17G VEGETABLE ORGANOGRAPHY. 



account of their more solid texture, remained almost 

 uninjured in the middle of the trunk. Hard-wooded 

 trees, which have a great number of knots, or bases of 

 abortive branches, are much sought after in the arts ; 

 either because these accidents increase their firmness, or 

 because they produce sometimes, in sections of the trunk, 

 various patterns, which are used for ornamental pur- 

 poses. 



In the preceding part of this article I have spoken of 

 the branches which are produced from Axillary Buds; 

 those which proceed from Terminal ones present some 

 peculiarities which it will be convenient to point out. 

 A bud may spring from the real summit of a branch 

 (which takes place when the leaves are opposite, as, for 

 example, in the Horse-chestnut) ; or it may become 

 terminal by the death of the extremity of the branch 

 (which frequently happens in trees with alternate leaves, 

 the Birch, &c. for example) ; in both of these cases the 

 new branch absolutely springs from the summit of the 

 old one, and seems to be a continuation of it, although 

 a slight depression is almost always visible, at least in 

 the first year, and sometimes in the following ones. 



But other combinations may also happen in cases 

 where the stem, or one of its branches, is terminated 

 by a bunch of flowers. After the seeds are ripe, two 

 cases may present themselves : 1st, The axis of this 

 bunch may be prolonged into a branch, either by a ter- 

 minal bud, or because the flowers did not occupy the 

 place ; this happens naturally in the Callistemun and 

 Leptospermum of New Holland. 2d, The axis may 

 dry up and die, which is most frequently the case ; 

 then the buds situated below the bunch are developed : 

 if the leaves are alternate, and far apart from one 

 another, the uppermost bud becomes terminal ; if the 

 leaves are either opposite, verticillate, or very near one 



