CHAP. CXIII. 



CONI FERiE. PI NUS. 



2253 



surface of the scales 

 very prominent, irregu- 

 larly four-sided, and 

 recurved. Seed oval- 

 ovate, somewhat point- 

 ed below, light-colour- 

 ed, with a broad wing, 

 also light-coloured, and 

 nearly three times the 

 length of the seed. P. 

 longifolia is a native of 

 Nepal, on the moun- 

 tains ; and also of the 

 lower and warmer parts 

 of India, where the tree 

 is cultivated on account 

 of its beautiful foliage 

 and graceful habit of 

 growth, but where it 

 never attains the same 

 magnitude as on the 

 Himalayan Mountains. 

 It was introduced into 

 Britain in 1801, and for 

 a long time was treated 

 as a green-house plant : 

 it is now found to stand 

 the open air, but not 

 without protection dur- 

 ing winter. The largest 

 tree in England is be- 

 lieved to be that at 

 Dropmore, of which ^g. 

 2132. is a portrait, to 

 a scale of 1 in. to 8 ft. 

 It was, in 1837, nearly [ 

 12 ft. high; but it 

 covered every winter with a portable roof of fern, enclosed in mats, and sup- 

 ported by a wooden frame ; the sides being closed in with the same materials, 



but with two doors oppo- 

 site each other, to open 

 on fine days, to promote 

 ventilation. Mr. Lawson 



2132 



suggests that the tender- 

 ness which is apparent in 

 some individuals of this 



