TILIA TORREYA 597 



oblique, sometimes slightly heart-shaped base, apex slender-pointed; margins 

 distantly and minutely toothed towards the point, but quite entire at the 

 lower half; upper surface nearly smooth, lower one covered with a close 

 grey felt, and with small tufts in the vein-axils; stalks slender, downy, i to 

 2\ ins. long; floral bract 3 to 5 ins. long, | to f in. wide, stellately downy. 



Native of W. China; discovered by Henry in 1888. The specific term 

 " Tuan " is the native Chinese name for all limes. Henry observes that the 

 bark of this species is much used for making shoes. 



T. VULGARIS, Hayne. COMMON LlME. 



(T. intermedia, De Candolle ; T. europaea, Linnceus (in part).) 



A tree reaching well over 100 ft., sometimes 130 ft. high; young branches 

 smooth. Leaves i\ to 4 ins. long, nearly as wide; obliquely heart-shaped 

 at the base, with a short, tapered apex, sharply toothed, dark green and 

 smooth above, pale green beneath, with tufts of hairs in the main axils; stalk 

 slender, i to 2 ins. long, smooth. Flowers yellowish white, produced in 

 pendent, slender-stalked cymes, 3 or 4 ins. long, during early July. Floral 

 bracts 3 to 4^ ins. long, \ to in. wide; slightly downy on the midrib at the 

 back. Fruit roundish oval, the shell thick and tough with ribs only faintly 

 showing. 



This tree is of uncertain origin, but is now generally believed to be a 

 hybrid between T. cordata and T. platyphyllos. It is the common lime* of 

 the British Isles, and one of the most popular of all trees for avenues, 

 streets, 'gardens, and parks. It has the defect of dropping its leaves early, 

 especially in dry summers, and is very subject to the attacks of aphides, 

 whose excrement turns black on the leaves and renders them very unsightly 

 in late summer. With better limes available, it is, I think, planted much 

 more abundantly in these days than its merits justify. Rarely producing 

 fertile seed, it is propagated by layering from stools, and owing possibly to 

 this process, now centuries old, it often has an objectionable propensity to 

 form huge burrs on the trunk, that sprout into dense thickets of succulent 

 shoots, which if not removed ultimately completely hide the trunk. 



The common lime reaches to great age, and has the faculty of keeping 

 alive for many years after the centre of the trunk has decayed. In con- 

 sequence, many famous and historical trees and avenues exist, especially in 

 cathedral towns and university cities. So far as I have seen, most of the 

 large limes of Central Europe are T. cordata. 



Several gall-producing insects infest the leaves, the commonest being one 

 which produces the curious "nail-gall," a conical, pointed growth on the 

 surface of the leaf, j to ^ in. long. None of these pests appear to do much 

 permanent damage. 



The timber of the lime is useful for indoor purposes, being white and soft; 

 it is used in pianoforte manufacture. The inner bark is very tough, and 

 furnishes the material out of which the well-known "bast" mats are made. 



TORREYA. TAXACE.E. 



A group of four species of evergreen trees, named in honour of 

 DP John Tcrrey, a famous American botanist. They are closely allied 

 to Cephalotaxus (g.v.) and Taxus, and have opposite branchlets and 

 linear, firm, sharp-pointed leaves terminated by a fine hard point, and 

 arranged in opposite spreading ranks. Flowers unisexual, the sexes 



