JULY. 325 



three inches in diameter, with six petals, resembhng in form 

 a tuhp, of a greenish yellow tint, striated, veined and dotted 

 with a crescent-shaped spot of bright orange towards the base ; 

 the centre is prominent, with its large, fleshy, conical pistil, 

 surrounded by numerous stamens with long anthers. The 

 fruit forms a cone, two to three inches long, composed of 

 a great number of thin, narrow scales, enclosing sixty or 

 seventy seeds, of which rarely more than a third are perfect. 

 It does not bloom until the age of ten or twelve years. 



The Tulip tree was early introduced into Great Britain and 

 France, though the exact date is not known ; it was culti- 

 vated by Compton, at Fulham, in 1688. There are now 

 numerous and fine specimens in various parts of England, 

 Scotland and Ireland. On the Continent it is so abundant 

 that public avenues are planted with it. When first intro- 

 duced to England, it was for a long time cultivated in pots 

 in the greenhouse. It first flowered in the garden of the 

 Earl of Peterborough. 



The Tulip tree is rarely cultivated in any other way than 

 by seeds. These are easily obtained, and grow freely with 

 proper management. They should be sown in the open 

 ground in autumn, or in boxes in the greenhouse, where the 

 young seedlings will make their appearance in the spring. 

 If in the ground, they will only need the usual attention of 

 hoeing and thinning, if too thick, and the second year be 

 removed to nursery rows. If sown in boxes, they may be 

 removed to the open air on the approach of good weather, 

 where they should remain all summer, sheltering them the 

 first winter in the cellar, or covering them with leaves, which 

 prevents any danger from severe cold. The trees prefer a 

 deep, rich, mellow loam, not too dry in summer or too wet in 

 winter. The average rate of growth is two to three feet a 

 year, and trees ten years old, in our grounds, are twenty-five 

 feet high. 



As an ornamental tree the Tulip has too long been neg- 

 lected. While, with us, we plant our public avenues with 

 English limes and American elms, the French and Italians, 

 with better taste, select the Tulip tree. In the stately ap- 



