DECIDUOUS ORNAMENTAL TREES. 143 



unique, either when leafless, or in full foliage, that it has 

 long been one of our greatest favorites. 



The Flowering ash (Fraxinus Ornus*) is a small tree of 

 about 20 feet, growing plentifully in the south of Europe, 

 and is also found sparingly in this country. Its chief beauty 

 lies in the beautiful clusters of pale or greenish- white flow- 

 ers, borne on the terminal branches in May and June. The 

 foliage and general appearance of the tree are much like 

 those of the common ash ; but when in blossom it resembles 

 a good deal the Carolina Fringe tree. In Italy a gummy 

 substance called manna exudes from the bark, which is 

 used in medicine. 



THE LIME OR LINDEN TREE. Tilia. 

 Nat. Ord. Tilaceae. Lin. Syst. Polyandria, Monogynia. 



This tree, or rather the American sort, is well known 

 among us by the name of basswood. It is a rapidly grow- 

 ing, handsome, upright, and regularly shaped tree ; and all 

 the species are much esteemed, both in Europe and this 

 country, for planting in avenues and straight lines, wherever 

 the taste is in favor of geometric plantations. In Germany 

 and Holland it is a great favorite for bordering their wide 

 and handsome streets, and lining their long and straight 

 canals. "In Berlin," Granville says in his travels, "there 

 is a celebrated street called ' unter der Linden,' (under the 

 lime trees,) a gay and splendid avenue, planted with double 



* Ornus Europeeus of Persoon, and the European botanists. Beck remarks 

 that the American kind is so little known, that it is difficult to determine 

 whether it is a different species or only a mere variety of the European. 



