378 B I G N 



by fermentation yields a sort of wine called birch- 

 wine or mead. The tops and twigs of the birch are 

 commonly used for brooms. Betula pcndula, or the 

 weeping birch, by some considered as a variety of 

 the common birch, is the most graceful of the genus, 

 and is easily recognised by its elegant drooping 

 branches. Betula nana, or dwarf birch, is another 

 European species found in northern climates, arid 

 approaching, in Norway and Lapland, very near the 

 limits of perpetual snow. It is a small diminutive 

 shrub, and is found on the Scottish mountains in con- 

 siderable abundance. In summer, when the Lap- 

 lander lives on the mountains, this plant furnishes his 

 fuel, and, when covered with rein-deer skin, forms his 

 bed. Its leaves dye a finer yellow than the common 

 birch. Several species of birch are found in North 

 America ; of these the most important is the Betula 

 nigra, or black birch, which furnishes a very hard and 

 valuable wood. This wood when recently cut, has a 

 rosy hue, which deepens by exposure to light. It 

 receives a fine polish, and may be made to assume 

 the appearance of mahogany : hence the tree is 

 often called mountain mahogany. The twigs of the 

 black birch, when bruised, give out a sweet scent. 

 Betula papyracea is another useful North American 

 species. From the wood of this species many articles 

 of furniture are made, and its bark, which is white 

 and indestructible, is used for the formation of canoes. 

 On this account the tree is denominated the canoe 

 birch. The name papyracea, or paper birch, is 

 derived from the circumstance that the bark, when 

 divided into thin sheets, is used as a substitute for 

 paper. The red and yellow birch, two other Ame- 

 rican species, are not put to any particular use. 



Another genus of this order is Alnus, or the alder. 

 The alders in general grow in marshy, boggy situa- 

 tions by the sides of rivers, requiring black mould 

 with plenty of moisture. They are often planted in 

 places which cannot be drained. They are propa- 

 gated by layers. 



Alnus glutinosa, or common alder, is a quick grow- 

 ing tree found in swamps and meadows in Europe, 

 North America and the northern parts of Asia. It 

 attains a height of fifty feet, and furnishes a compact 

 wood capable of receiving a considerable polish. In 

 France, wooden shoes, or sabots, are made from it, 

 which are seasoned by fire before they are sold. 

 From being able to resist the action of water, the 

 wood is employed in the formation of durable water 

 pipes, and in Holland it is used for piles, upon which 

 buildings are erected in marshy places. It is said 

 that piles of this nature were driven in under the 

 old London bridge. The wood takes a black colour 

 well, and can be made to resemble ebony. With 

 green vitriol, it dyes wool of a black colour. It yields 

 excellent charcoal, which is employed in making 

 gunpowder. The juice of the alder is astringent, and 

 the bark is used for tanning, and for detergent 

 gargles. 



Alnus incana, hoary alder, grows in several parts 

 of Europe, and has received the name of cold alder, 

 from not being found south of latitude sixty de- 

 grees. Alnus senulata, notch-leaved alder, and Alnus 

 glauca, are two species found abundantly in North 

 America. 



Carpinus betulns, hornbeam, a tree of humble 

 growth, and useful in the formation of hedges for 

 shelter, belongs to the betulineae. It is found in 

 woods and hedges in England, growing in damp, 



ON I A. 



tenacious, meagre soil. It forms the principal part of 

 the ancient forests on the north and east of London, 

 such as Epping and Finchley. Its wood is hard and 

 used for furniture, and its inner bark yields a yellow 

 dye. Ostrya, another genus of the order, receives 

 the name of hop-hornbeam, from its scaly catkins being 

 similar to the hop. Ostrya Virginica is a small tree 

 found in the shady woods of America. It supplies 

 a hard heavy wood, called iron-wood or lever-wood. 



Corylus is the fifth genus of this order. Corylus 

 avellana, or hazel-nut tree, must be familiar to all, as 

 furnishing the fruit commonly known by the narno 

 of filberts. This tree flowers early in spring, and 

 its leaves do not appear till after the blossoms. Its 

 wood is used for hoops, fishing-rods, walking-sticks, 

 &c., and furnishes excellent charcoal for drawing. 

 Squirrels live on the nuts, and an oil is prepared 

 from them which is used by painters, and which is 

 said to be efficacious against tooth-ach or worms. 

 Corylm Americana, American hazel, yields also excel- 

 lent nuts. 



We have thus seen that the trees of this impor- 

 tant order, are applied to many of the necessities of 

 life. The wood of several of them is used for the 

 construction of houses and vessels, in the works of 

 the wheelwright, turner, and cabinet-maker, and as 

 an article of fuel ; the bark is manufactured into 

 canoes and boxes, serves for the covering of houses, 

 and supplies materials for dyeing and tanning; medi- 

 cinal preparations, useful in various diseases, are 

 obtained from several species ; from some a nutritious 

 article of diet is procured, while from others a sap 

 exudes which constitutes a grateful and refreshing 

 beverage. 



BIGNONIACEjE (the trumpet-flower family). 

 A natural order of dicotyledonous plants, containing 

 about a dozen genera, and nearly one hundred species. 

 The order is very closely allied to the Pedalineae 

 and Cyrtandraete, and bears a considerable affinity to 

 the Scrophularinae and Acanthaceae. Its essential 

 characters are : calyx monophyllous, divided or 

 entire, sometimes in the form of a sheath ; corolla 

 monopetalous, hypogynous, frequently irregular ; 

 stamens five ; anthers two-celled ; ovary surrounded 

 with a glandular disk, generally two-celled, and many- 

 seeded ; one style ; stigma formed of two plates ; 

 capsule superior, two-celled and t\vo-valved ; seeds 

 compressed, often winged, not provided with albumen. 



The plants included in this order are trees or 

 shrubs, frequently twining or climbing, and inhabit- 

 ing the tropical regions of both hemispheres. Virginia 

 and Japan are said to be the farthest points to which 

 they recede from the equator, and none of the species 

 are found in Europe. They are much cultivated and 

 prized on account of their beautiful trumpet-shaped 

 flowers, and their broad pinnated leaves. They are 

 propagated by cuttings or layers, sometimes by seeds. 

 Their properties are scarcely known. The wood of 

 some of the species is said to resist the attack of 

 worms. 



The chief genus, and that which gives name to the 

 order, is Bignonia, or trumpet-flower. It contains nu- 

 merous species, most of which are highly ornamental. 

 The name Bignonia was given in honour of the Abbe 

 John Paul Bignon, who was librarian to Louis XIV., 

 and a particular friend of the celebrated botanist Tour- 

 nefort. Bignonia grandifolia, gigantic-leaved trmnpet- 

 flower, is a rapid-growing climber, found in the 

 province of Caraccas, in South America. Its flowers 



