BOTANICAL GAZETTE. j 



slenderly acuminate and inodorous leaves (those of bignciiioides have a 

 disagreeable, almost fetid odor when touched), marked with siruilar 

 glands in the axils of the principal veins of the under sidpj.by its 

 much less crowded panicle and by its much larger flower, fruit and 

 seed The flowers I found 2 inches in the vertical and a little more 

 in the transverse diameter; in the other they have \-/i inches in each 

 diameter; the lower lobe is deeply notched or bilobed in speciosa, en- 

 tire in bignouioidcs ; the tube in the former is conical and 10 lines, in 

 the latter campanulate and about 7 lines long, in the first slightly ob 

 lique, in the other very niLich so, the upper part being a great deal 

 shorter than the lower one, so that the anthers and stigma * become 

 uncovered; the markings in the flower of the old species are much 

 more crowded and conspicuous, so as to give the whole flower a dingy 

 appearance, while ours looks almost white. The upper lip of the 

 corolla before expansion extends beyond the other lobes and covers 

 theui like a hood in the Western siecies, while m the Eastern it is 

 much shorter than the others and covers tbem only very partially. The 

 pods of our species are 8-20 inches long, 17-20 lines in circumfer- 

 ence, dark brown and strongly grooved, when dry, the placental dis- 

 sepiment very thici<; in the Eastern species the pod is nearly the same 

 length, hui only 9-12 lines in circumference, its grooves very slight, 

 its color pale and dissepiment flat. In both species the pod is per- 

 fectly terete before the valves separate, after that the valves of ours 

 remain more or less semiterelc. while the much thinner ones of the 

 other flatten out, so that thev seem to indicate a compressed pod. The 

 elongated seeds winged at both ends, are of about equal length in 

 both species, but in speciosa they are much wider (3/^-4 times) and 

 the wings have more or less rounded ends which terminate in a broad 

 band iif rather short hair; in bignonioidcs the seeds are only 2^-3 

 lines wide, with pointed wings and their tips terminating in a long, 

 pencil shaped tuft of hair. 



Our tree is larger, of slraighter growth and being a native of a more 

 Northern hlitude is hardier than the Southeastern species; the wood 

 of both is extremely durable, perhaps as much so as that of our red 

 cf-dar, and has the advantage over it of a much more rapid growth 

 and of possessing only a very thin layer (2 or 3 annual rings) of des- 

 tructible sap wood. But of these qualities and of its adaptability to 

 many important uses others, and especially Mr. Barney in a recent 

 ])amphlet, have given a full account It is already extensively planted 

 in our Western prairie States and especially along railroads, for which 

 it is expected to furnish the much needed timber in a comparatively 

 short time. — G. Engelmann, .S7. Louis, January 7, 1S80. 



I ■ vNESSEE Plants. — Along with specimens we receive from time 

 to i! valuable notes from our esteemed correspondent. Dr. Gottin- 



*I may liere remark that Cottoipa, probably like all its aUies, is proteraiidrous. the 

 anthers open in the morning and the lobi-s of the stijj-ma se|)arates ami become jrlnt'ti- 

 ous toward evening, the iii)pef lobe reninining erect. Ilie lower turning down close upon 

 the style. I have not ascertained how they are impr(vgnated as at that time the anthers 

 are effete, and by the following morning the lobes of the stigma are again closed. 



