138 FAMILIAR TREES 



woolly and free from resinous exudations, whilst the 

 scales become reflexed. The two species differ, how- 

 ever, in that P. Pinas'ter has, as its name of Cluster 

 Pine indicates, its cones generally in whorls of from 

 three to eight ; each cone being not more than two 

 and a half inches wide, and of a brightly polished 

 light brown ; the scales about an inch long and 

 three-quarters of an inch broad, and terminating 

 in a hard, sharp point ; and the needles from six to 

 twelve inches long ; whilst P. Pinea has solitary cones, 

 sometimes four inches wide, of a lighter colour, the 

 scales about two inches long, an inch or more in 

 breadth, and terminating in a broad blunt prickle, 

 and the needles five to eight inches long. 



Whilst the abbreviated, parasol-like habit is un- 

 doubtedly the most striking peculiarity of the species, 

 it has many other botanical characters which, if 

 not individually distinctive, are when taken together 

 what we mean by the species P. Pinea. The bark 

 of the trunk is reddish-grey, fissured longitudinally, 

 sometimes to a considerable depth, so as to expose a 

 light reddish-brown inner cortex. In this country 

 the stem commonly divides at no great distance from 

 the ground into several large limbs spreading with an 

 upward curve and themselves soon forking in the 

 same manner, as is well seen in the small but typical 

 tree at Kew. The twigs are pale brown and rather 

 slender, and long retain the bristle-like bases of the 

 fallen leaf-spurs ; and the buds are cylindrical and 

 slightly pointed, but less so than those of the 

 Cluster Pine, which they resemble in many points. 

 They are also more woolly and entirely without 



