CHAP. XIX. TEIlNSTROM/^CZ^e. GORDO V N/^. 379 



Derivation. Named in honour of Alexander Gordon, a celebrated nurseryman at Mile End, near 

 London, who lived in the time of Philip Miller. 



Gen. Char. Calyx of 5 rounded coriaceous sepals. Petals 5, somewhat 

 adnate to the urceolus of the stamens. Style crowned by a peltate 

 5-lobed stigma. Capsules 5-ccllcd, 5-valved; cells 2 i-seeded. Seeds 

 ending in a leafy wing fixed to the central column, filiform. (Don's Mill., 

 i. p. 573.) There are only two hardy species, both sub-evergreen. 



1 1. GORDO V N//< LASIA'NTHUS L. The woolly-flowered Gordonia,or Loblolly 



Bay. 



Identification. I.in. Mant, 570. ; Dec. Prod., 1. p. 528. ; Don's Mill., 1. p. 573. 



Synonyme*. //ypi-ricum Lasianthus Lin. Sp., 1101., Catesb. Carol., 1. t. 44 , Pluk. Amalth. ) t.352. ; 



Gordouia a Feuilles glabres, and Alcee de la Floride, Fr. ; langstielige Gordonie, Ger. 

 Engraving. C'av. Diss., 6. t. 171. ; Sims, Bot. Mag., t. 668. ; Catesb. Carol., 1. t. 44. ; Pluk. Amalth., 



1. 35ft ; and OUT Jig. 93. 



Spec. Char^ fyc. Pedicels axillary, usually shorter than 



the leaves. Leaves oblong, coriaceous, smooth, ser- 



rated. Calyx silky. Capsules conoid, acuminated. 



(Don's Mill., i. p. 573.) A tree growing, in its native 



country, to the height of 50 ft. or 60 ft., with a 



diameter of 18 in. or 20 in. ; and a straight trunk of 



from 25 ft. to 30 ft. " The small divergency of its 



branches near the trunk gives it a regularly pyramidal 



form ; but, as they ascend, they spread more loosely, 



like those of other trees of the forest. The bark 



is very smooth, while the tree is less than 6 in. in 



diameter : on old trees it is thick, and deeply furrowed. 



The leaves are evergreen, from Sin. to 6 in. long, 



alternate, oval-acuminate, slightly toothed, and smooth and shining on the 



upper surface. The flowers are more than 1 in. broad, white, and sweet- 



scented : they begin to appear about the middle of July, and continue 



blooming in succession during two or three months. This tree possesses 



the agreeable singularity of bearing flowers when it is only 3 ft. or 4 ft. high, 



The fruit is an oval capsule, divided into five compartments, each of which 



contains small, black, winged seeds." (Sylva Americana, p. 164, 165.) In 



England, the Gordons Lasianthus is seldom seen otherwise than as a 



sub-evergreen bush, of 5 ft. or 6 ft. in height ; but it flowers beautifully, even 



at that size. It sometimes, however, reaches the height of 10 ft. or 12 ft. 



Geography, History, $c. The loblolly bay has a comparatively limited 



range in North America, being confined to the swamps near the sea coast, 



from the Floridas to Lower Louisiana. " In the pine-barrens, tracts of 50 or 



100 acres are met with, at intervals, which, being lower than the adjacent 



ground, are kept constantly moist by the waters collected in them after the 



great rains. These spots are entirely covered with the loblolly bay, and are 



called bay swamps. Although the layer of vegetable mould is only 3 in. or 



4 in. thick, and reposes upon a bed of barren sand, the vegetation of these 



trees is surprisingly luxuriant." (Sylva Amcr., p. 164.) This plant seems to 



have been first recorded by Catesby ; and it was soon afterwards described 



by Ellis, in the Philosophical Transactions j and figured there, as well as in 



Catesby's Carolina. It was introduced into England, about 1768, by Benjamin 



Bewick, Esq. ; but it has never been very successfully cultivated, apparently 



from neglecting to imitate its natural habitat, a swampy soil in a low sheltered 



situation. The largest plants in the neighbourhood of London are at Purser's 



Cross, and are not above 10 ft. high. 



Properties and Uses. The wood of this tree, in America, is considered of 

 little use ; but its bark is of great value for tanning, for which purpose it is 

 employed throughout the maritime parts of the southern states, and of the 

 Floridas. A bark fit for the purpose of tanning is more valuable, in America, 

 than might at first sight be imagined ; because, though they have many sorts 

 of oak, there are very few the bark of which contains a sufficient quantity of 

 tannin to be worth employing by the tanner. Hence the Americans import 



