832 



ARBORETUM ET FRUTICETUM BRITANNICUM. 



Genus I. 



.4'LNUS Tourn. Tre Alder. Lin. Si/st. Monoe'cia Tetrandria 



i 



Identification. Tourn., t. 359. ; Willd. Sp. PI., i. p. 334. ; Hall. Hist., 2. p. 300. ; Gfcrtn., t. 90. 

 Synonyincs. Betw\?e species Lin. ; Aune, Fr. ; Erie, Ger. ; Ontano, Ital. ; Aliso, Span. 

 Derivation. From al, near, and liin, tlie edge of a river, Celtic ; habitat: from the Hebrew, alon, 

 an oak : or, according to others, from alitur amne, it thrives by the river. 



Gen. Char. Barren flowers numerous, aggregate, in a loose cylindrical catkin 

 Cfl'/yj:' a permanent wedge-shaped scale, 3-flowered, with two very minute lateral 

 scales. Corolla composed of three equal florets. Filaments 4, from the 

 tube of the corolla. Anthers of two round lobes. Fertile floivers fewer, 

 aggregate, in an oval firm catkin. Calyx a permanent wedge-shaped scale, 

 2-tiowered. Corolla none. Styles 2. Stigma simple. Nut ovate, without 

 wings. (G. Don.) 



Leaves simple, alternate, stipulate, deciduous ; serrated or entire. Floivers 

 terminal, greenish white, appearing earlier than the foliage, in pendulous 

 catkins. Trees deciduous, natives of Europe and North America; rarely 

 exceeding the middle size, and some so low as to be considered shrubs. 



With the exception of A. glutinosa laciniata and A. cordifolia, the species 

 are not very ornamental ; nor is the timber of great value, except for the 

 charcoal which may be made from it. All the species prefer a moist soil, 

 or one in the vicinity of water. A. glutinosa ripens seeds freely, as do most 

 of the other sorts ; but all the latter are generally propagated by layers. De- 

 caying leaves dark brown or black, and not very ornamental. 



5 1. A. GLUTiNO*SA Gcertn, The glutinous, or comvion. Alder. 



Identification. Ga-rtn., 2. p. 54. ; EnR. Fl., 4. p. 131. ; Hook. Lond., t. .59.; Scot., 271. 

 Synonymes. ^ttulus j^'lnus Lin. ; B. emargin&.ta Ehrk. Arb. 9. ; yi'lnus Baii Syn. 442. ; Aune, 



Fr. ; gemeine Ebe, or Elser, or Schwartz Erie, Ger. ; Elsenboom, Dutcli ; Alno, or Ontano, 



Ital. ; Aliso, or Alamo nigro, Span. 

 Engravings. Eng. 13ot., t. 1508.; Hunt. Evel. Syl., 240. f. ; the plate of this species in Arb. Brit., 



1st edit., vol. vii. ; and onr fig. 1514. 



Spec. Char., S,-c. Leaves roundish, wedge-shaped, wavy, serrated, glutinous, 

 rather abrupt ; downy at the branching of the veins beneath. (S7mfh.) A 

 deciduous tree. Europe, from Lapland to Gibraltar ; and Asia, from the 

 White Sea to Mount Caucasus ; and also the North of Africa. Height 

 30 ft. to 60 ft. Flowers brownish ; March and April. Fruit brown ; ripe 

 in October. Decaying leaves brownish black, or almost black. 



J'arieties. 

 3^ A. 



emargindta 



Willd. Baum. 



19. 



wedge-shaped, and edged with light green. 



A. g. 3 laciniata Ait., Willd. 1. c, Lodd. 

 Cat. ed. 1836. A. g. incisa Hort. (The 

 plate of a fine tree at Syon, in Arb. Brit., 

 1st edit., vol. vii. ; and our Jig. 1512.) 

 Leaves oblong and pinnatifid, with the 

 lobes acnte. Wild in the north of France, 

 particularly in Normandj', and in the woods 

 of Montmorency near Paris. 



A. g. 4 qiicrcifdiia Willd. 1. c. Leaves 

 sinuated, with the lobes obtuse. 



A. g. 5 o.vyacantliccfolia. A, oxyacantha- 

 foUa Lodd. Cat. ed. 1836. (Our fg. 

 1513.) Leaves sinuated and lobed ; 

 smaller than those of the preceding va- 

 riety, and somewhat resembling those of 

 the common hawthorn. 



