ABIES. 



Alps of Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Siberia, &c. (The common 

 Larch.) 



The Larch is a tree of straight and lofty growth, as well as large 

 bulk, with wide-spreading branches, whose extremities droop in the 

 most graceful manner. In a wild state its form is less regular, but 

 more picturesque. The buds are alternate, perennial, cup-shaped, 

 scaly, each producing annually a pencil-like tuft of very numerous, 

 spreading, linear, bluntish, entire, smooth, tender, bright-green, deci- 

 duous leaves, about an inch long. Involucrating leaves to each flower 

 numerous, recurved, obtuse, with 5 fringe-like teeth, chaffy, red-brown, 

 deciduous. Male flowers yellow, drooping, about \ an inch long. Axis 

 much shorter than the involucre ; anthers crowded, deflexed, inflated, 

 and 2-lobed in front, with a short recurved point. Female catkins 

 erect, larger than the male flowers, beautifully variegated with green 

 and pink ; carpellary scales orbicular ; bracts much larger, fiddle-shaped, 

 reflexed, with a prominent, awl-shaped green point. This last becomes 

 erect, and somewhat enlarged, projecting always beyond the orbicular 

 carpel, which dilates greatly, hardens, and becomes the seed-bearing 

 scale of the cone. The cones are erect, rather above an inch long, 

 ovate ; purple when young ; reddish-brown when ripe, light, not pon- 

 derous, their scales spreading, orbicular, slightly reflexed, and jagged, 

 or cracked, at the margin. Wing of each seed half-ovate. Smith. — 

 Venice turpentine is obtained from the trunk. A saccharine matter 

 called Manna of Briancon exudes from the branches, and when the 

 larch forests in Russia take fire a gum issues from the trees during 

 their combustion, which is termed gummi Orenbergense ; and which is 

 wholly soluble in water like Gum Arabic. 



CALLITRIS. 



Flowers monoecious on different branches. $ . Catkins ter- 

 minal, oval. Stamens numerous, naked, inserted on the axis ; 

 filaments eccentrically peltate, loosely imbricated ; anther-cells 

 2-5, longitudinally 2-valved, inserted in the 6talk below the 

 pelta. 5 . Receptacle [terminal, very short. Scales 4-6, sur- 

 rounding the receptacle, opposite in two rows or ternate in 

 whorls, the pairs or whorls different from each other in form and 

 in the number of the ovules. Ovules 3-9 at the base of each 

 scale, sessile, erect, with their points open. Cone formed of the 

 scales become woody and mucronate under the point, closely 

 converging, but in time opening into 4-6 valves. Seeds winged 

 on each side. — Cypress-like trees. 



1177. C. quadrivalvis Vent. Rich. mem. conif. 46. Loudon 

 Arb. etfrut. 2462. — Thuja articulata Desf. ad. iii. 353. t. 252. 

 Bot. Cab. t. 844. — Upper part of the province of Temsme,, in 

 the kingdom of Morocco. Schousboe. (Arar tree.) 



A tree of enormous size (Schousboe). Branches when young 

 jointed, furrowed, very brittle, leafless ; with whorls of ovate mucronate 

 short scales at the joints. Fruit the size of a large pea, deep purple, 

 glaucous, 4-cornered, with the angles rounded, the sides hollowed out, 

 and a small projecting point near the apex of each hollow ; when ripe 

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