CANADIAN GYMNOCLADUS. 219 



bowed px)ds, from five to ten inches in length, and abont two inches in breadth, 

 is of a re"ddish-brown colour, of a pulpy consistency within, and contains several 

 large, gray seeds, of extreme hardness, that come to maturity in September or 

 October. 



Geography and Histoi^y. The Gymnocladns canadensis is sparingly found in 

 Upper Canada, and along the borders of Lake Erie and Ontario, in tiie state of 

 New York ; but in Kentucky and Tennessee, it aboimds on tracts which border 

 the Ohio and Illinois rivers, and is associated with the Juglans nigra, Ulmus 

 rubra, Liriodendron tulipifera, Fraxinus amcricana quadrangulata, Gleditschia 

 triacanthos, and more especially with the Celtis occidentalis. 



This tree was introduced into Britain in 1748, and was cultivated by Archi- 

 bald, Duke of Argyll, at Whitton, where the original tree is said still to exist. 

 Soon after its introduction into England, it found its way into most of the collec- 

 tions of France, southern Germany, and of Italy. 



The largest tree of this species in Britain, is at Croome, in Worcestershire, 

 which attained a height of sixty feet in forty years after planting, with a trunk 

 eighteen inches in diameter, and an ambitus of thirty feet. 



In France, at Paris, in the Jardin des Plantes, there is a gymnocladns which 

 attained the height of fifty-five feet in sixty years after planting, with a tnink 

 twenty inches in diameter, and an ambitus of forty feet. At Colombier, near 

 Mentz, there is another tree sixty-five feet in height. 



In Prussia, at Sans Souci, in Berlin, there is a tree of this species which 

 attained the height of thirty feet in thirty years after planting. 



In Austria, at Vienna, there is also a tree which attained the height of thirty 

 feet in thirteen years after planting. 



In the Bartram botanic garden, at Kingsessing, near Philadelphia, there is a 

 Gymnocladus eighty feet in height, with a trunk five feet in circumference. 



In Washington square, Philadelphia, there is a tree of this species about thirty 

 years of age, fifty feet in height, with a trunk five feet and four inches in cir- 

 cumference, at a yard above the ground, and a head about fifty feet in diameter. 

 There are also fine specimens of this tree in the garden of Mr. D. Landreth, of 

 Philadelphia, and on the estate of Mr. A. J. Downing, of Ne wburgh, on the Hudson. 



Soil, Situation, Propagation, <^'c. The Gymnocladus canadensis, in its natural 

 habitat, invariably grows in the very richest of soils, and thrives best in shel- 

 tered situations. The tree is generally propagated by seeds, which should be 

 sown in March or April, and treated in the same manner as recommended in 

 the common locust. It may also be propagated from cuttings of the roots, care 

 being taken in planting, to keep the ends in the position in which they naturally 

 grow. 



Properties and Uses. The wood of the Gymnocladus canadensis is of a rosy 

 hue, and is very hard, compact, tough, and strong, which render it very suitable 

 for cabinet-making, and for building. Like the common locust, it has the valua- 

 ble property of rapidly converting the alburnum into heart- wood, so that a trunk 

 six inches in diameter, has only about half of an inch of sap-wood, and may be 

 employed almost entirely for useful purposes. The live bark is extremely bitter; 

 so iliat a morsel no larger than a grain of maize, chewed for some time, causes a 

 violent irritation in the throat. The pods, preserved like those of the tamarind, are 

 said to be wholesome, and slightly aperient. The seeds wore employed by the early 

 settlers of Kentucky and Tennessee, as a substitute for cotlee, but their use was 

 discontinued, as soon as the Arabian coffee could be obtained. In Europe, the 

 only use to which this tree is applied is for the purposes of ornament and shade. 

 Being very hardy, and remarkable for the beauty of its foliage during summer, 

 it is highly appreciated both in Europe and its native country. 



