92 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 



probable that the Auchendrane tree takes first place among 

 Scottish Birches. 



Dr. Henry writes — " There are some big Birches at Blair- 

 Drummond, and one with an enormous trunk at Dropmore, 

 England, but not very tall. The Auchendrane one is apparently 

 the finest tree. Blair-Drummond — (a) Girth. 13 ft. 10 ins., 

 height, 60 ft.; (b) girth, 10 ft. 8 ins., height, 70 ft. Dropmore — 

 21 ft. 4 ins. girth at one foot up, butt short ; three great limbs, 

 9 ft. 10 ins., 8 ft. 2 ins., 6 ft. 3 ins.; height, 62 ft. Laverstoke 

 Park, Hampshire — girth, 8 ft. 11 ins., height, 75 ft." 



In her letter last month Miss Cathcart writes — " You will be 

 interested to learn that our weeping Birch on the lawn was 

 brought with other rare plants in the year 1818 from Booth's 

 Gardens in Hamburgh, and is described as ' The Cutleaf Weeping 

 Birch.' My father, who had been studying in Germany, brought 

 a great many rare plants at that time, and of which, as you 

 know, a good many still survive. We made the knowledge about 

 the Birch from old letters we were looking over. I have had 

 some new mould put round the roots this year, and hope it may 

 freshen up the tree, but the storms have done much damage 

 among our trees last winter, and my forester says he never had 

 so many broken branches to prune off. " 



Having last year made many measurements of the trees here, 

 we took only two on this occasion — (1) A Silver Fir on stable 

 path, girth, 12 ft. 2 J ins. at 5 ft., an increase of 5f ins. in ten 

 years = '57 ins. per annum, rather small; (2) a Douglas Fir, 

 5 ft. 10J ins. girth; increase in ten years, 4| ins = '42 ins. 

 per annum. 



On several of (; the Union " Silver Firs there were, as I 

 described them in sending a specimen to Dr. Henry, " portions of 

 the ends of the branches showing abnormalities, growths whereon 

 the leaves are beginning to appear, paler green than the rest of 

 the foliage. Apparently the branch has been injured either by 

 an insect, a fungus, or some other irritant or cause of disease. I 

 send one of the bunches, and shall be very glad to learn what is 

 the cause of the curious growth. Has it any relation to the 

 'witches brooms?"' He replied — '-The specimen of disease of 

 Silver Fir turned out to be jEcidium elalinum, or ' witches 

 broom,' which is common on Silver Firs on the Continent, 



