96 HARDY CONIFEROUS TREES. 



growth is somewhat conical, with long and slender side 

 branches, that are well supplied with laterals. It belongs 

 to the five-leaved section, each leaf being fully 2 inches 

 long, inclined to become twisted, and of a beautiful glaucous 

 tint above, and distinctly silvery on the under sides, but the 

 depth of colouring varies greatly. The pretty purplish cones 

 are remarkably even in outline. They are 2 J inches long, by 

 i^ inches wide. In early spring the beautiful yellow catkins 

 are produced so plentifully that the tree wears quite a gay 

 and interesting appearance. 



P- patula, Schiede and Deppe. Mexico. A soft and 

 lovely tree, quite wanting in stiffness or formality, the long 

 and gracefully pendulous foliage rendering it distinct from 

 every other member of the family. It cannot be planted 

 wholesale, as the experience of past winters has convinced us 

 that, unless in the milder parts of these islands, its hardihood 

 cannot be relied upon. Usually the branches ramify much, 

 the branchlets being long and lithe, but even this does not 

 cause the stem to look naked or bare, as the long, soft, deli- 

 cately green leaves hang gracefully downwards for from 8 to 

 12 inches in length. The arrangement of the leaves is usually 

 irregular, sometimes three and sometimes four being contained 

 in one sheath. I have noticed that on the outer or exposed sides 

 of the shoots the leaves are usually in threes, while on the inner 

 they are in fours. The cones, which closely resemble those of 

 the Austrian pine, are generally arranged in whorls of four, are 

 2 J inches long, by i J- inches diameter, incurved, and usually 

 pointing downwards. The bark of the branches is fawn 

 colour, that of the stem leaden-grey ; while an unusual appear- 

 ance is presented in spring by the long, sharp-pointed and 

 fluffy buds. This pine has succeeded from Edinburgh south- 

 wards, but the finest specimens I have met with are those in 

 Cornwall^ and the Isle of Man. 



1 Both at Menabilly and Carclew, in Cornwall, many of the rarer coniferous 

 trees grow freely, and from the latter estate I have been sent fruiting specimens of 

 the rare and beautiful Pinus patula. Unfortunately this handsome Mexican species 

 has suffered much by the frosts of our late winters. The Carclew specimen is 

 fully 45 feet in height. 



