48 



TIMA AMERICANA. 



at llio oxtrcmitit'S. The s(']);ils ;iro 1riaiiLnilar-laiirc<)l;it\ pnhesrent oulsido, and 

 woolly witliin. 'J'lie ]K'tals arc longer than the sc])als5, and arc of a ycilowisli- 

 whitc. The staminodia arc obovate-lanccolate, exactly like the petals, bnt 

 smaller. The style is sometimes longer, and at others shorter than the petals, 

 and hairy towards the base. The frnit, which ripens in Scpt(MnI)cr and October, 

 is about the size of a pea, nearly round, and covered with a short, gray pubes- 

 cence, usually perfecting but one seed. 



Varieties. The other American limes we regard as nothing more than varie- 

 ties of this species, and they may be described as follows: 



1. T. A. LAxifLonA, Loudon. Luusc-cj/i/icd-Jloifxrcd Americaii Lime-tree. 

 The petals of this variety have each a scale at the base, inside ; the leaves are 

 cordate, gradually acuminated, serrated, membranaceous, and smooth; the 

 cymes are loose ; the petals emarginatc, and shorter than the styles : and the 

 fruit is nearly round. The tree is usually forty or fifty feet in height, and pro- 

 duces yellowish-white, sweet-scented flowers, from May to July. This variety 

 greatly resembles the Tilia americana, and is essentially the same, except in size. 



2. T. A. puBEscENs, LoudoH. Pubcscoit-lcaved American Lime-tree. This 

 variety is of much less vigorous growth than 

 the preceding, and seldom exceeds forty feet in 

 height. The colour of the bark is dark, and 

 the branches are slender. The leaves are 

 smaller, and differ widely in size, according to 

 the exposure in which they grow. In dry and 

 open places, they are only two inches in diam- 

 eter : but in cool and shady situations, they 

 are twice the size. They are truncate at the 

 base, somewhat cordate, and oblique, denticu- 

 lately serrated, and pubescent beneath ; they 

 are most pubescent soon after their first expan- 

 sion, but as they increase in size, a part of the 

 down falls off, and the hairs which remain 

 form little starry tufts. The flowers, which 

 resemble those of the Tilia americana, appear 

 in May and June, and vary in size with the 

 leaves ; they are more numerous, and form 

 larger branches ; the petals have each a scale 

 at the base, inside, as in the other varieties ; they are emarginate, and shorter 

 than the style. The fruit is globose and downy. 



3. T. A. PUBESCENS LEPTOPHYLLA, Loudou. Thiu-leaved Pitbescejit American 

 Lime-tree^ in the United States ; Tilleul de la Lonisiane, in France. Thiw vari- 

 ety is represented as having very thin leaves, with but few serratures. It is 

 said to closely resemble the T, a. pubescens, and is doubtless a sub-variety of 

 that race, as it is only found associated with it. 



4. T. A. ALBA (T. alba, Mich.) White-leaved Lime-tree, White Lime, War- 

 hew, in the United States ; Tilleul blanc de f Amerique, Tilleul de Virg-inie, in 

 France. This tree usually grows to a height of forty or fifty feet, with a diameter 

 of twelve to eighteen inches. On the banks of the Ohio, however, it often rises 

 to an elevation of sixty or eighty feet, although, in France, according to the "Nou- 

 veau I)u Hamel," it attained the height of twenty feet in seventy years. The 

 young branches are covered with a smooth, silver-gray bark, with a rough surface, 

 and may readily be distinguished in winter by their thickness and the large size 

 of their buds. The leaves are larger than those of any other variety, either Eu- 

 ropean or American, being often six or seven inches long, and from three to five 

 inches broad. They arc obliquely heart-shaped, and pointed like those of all 



