658 NOTES ON THE NATIVE PLOKA OF NEW SOUTH VVAl.ES, vili., 



C . torulosa (Forest-Oak) occurs around The Oaks, and is 

 the species from which the town derived its name. This 

 tree is easily identified by its fine, pendulous branchlets, which 

 are often very light brown, apart from the colouring given 

 by the presence of male flowers ; and the sheath-teeth are 

 only four in number. The flat-topped cones are somewhat 

 melon-shaped, often exceeding one inch long, and even, 

 though rarely, 2\ inches. The valves protrude only very 

 slightly, consequently the cones have much the same appear- 

 ance both before and after the seeds are shed, in which 

 feature this species difl'ers from many of the genus. C. toru- 

 losa has a considerable range from Sydney well into Qvieens- 

 land, but its southern recorded limit is practically around 

 The Oaks and Picton. 



In regard to its selection of geological formations, it ap- 

 pears to avoid the extremely acid rocks upon which C . sube- 

 rosa often flourishes ; and when these two species are found 

 in the same forest, it will generally be seen that 6'. torulosa 

 has sought out the less siliceous portions, often well drained 

 hillsides. In the Sydney district, therefore, while the former 

 favours the Hawkesbury Sandstone formation, the latter pre- 

 fers those areas where the sandstone has been mixed with 

 the shale. 



In describing Vaccary Forest, Caley evidently refers to 

 C . torulosa when he speaks of some of the hills as "abounding 

 with she-oaks," and "making good pasture." 



C. C'unning/ia/iiiana (River-Oak) occurs on the Nepean 

 River, and on Mount Hunter Rivulet some five miles out, 

 while it is a feature in the landscape on the banks of the 

 Nattai and Wollondilly, and during the droughts of a few 

 years ago was most extensively used as fodder for stock. 

 Unlike C. glaura, it never grows on salt-water streams, and 

 its presence is always an indication of good fresh water. In 

 tidal rivers, near the point where the fresh and salt waters 

 meet, the two species may grow within a few chains of each 



