THE TAMARISK TRIBE. /9 



German^ with a sea-green bark(Myricaria germanica). 

 The former is much the handsomer of the two, and the 

 one we will take for examination. 



Its leaves are little green scales, closely packed one 

 above the other, and covering the stem while it is young, 

 but quickly falling off as the branches gi'ow old. The 

 same peculiarity is found in all the plants of the 

 Tamarisk Tribe. So is the manner in which the 

 flowers are placed, m long, graceful, tail-like racemes, 

 at the extremity of the branches {Plate XXXIII. 1. 

 fig.l.). 



Each flower consists of a sea-green calyx, having a 

 cup-like downy tube, and five oval lobes delicately 

 bordered ^vith pink {fig. 3.) ; of five spreading white 

 petals {fig. 2.) ; five stamens gro^\'ing from below the 

 pistil {fig. 4.) ; and a superior ovary. The latter is 

 pale yellow tinged with pink {fig. 4.), shaped some- 

 thing like a flask, and suddenly ends in three white 

 styles, each terminated by a thick granulated stigma. 

 The interior of the ovary consists of a single ca^dty 

 {fig. 6.), at the very bottom of which lie three convex 

 placentas covered with ovules {fig. 7-)' 



I do not find this kind of Tamarisk with ripe seed- 

 vessels, but here is that of the German Tamarisk 

 {fig. A.) which does as well. It is divided into three 

 valves, each of which has an elevated ridge along 

 its middle, and is surrounded at the base, not only 

 by the dried up calyx, but also by the petals which 

 adhere to the seed-vessel in the form of little scales 

 {fig. A. a.). The seeds in this species are terminated 

 bv a long beak, the end of which is surmounted bv a 



