CHAP. XCVI. 



santal/ce^. ny'ss^. 



1319 



The leaves are 5 in. or Gin. long, oval, rarely denticulated, of a light green 

 above, and glaucous beneath. The flowers are similar to those of the large 

 tupelo (N. grandidentata), but the sexes are borne by separate trees; and 

 Michaux remarks, " as a peculiarity witnessed in no other tree of North 

 America, that the male and female trees are easily distinguished by their 

 general appearance when the leaves have fallen. The branches of the male 

 are more compressed about the trunk, and rise in a direction more nearly 

 perpendicular ; those of the female diffuse themselves horizontally, and 

 form a larger and rounder summit. The fruit is supported by long peduncles, 

 and is about Uin. in length, of a light red colour, and of an oval shape. 

 It is thick-skinned, intensely acid, and contains, like that of the lar^e 

 tupelo, a large oblong stone, deeply channeled on both sides." {Mic/u: 

 N. Amcr. SijL, iii. p. 43, 44.) This appears to be the kind of Njssa 

 mentioned in Martyn's Miller, as not then introduced, but which is said 

 to be described by Mr. Humphry Marshall, from Bartram's catalogue, " as 

 a tree of great singularity and beauty, rising to the height of 30 ft.; the 

 fruit of which is of a deep scarlet colour, and of the size of a damascene 

 plum. It has an agreeable acid taste, whence it is called the lime tree." 

 Professor Martyn adds that Bartram calls it Nyss« coccinea, and observes 

 that there is no tree which exhibits a more desirable appearance than this, 

 in the autumn, when the fruit is ripe, and the tree is partly divested of its 

 leaves; for then "the remainder looks as red as scarlet, and the fruit is of that 

 colour also." It is the shape of the olive, but larger, and contains an agreeable 

 acid juice. " The most northern habitation of this tree yet known," he adds 

 "is on the great Ogechee, where it is called the Ogechee lime, from its acid 

 fruit being about the size of limes, and being sometimes used in their 

 stead." There is a plant, bearing the name of N. capitata, in the arbo- 

 retum of Messrs. Loddiges, 6 ft. or 7 ft. high ; which, from its foliage, we 

 have no doubt, is indentical with Michaux's figure. 



5f 4. N. grandidenta'ta Michx. The deeply-toothed-Zrawrf Nyssa, or 

 Large Tupelo Tree 

 Identification. Michx. N. Amer. Syl., 3. p. +0. 



Synonymes. N. tomentbsa, and N. aiigulizans, Michx. Ft. Bor. Amer., 2. p. 259. ; N denticulata Ait 



Hort. Kew., 3. p. 44b"., WiUd. Sp. PI., 4. p. 1114. ; N. angulosa Poir. ; N. unifl6ra Wani^enk Amer ' 



p. 83. ; Wild Olive, Amcr. ; Virginian Water Tupelo, Mart. Mill. '' 



Engravings. Wangenh. Amer., t. 27. f.57.'; Catesb. Car., l.t. 60. : Michx. N. Amer. Svlva 3 t 119 • 



and omfigs. 1200, 1201. • * ' 



Spec. Ckar.,S(c. Leaf with a long petiole, and a disk that is oblong, acuminate, distantly serrate 

 Female flowers one upon a peduncle, {lynid. Sp. PI., iv. p. 1114.) The leaves are invariablvtoothpri 



with large pointed teeth. The bracteas are rather longer than the ovary. The lobes of the calyx 

 /\ 1:^00 are wedge-shaped. The drupe is oblong. (iV/«c//a«j;.) A deciduous 



M 



tree, a native of North America; which Michaux calls the most re 

 markable species of its genus for height and diameter • and which 

 was introduced into Britain in 1735. It grows chiefly 

 in the southern parts of the United States; and 

 Michaux observes that it is always found in company 

 with the long-leaved pine (Pinus paliistris) and the 

 cypress (Taxudium distichum). In South Carolina and 

 Georgia these trees are constantly found growing with 

 the over-cup oak (Uuercus lyrata), the water locust 

 (Gleditsch?fl monosp(5rma), the cotton wood (P6- 

 IKilus canadensis), the Carolinian poi)lar (P6pulus 

 angulata), and the water bitter-nut hickory {Ck. 

 rya aquAtica) ; intermixed with which they compose 

 the dark impenetrable forests which cover the miry 

 swamps on the borders of the rivers, to the distance 

 of 100 to 200 miles from the ocean. The presence of 

 these trees is considered an infallible proof of the depth 

 and fertility of the soil, and, consequently, of its fitness 

 for the culture of vine. " The rivers, at their annual overflowing, sometimes cover these marshes 

 to the height of 5 ft. or 6(1., as is shown by the marks left upon the trees by the retiring 

 waters. Vegetation seems only to acquire new energy from these inundations, and the large 

 tupelo sometimes attains the height of 70 ft. or 80 ft., with a diameter of 15 in or 20 in imme- 

 diately above its conical base, and 6ft. or 7 ft. from the ground. This size continues uniform to 

 the height of 25 ft. or .30 ft. At the surface the trunk is 8 ft. or 9 ft. thick. {Michx. N. Amer. 

 Syl., ill. p. 41.) The leaves of the large tupelo are commonly 5 in. or 6 in. long, and 2 in. or 3 in. 

 broad; but on young and thriving plants they are of twice these dimensions. They are of an oval 

 shape, and are garnished with two or three large teeth, which are irregularly placed, and generally 

 only on one side of the leaf. When the leaves unfold in si-ring, they are downy ; but they become 

 smooth on both sides as they expand. The flowers are numerous though single, and are succeeded 

 oy fruit of considerable size, and of a deep blue colour, o( which the stone is depressed, and very 



1201 



