CHAP. CXIII. CONI'FERiE. ^BlE'TINiE. 2107 



taken by its branches in every stage of its growth ; and the branches of 

 ^^bies canadensis are equally remarkable for their slendcrness, and drooping 

 character. 



The roots of the /Ibietinae differ from those of almost all other trees, in not 

 descending perpendicularly,* but, both in young and old trees, spreading 

 along the surface of the ground; and, very generally, after the trees have 

 attained some age, svveUing and appearing above it. They are numerous, and 

 of less thickness in proportion to that of the trunk, than in the case of any 

 other trees, except the palms ; but, being near the surface, and often partially 

 above it, they are of a more tough and woody nature, and are, consequently, 

 better able to resist the action of the wind on the head of the tree, than in 

 the case of trees the roots of which run deep under ground, and which are 

 consequently much less tough and woody. The vitality of the roots of some 

 species is most extraordinary; stumps of the silver fir(Picea pectinata) having 

 been found in a growing state, but without leaves, after the trunk had been 

 cut down for upwards of 40 years. The roots of none of the species throw 

 up suckers; nor, when the stems are cut down, do shoots spring from the 

 collar. In some species, as in P. TaeMa and its varieties, numerous abortive 

 shoots, or tufts of leaves, are produced from the old trunk ; and some of the 

 Asiatic and Mexican species also indicate this tendency, though in a much 

 slighter degree. 



The trunk, in all the species, grows erect and straight ; in some, as in the 

 Picea pectinata of Europe, it attains the height of 130 ft. or upwards, with a 

 diameter of from 4 ft. to 8 ft. ; and, in the Picea grandis of America, it is 

 said to attain the height of 200 ft. The stem is almost always beautifully 

 and regularly tapered, and without ihose large protuberances common in 

 trees which have their branches of equal durability to the trunk itself, and of 

 like capacity for attaining as large a size. Where the ^bietinre have been 

 grown close together, the trunks are almost always straight, and frequently 

 without a single branch to the height of 80ft. or 100ft.; the side branches, 

 in such cases, prematurely decaying, from the absence of light and air. Trunks 

 of this kind are common in the spruce fir plantations of Sweden and Norway ; 

 and they constitute the fir poles of commerce, so much used throughout 

 Europe as masts for small craft, and as supports for scaffolding. Trunks of 

 the same character are also found in the pine forests of the north of Europe 

 and of North America : and from them are made the masts of the largest 

 American ships ; and the beams, rafters, joists, and boards, used in civil 

 architecture, and particularly in the construction of houses in the temperate 

 climates of both hemispheres. 



The branches, in the greater number of the species, are verticillate, hori- 

 zontal in their direction, uniform in their size and shape, and, with the 

 smaller shoots, especially in old trees, generally pendent. In all, the main 

 shoot of the branch is slender, and never attains a great thickness. In 

 some genera (as in Picea) the branches are frondose, and quite flat ; having 

 a slender main shoot, regularly furnished with smaller side shoots; which are 

 again subdivided into numerous twigs, or spray; and the surface of the 

 whole is flat, like that of the leaf of a fern. In yi'bies and Larix, the side 

 branchlets, which proceed from the main shoot of the branch, are for the most 

 part pendent. In Cedrus, the branches are more woody than in the case of any 

 other genus ; and in Pinus least frond-like. As the tree advances in growth, 

 the branches die off, beginning from below ; more especially where several 

 trees have been associated together. There are, however, exceptions in the 

 case of single trees in favourable situations, when the branches assume a 

 woody and "permanent character; and this is very frequently exemplified in 

 single" trees of the cedar, the silver fir, and the Scotch pine, which have 

 had their trunks broken over at a certain stage of their growth. Indeed, 

 pinching out the leading shoot of any species for two or three years in suc- 

 cession, when the tree is young, will generally cause it to produce, instead 

 of a single trunk, a number of trunk-like branches, which form a bushy tree. 



