ground. The trunk of the hemlock spruce is straight, and oiuniform size for two thirds of its height. The branches are numerous and