1862 ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. PART III. 



Vel&ni Tourn. Voy., 1. p. 128. ; Glans Cerri Dalech. Hist., 1. p. 7., the great prickly-cupped Oak ; 

 Chene Velani, Fr. ; Chene Velandde Base; Knopper Eiche, Ger. 



Engravings. Mill. Ic., 2. t 215. ; Oliv. Travel., t 13. ; N. Du Ham., 7. t 51. ; our fig. 1721. ; and the 

 plates of this tree in our last Volume. 



Spec. Char., Sfc. Leaves ovate-oblong, with bristle-pointed tooth-like lobes ; 

 hoary beneath. Calyx of the fruit very large, hemispherical, with lanceo- 

 late, elongated, spreading scales. (Smith.} A tree, a native of the islands 

 of the Archipelago, and throughout all Greece ; at- 

 taining, according to Tournefort, the dimensions of 

 the common oak, in favourable situations in the Le- 

 vant; but not growing even so high as the Turkey 

 oak, according to Olivier. It was introduced in 

 1731, but has never been extensively cultivated. 

 Leaves stalked, about 3 in. long, bright green ; a little 

 downy at the back ; their edges very coarsely and 

 acutely serrated, rather than lobed; each tooth tipped 

 with a bristly point. Acorn large, short, and a little 

 hollow at the top. Cup sessile, woody, 2 in. or 3 in. in 

 diameter, from the projection of its numerous, long, 

 oblong, reflexed, petal-like scales. The tree, accord- 

 ing to Olivier, is not so lofty as the Turkey oak; nor 

 is the wood much esteemed, except in cabinet-work. 

 Miller observes that this is " one of the fairest 1721 



species of oak in the world;" that it thrives very well in the open 

 air in England, and is never injured by frost. The fruit, according to 

 Martyn's Miller, is called velani ; and the tree, velanida, by the modern 

 Greeks ; but, according to Olivier, the name velani is applied to the tree, 

 and velanida to the fruit. The cups and acorns are annually brought to 

 Europe, where they are in great demand for tanning, being said to contain 

 more tannin in a given bulk of substance than any other vegetable. Ac- 

 cording to M'Culloch, these acorns, which are commonly called valonia, 

 form a very considerable article of export of the Morea and the Levant ; 

 averaging, in 1831 and 1832, nearly 150,000 cwt. a year, and being sold at 

 from 12/. to 15/. per ton. " The more substance there is in the husk, or 

 cup, of the acorn, the better. It is of a bright drab colour, which it pre- 

 serves so long as it is kept dry ; and dampness injures it, as it then turns 

 black, and loses both its strength and value. It is principally used by tan- 

 ners, and is always in demand. Though a very bulky article, it is uniformly 

 bought and sold by weight. A ship can only take a small proportion of her 

 register tonnage of valonia; so that its freight per ton is always high." 

 (M'Cull. Diet., p. 1203.) We agree with Miller in considering Q. .^'gilops 

 as one of the most splendid species of the genus, and we would strongly 

 recommend it to every lover of fine trees. A kind of gall is found on this 

 tree, somewhat similar to that found on Q. infectoria, and which is employed 

 in the same manner. These galls are rugose, and of an angular form ; and 

 are either the fruit itself, distorted by the puncture of the insect, or merely 

 the scaly cup, which is enlarged into a gall. The insect which pierces it is, 

 according to M. Van Btirgdorf, Cynips quercus calycis. It is found in 

 Greece, and in the islands of the Mediterranean Sea. (Burmeister Handb. 

 der Ent., sect. 310.) In British nurseries, Q. JE'gilops is not very common, 

 though there can be no difficulty in procuring acorns from the Continent. 

 There is a tree at Syon, 22 ft. high, which bears fruit annually, and even 

 the small tree at Messrs. Loddiges's, of which a portrait is given in our last 

 Volume, bears fruit. 



Varieties. 



Q. M. 2 pendula has drooping branches. There is a small tree of this 



variety in the Fulham Nursery. 



t Q. JE. 3 latifolia Hort. has leaves rather broader than the species. 

 There is a tree of this variety in the Horticultural Society's Garden. 



