CHRISTMAS TREES 331 



(Juniperus communis), the gMevrier of the French, grows 

 abundantly on the chalk downs of the South of England, 

 where it appears as a small bush, not exceeding 5 feet in 

 height, but in favourable conditions reaches a height of 

 20 feet. The cones of the juniper are numerous, and 

 each consists of only three ovuliferous scales, and is only 

 one-fifth of an inch in diameter when ripe, and of a 

 blackish violet colour. 



At the close of this compressed survey of the order 

 Coniferae, let me put the chief forms and groups at which 

 we have looked in a tabular form, thus : 



Order CONIFERAE : 



Family i.— ABIETIN^. 

 Section A.— Sapine^ (Spruces and Silver Firs). 



Genus i. — Picea. 2. Tsuga. 3. Pseudotsuga. 4. Abies. 

 Section B. — Larice-^; (Larches and Cedars). 



Genus i. — Larix. 2. Cedrus. 

 Section C. — Pine^. 



Genus unic. — Pinus. 



Family 2.— ARAUCARIAN^. 



Genus i. — Araucaria. 2. Agathis. 2. Cunninghamia. 



Family 3.— TAXODIN^. 



Genus I. — Sequoia. 2 Taxodium. 3. Sciadopitys, etc. 



Family 4.— CUPRESSIN^. 



Genus i — Cupressus. 2. Thuya. 3. Juniperus, etc. 



