1712 



ARUORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. 



I'AIIT III. 



ncarl}' a uniform (liainctcT, straight, and lU'sfitiitc 



of bniiidics for .'JOft. or 40 ft. It is partiLularly 



rtMnarkal)U' for the colour and arran^'t inent of its 



epidermis, wlucli is of a l)rilliant <,'<)lilen yellow, 



and frciiuently divides itself into very fine strips, 



rolled backwards at the cnils, and attacluil in the 



middle. The young shoots and leaves, at their un- 



foUling, arc downy. Towards the end of sununcr, 



when fully expanded, the leaves are perfectly smooth, 



except tiic petiole, w hich remains covered with fine 



short hairs. The leaves are about :ih in- long, ""d 



2.| in. broad ; oval, acuminate, and bordered with 



sharp irregular teeth. The leaves, the bark, and the 



young shoots, have all an agreeable taste and smell, 



similar to those of the i)lack birch (B. lenta), 



though they lose it in drying. In its fructification, 



this species nearly resembles //. lenta. Tiie female 



catkins are borne on short peduncles, and are twelve 



or fifteen lines long, and 5 or G lines in diameter ; 



straight, of an oval sha[)e, and nearly cylindrical. 



The scales which compose them are trifid, pointed, and about 3 lines in 



length ; viewed through a lens, they arc seen to be downy. Beneath these 



scales arc the small-winged seeds, which are ripe, in America, about the 1st 



of October, (X. Anicr. Sijl., ii. p. I0+.) It abounds in the forests of Nova 



Scotia, of New Brunswick, antl of the district 



of Maine. In New Jersey and Pennsylvania, 



it is rare, and only met with in moist and 



shady situations. It is confounded by the 



iniiabitants of these countries with B. lenta, 



which is very abundant there, and to wliich 



it bears a striking resemblance. In the dis- 

 trict of Maine, it is always found in cool and 



rich soils, among ash trees, the hendock 



spruce, and the btack spruce. It attains the 



height of GO ft. or 70 ft., with a trunk of 



more than 2 ft. in diameter. It requires 



a moister soil than most of the other Ame- 

 rican birches. " The wood of the yellow 



birch is inferior in quality and appearance 

 to that of li. lenta, and never assumes so 

 deep a shade ; but it is strong, and, w hen 

 well polished, makes handsome furniture. 

 In Nova Scotia, and in the district of Maine, 

 it is found by experience, to be every way 

 proper for that |)art t)f the framework of 

 vessels which always remains in the water. 

 In the district of Maine, it is preferred for the yokes of cattle, and for the frames 

 of sledges ; and, in Nova Scotia, the young saplings arc almost exclusively em- 

 ployed for making the hoops of casks." (N. Aincr. Syh, vol.ii. p. 105.) The %yood 

 IS excellent for fuel, and the bark is highly esteemed by tanners. Boards of this 

 tree were formerly imported into Ireland and Scotland in large quantities, and 

 were nmch used in joinery. Michaux considers it better adapted to the soil 

 and climate ot Germany than to those of France, on account of the moisture 

 w Inch it requires. Though tiiis species has been in British gardens since 17G7, 

 w hen it was introduced by Mr. (iordon o^ the Mile End Nursery, yet it is 

 not common in collections. There are plants in the arl)oretum of Messrs. 

 Loddiges, but they are small ; and to us they apjiear to bear a close resem- 

 blance in their leaves to li. lenta. Willdenow mentions that there are no 

 large trees of this kind about Berlin. Plants, in the London nurseries, are 



