248 13. Fagus. 6. CORYLIDE^. Tlex.mon. 



"O 



B. Cupula closed, valvular. 



IV. 13. FAGUS. Pliny. Beech. 

 Monoicom. — Male. Ament pendulous, globose, dense; 



perigonium 6-lobed ; starnens 8. — Female. Cupula two- 

 flowered, 4-lobed, outside armed with soft spines ; perigo- 

 nium 6-sepaled; sepales tomentose; style 1, 3-cut; stig- 

 mata 3; ovary 3-celled; 2 in each coll; glans 1-celled, 

 3-sided, 1 or 2-seeded. 



Fagus sylvatica. Wood Leech. 



Leaves ovate, smooth, slightly toothed, edge fringed. 



Fagus, Rail Syn. 439 ; Ger. em. 1444 ; Park. 1403. 

 Fagus sylvatica, Lin. S. P. 1416. 



Woods and hedges ; arborescent ; April and May. 



Bark smooth ; leaves petioled, ribs few and straight.- — 

 "Wood brittle, decaying in the air but lasting under water; 

 leaves used for stuffing mattresses ; glands, called mast, 

 fatten swine, dried and made into bread, also roasted for 

 coffee, and pressed for their oil. 



V. 14. CASTANEA. Theophrastus. Chestnut. 

 Polygamous. — Male. Ament very long, cylindrical ; 



flowers glomerate, scattered along the axis; perigonium 

 6-sepaled; stamens 5 to 20. — Hermaphkodite. Cvpula 2 

 or 3-flowered, 4-lobed, armed with hard branchy spines; 

 perigonium 5 or 6-sepaled ; sepales covered on the inside 

 with stiff hairs; stamens 12, red, abortive; ovary 6-celled ; 

 ovules 2 in each cell, 3 to 5 abortive ; styles 6 ; glaJis one- 

 celled, mucronate ; seeds 1 to 3, wrinkled. 



Castanea vesca. Eatable chestn?/.t. 



Leaves oblong, lanceolate, pointed, mucronately serrate, 

 both sides smooth. 



Castanea, Rail Syn. 440; Gtr. em. 1442, 1. 

 Castanea vulgaris. Park. 1400. 

 Fagus Castanea, Lin. S, P. 141 6. 

 Castanea \esca, Gartn. Sem. et Fr. PI. 37. 



Woods ; arborescent ; May. 



Bark with broad cracks; leaves bald, annual, ribs parallel; 

 amenis necklacelike. — Wood durable, but now usually cut 

 young for hop-poles ; fruit esculent. 



|3. sativa. Leaves larger, more glossy; styles 6 to 9. 



Spanish chestnut, 



Glans 3 times as large as the wild, earlier, and better 

 tasted I 



