Pimis.] LXXVI. CONIFERS. 509 



at base. Lower part of scales 1-1 J in. long, 1-1^ in. broad at top, npper 

 part recurved, obtusely triangular, compressed, spinescent. Seeds cylin 

 dric, 1 in. long, with a short caducous wing. 



Common in North Afghanistan and Kafiristan, abundant on the Safedkoh 

 and probably also at high elevations on the Suliman range. In the N.W. 

 Himalaya, locally in the inner valleys with a drier climate, beyond the influ- 

 ence of the periodical rains. Indus valley between Astor and Iskardo, and in 

 Gilgit. On the Chenab, common below Kilar, on a short portion of the main 

 river, and on the Marru, a tributary (5800-8000 ft.) A few trees occur at one place 

 on the Ravi (at 8000-8500 ft.) In Kunawar, generally occupying the lower 

 slopes of the mountain-sides near the river, between 6000 and 10,000 ft. (Capt. 

 Gerard states up to 12,300 ft. near Sungnam), from Chergaon and Jani to Han- 

 garang and Dabling. Planted at Serahn, 15 miles lower down the valley, and 

 within the full range of the monsoon, but does not bear fruit. Also in British 

 Garhwal, between Malari and Bampa, on the route to the Niti Pass, at 6000- 

 10,000 ft. (Dr Jameson, 1846). Gregarious, but not forming dense forests, fre- 

 quently associated with Deodar, often on dry steep rocky slopes, on granite and 

 clay-slate in Kunawar. The male flowers appear in June and July, and the yellow 

 pollen falls abundantly at that time, and is carried about by the wind. The 

 cones ripen in the second year ; at lower levels by the end of September, at 

 higher elevations about the middle of October. The leaves remain 3-4 years on 

 the branches. Attains 30-40, at times 50-60 ft., with a short straight trunk (clear 

 of branches, to 8 or 10 ft.), girth 6-7, rarely 12 ft. ; branches strong, horizontal 

 or decurved, the ends turned up, forming a broad oval or rounded compact 

 bushy crown. Bark grey, greenish grey, often silvery, with darker blotches, 

 without fissures cracks or roughness, exfoliating in long thin flakes, leaving ex- 

 posed patches of the fresh, smooth, darker-coloured inner bark. The peculiarly 

 smooth bark of this species, which is never transformed into a rough outer coat- 

 ing like that of the other pines, was first noticed by Dr W. Hoffmeister, who 

 accompanied Prince Waldemar of Prussia in his journey through India in 1845 

 and 1846. 



The wood is used for the hook which supports the passenger's seat on the 

 single -rope swing-bridge ; it probably is tough, but is hardly ever felled, as the 

 tree is valuable on account of the edible seeds. It is very resinous, and a white 

 resin also exudes abundantly from the bark and cones. Baskets and rough 

 water-buckets are made of the bark. The cones are plucked before they open, 

 and are heated to make the scales expand, and to get the seed out. Large quan- 

 tities of the seeds are stored for winter use ; they form a staple food of the in- 

 habitants of Kunawar, are often eaten ground and mixed with flour. It is a 

 common saying in Kunawar, " One tree a man's life in winter." They are 

 also exported to the plains, and considerable quantities are imported annually 

 into North- Western India from Afghanistan by the Khaiber and Bolan Passes. 

 They are oily, with a slight but not unpleasant turpentiny flavour. The seeds 

 and an oil extracted from them are used in native medicine. 



To the same section (Tceda, with 3 leaves in a sheath) as the preceding species, 

 belong three important trees of Eastern North America : 1. P. australis, Mich- 

 aux, the Long-leaved or Yellow Pine, also called Pitch Pine, a large tree, which 

 clothes extensive dry sandy tracts, known as the Pine Barrens, along the 

 coast of South Virginia, the two Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. The heart- 

 wood is compact, heavy (40-53 lb. per cub. ft.), strong, durable, and much prized 

 in America for house- and ship-building. It is very resinous, and yields the 

 main supply of American resin and turpentine. 



Michaux (Forest Trees of North America, 1819, ii. 271) gives the following 



