381 
F. antarctica is a deciduous-leaved species which "rows inter- 
mingled with F. h>-hihti>lflx in tin- forests of Tierra do? Knee,, ;. n ,| 
extends far to the north into Chili. It is exceedingly nnv' in 
cultivation. Its foliage is variable in character, especially in the 
marginal cutting of the leaf-blade. In the var. hirrnntUt of 
De Candolle the leaves are mostly bicrenate, but in the var 
H/t'f/itWsft, now introduced by Mr. EIwcs, thc\ :irc inultiereinio' 
Mr. Elwes has kindly supplh-d die following 'remarks ahoui the' 
latter :— " Fagus antarcliai var. >iii'qin»s>i is a smaller tree than 
F. Dombeyi, and is called 'Mere' in Chili. It occurs at higher 
elevations and forms a dense scrub on the Argentine side of die 
frontier, extending near the Baths of Chilian up to 7.0(H) ft., or 
more. On the mountains around Lake Nahnel-huapi it covers the 
summits up to 5,000-0,000 ft., and when I passed at the end of 
February the leaves had turned a brilliant red. It is all'ected by 
the same parasite that grows on /•'. Domhnii, nanielv, Mii<»h<n>]ro'n 
tiiwtrifulinm. The seeds which I brought horn.- ram.-' from Lake 
Meliquina. At the Baths of Chilian I also found the bicrenate 
variety of this tree." 
On the young trees at Kew raised from Mr. Ehves' seeds the 
leaves are }, to ]]■ ins. Ion--, cordate with an oblique base, irregularly 
and minutely crenate, and with the petioles so short that the basal 
lobes of the leaf often project beyond the stem. The slender 
unbranched shoots (this year 3 ft. long) clothed with these small, 
regularly alternate, closely set leaves, give to the trees a most 
distinct appearance. 
F. obliqua. — Although this species is said to have been intro- 
duced previously, we are not aware of any trees growing in this 
country other than those raised in li»(>'2 fr >;n Mr. Klwes' seeds. 
The largest of the trees at Kew are now 9 ft. high and the 
growths of the past summer 21 to .'! fr. long. Provided it proves 
hardy, it will evidently be a rapid-growing tree. Writing of this 
species Mr. Elwes says : — " This fine tree seemed to be confined 
to the lower levels in the territory south of the Bio-bio River, 
where it forms a large part of the forest and is cut for timber 
which is largely exported from Valdivia and Concepeion under 
the name of ' Roble.' Some of this timber has been shipped to 
England by Herr von Voden, a merchant of Temuco, and has 
been tried for sleepers by the Great Western Railway Company, 
whose engineer at Swindon was good enough to send me a sample 
i hard, heavy wood of reddish-brown colour and 
diich would be suitable, when properly seasoned, 
; 
"The forests are being rapidly destroyed by axe and fire and 
large crops of wheat being grown on the ground among the 
" I collected seed of this tree at 
of a beautiful parasite, My:<nL)idi'»n purxi'ifinn, i-a 
The leaves of F. obliqwt arc deciduous and. on de 
at Kew, are oblong-ovate. doubly crenate. ■_• to .■> nis. long, 
green above, paler and rather glaucous beneath. 
