30 MR. BUNBUBT 01!^ THE BOTANY OP TENEKIFFE. 



Leptodon longisetus^ Mont. : in abundance on some large old 

 trees, but producing fructification very sparingly. 



Schistidiwn ciliatum, Brid. : on rocks. 



On the mountain side near the wood of Agua Mansa, but sepa- 

 rately, not intermixed with the other trees, grow a number of fine 

 pines, Pinus Canariensis : this is the nearest spot to Orotava, and 

 the most accessible, in which they are to be seen in a state of 

 nature. This species of Pine is a noble and picturesque tree, per- 

 haps the finest that I have seen of its genus. The representations 

 of it in the Atlas to AVebb and Berthelot'a work do not give a good 

 idea of its appearance, at least as I have seen it ; it has not the 

 stiff and formal regularity there represented, but rather the free 

 and bold style of branching of the finest states of Finns sylvestris ; 

 while the very long, slender, drooping and almost pendulous leaves 

 give it a distinct and peculiar character. 



The prevalence of the Erica arborea is one of the most striking 

 characteristics of the forest zone in this part of Teneriffe. This 

 beautiful shrub or tree forms a broad and continuous belt along 

 the face of the great screen of mountains which half encloses 

 the valley of Orotava. Whether one ascends towards the Peak 

 by the usual route, or along the Tigayga ridge, in either case, 

 after passing the limits of cultivation, one proceeds for hours [ 



through a dense and iminterrupted shrvibbory of this Heath. * 



The larger trees having been destroyed, the Erica now predomi- 

 nates over everything else. The Myrica Faya {Faya fragifera, 

 Webb), the Acevino {Ilex Canariensis)^ the Fteris aqiiilina, and 

 one or two Cisti, grow intermixed with it, but in smaller quantity. 

 A similar and most luxuriant shrubbery of Erica arborea and 

 Myrica Faya is crossed before arriving at the wood of Agua Mansa. 

 The Heath here grows ten or twelve feet high, and the effect of 

 its countless myriads of white bells is quite charming. The lower 

 limit of this great zone of Erica is probably not much below 

 3000 feet, but whether it would not extend lower if not interfered 

 with by cultivation, may be doubtful. In the deep harrancoSy as 

 have already remarked, the Erica flourishes in a scattered manner 

 down to a much lower level. 



The Erica scoparia^ which in Madeira generally accompanies the 

 arhorea, appears to be scarce or local in Teneriffe. In the Azores, 

 on the other hand, the scoparia prevails to the exclusion of the 

 arborea *. The prodigious abundance of these Heaths in 31 adeira 

 and the Canaries, while the species are so few, is very remarkable. 



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* Watson, in Hook. Lond. Journal of Botany. 



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