18 MAGNOLIA Al'RICULATA. 



the friiit of tlio other species, hy a httlc inferiority of size, and by i jmall appen- 

 dage which terniiiiates the carj>els. Ivich carj)el cont-iiiis twr seeds, whicli, 

 when ripe, spring iVoni their ceils, and are snspended, for a time, by a white, 

 silky tliread. 



Varieties. A tree nearly allied to this species was discovered by John Bar- 

 tram, i!i the maritime parts of (ieors^ia. partictdarly on the banks of the Alia- 

 maha, and was snbse([nently found by Mr. John Le ('onte, in the western parts 

 of Carolina and tieoriria. It so closely resembles the Magnolia anricniata, except 

 m size, which is much less, that it is regarded by most botanists as only a vari- 

 ety. It is usually dt>scril)ed inider the name of M<tgnoliti pyrnnmln/n. The 

 tree, according to 13artram, grows straight and erect, thirty f(^et or more in 

 height, and of a sharp, conical form, much resembling the Magnolia acmninata 

 in tigure. It was first introduced into England in 1S18, by John Lyon, and the 

 original tree still exists in the nursery of Messrs. Loddigcs. It is extremely diffi- 

 cult to propagate, which is done by inarching on the Magnolia auriculata. 



Geograpliy (ind Hisfonj. The Magnolia auriculata, in its natural habitat, 

 appears to be chiefly confined to a particular part of the Alleghanies. According 

 to Michaux, it is nowhere found so abundant as on the steepest parts of the 

 lofty mountains of North Carolina, known by the name of the Great Father, and 

 Black Iron Mountains. It is sometimes fomid, however, on the steep banks of 

 the rivers whicli rise in the Alleghanies, and on one side, roll their Avaters into 

 the Atlantic, and on the other, to meet the Ohio. 



This tree was discovered by John Bartram, from whom it was first receivec 

 in England by Messrs. Loddiges, in 1786, and still exists in their nursery at 

 Hackney. It was, probably, soon afterwards sent to France; because we find 

 Madame Lemonnier, the widow of Michaux"s patron and friend, describing a tree 

 of this species, in her garden, in 1800, which was nine feet high, and had 

 already flowered. 



There is a Magnolia auriculata in the Bartram botanic garden, at Kingsessing, 

 on the Schuylkill, fifty feet in height, with a trunk four feet in circumference. 

 In the garden of Mr. D. Landreth, of Philadelphia, there is also another tree of this 

 species, twenty-five years planted, thirty feet in height, with a trunk a foot in 

 diameter. 



The largest Magnolia auriculata in England is at White Knight's, which has 

 been planted about forty years, and is more than thirty feet in height. There 

 are several in the gardens about Paris, and some at Sceaux, which have attained 

 a height of more than twenty feet. 



Soil and Situation. The soil of the Alpine regions, of which this species is a 

 native, is brown, deep, and of an excellent quality. The atmosphere in these 

 situations, is continually charged with moisture, from the number of torrents 

 which rush down from their summits. When cultivated, the soil should be free 

 and deep, and the situation low, sheltered, and moist, rather than dry. 



Propagation and Culture. As seeds are rather difficult to procure, the com- 

 mon mode of propagation is by layers, or by inarching on the Magnolia acumi- 

 nata, which requires two years before the plant can be separated from the parent 

 shoot. From the account given by Michaux, the Magnolia auriculata is found 

 to multiply so fast from seeds, that, in its native forests, a thousand plants might 

 be collected in a single day. Hence, the propagation of this species from seeds 

 would be far preferable to any other mode. In England, annual shoots of young 

 plants are from one to two feet or more, in length ; and the height which the tree 

 usually attains in ten years is from ten to fifteen feet. 



Properties and Uses. The wood of the Magnolia auriculata is soft, spongy, 

 and very light, and when dry, weighs only twenty-four pounds to a cubic foot. 

 The bark has an agreeable, aromatic odour, and an infusion of it in some spirit- 

 uous liquor, is employed as an excellent sudorific in rheumatic affections. 



