XXXVII. ^amamelida'ce^ : //"amameYis. 

 Genus I. 



499 



1 



I i7AMAME'LIS L. The Hamamelis, or Wych Hazel. 



I Lin. Syst. Tetrandria Digynia. 



\ucntification. Lin. Gen., 169. ; Dec. Prod., 4. p. 268. ; Don's Mill., ."?. p. 396. 



[ii/nmiymes. Trilbpus Mi'l/i. Act. Acad. Nat. Cur. 8 App. ; Hamamelide, Ital. 



\Uerivatwn. //amamdlis is a name by which Athenreus speatis ol' a tree which blossomed at the 



, same time as the apple tree ; the word being derived from hama, together with, and metis, an 



: apple tree. The modern application seems to be from the //amameUs having its blossoms accom- 



; panying its fruits (mela) ; both being on the tree at tlie same time. 



{Jen. Char. Calyx 4-Iobetl, adhering to the ovarium at the base, furnished 

 ' with 2 3 scales on the outside. Petals 4, long, alternating with the teeth 



of the calyx. Stamens 4, alternating with tlie petals. Ovarium free at the 

 : apex. Capsules coriaceous, 2-cclled, 2-valved. Arils 2 in each capsule. 

 I Seed oblong, shining. {Don's Mill.) 



Leaves simple, alternate, bistipulate, deciduous ; ovate or cuneated, 



feather-nerved, nearly entire. Flowers nearl}' sessile, disposed in clusters, 

 I in the axils of the leaves, girded by a 3-leaved involucrum. Petals 

 yellow. Shrubs or low trees, deciduous; natives of North America; 



interesting from producing their lowers in the autumn, which remain on 

 i during the winter. 



I ftl \. H. virgi'nica L. The Virginian Hamamelis, or Wych Hazel. 



\entiflcation. Dec. Prod., 4. p. 268. ; Don's Mill., 3. p. 396. ; Lodd. Cat., ed. 1836. 

 imnymes. Hamamelie de Virginie, Fr.; V'irginische Zaubernuss, Ger. ; Pistacchio nera del.a 

 ; Virginia, Ital. 

 \ngravings. N. Du Ham., 7. t. 60. ; Bot. Cab., t. .598. ; and omv fig. 909. 



iuec. Char., ^-c. Leaves obovate, acutely toothed, with 

 j a small cordate recess at the base. (Don's Mill.) A 

 ! tleeiduoiis shrub. Canada to Florida; in dry and 

 t stony situations, but frequently near water. Height 

 ' 20 ft. to 30 ft. with a trunk 6 in. or more in dia- 

 ; meter. Introduced in 1736. Flowers yellow; be- 

 ginning of October to the end of February. 



'vieties. 



^ "i; H. i;. 2 jmrvifolia Nutt. Leaves smaller, ob- 

 ' long ovate, and a more stunted habit than 



the species. Pennsylvania, on mountains. In 



British gardens, when planted in peat soil, this 



forms a very handsome little shrub ; and is 



peculiarly valuable from being densely covered 



with fine yellow flowers throughout the winter, 

 s* t H. i". 3 macrophylla. H. macrophylla Piirsk. 



Leaves nearly orbicular, cordate, coarsely 



and bluntly toothed, and scabrous from dots beneath. Western 



part of Georgia, and North Carolina, on the Katawba Mountains. 



Introduced in 1812, and flowers from May to November. 

 Jn British gardens, it has been bat little cultivated, notwithstanding the sin- 

 !:,arity of its appearance in autumn and winter ; when it is profusely covered 

 ^ih its fine rich yellow flowers, which begin to expand before the leaves of 

 ' previous summer drop off, and continue on the bush throughout the 

 \iter. After the petals drop off in spring, the persistent calyxes remain on 

 t the leaves reappear in April or May. It will grow in any "light free soil, 

 t^ t rather moist ; and it is propagated by layers and by seeds; which last, 

 t ugh rarely produced in Britain, are frequently sent to this country from 

 '' erica. They ought to be sown immediately on being received, as they are 

 I' ;n two years before they come up. 



K K 2 



909. H. virglnica. 



