TAMARICACE.E. 139 



equal in number to the petals, or twice as many ; free, or united 

 only at the very base. Styles short, generally 3 or 4, feathery. 

 Placentae extremely short, with numerous ovules. Seeds small, 

 numerous, without a beak, having a tuft of hair at the apex. 

 Albumen none. 



Shrubs or small trees with scale-like amplexicaul leaves and 

 small white or rose-coloured flowers in spikes or dense racemes. 



This genus of plants is named fi-om a Hebrew word tamarik, abstersion, from the 

 reputed qualities of some of the species for cleansing and purifying the blood, or froiii 

 the fact of the branches being used as brooms. This is the derivation given by the best 

 authorities : others say that the plant derived its name from the fact of its growing on 

 the banks of the Tamaris, now Tambro, on the borders of the Pyrenees. 



SPECIES I— TAMARIX ANGLIC A. Wdh. 



Plate CCLXI. 

 Tamarix Gallica, Sm. Eng. Bot. No. 1318 (non Linn.). 



Leaves quite glabrous, slightly narrowed towards the base- 

 Flowers ovoid in bud. Sepals lanceolate. Disk with 5 acute 

 angles, upon which the stamens are inserted. Anthers with a short 

 apiculus. Capsule ovoid-pyramidal, 3-sided, suddenly narrowed 

 towards the apex, and rounded at the base. 



A native of the western coasts of the continent of Europe, but 

 naturalized on the south coast of England. 



[England]. Shrub or small Tree. Autumn. 



An evergreen shrub or small tree from 3 to 10 feet high, 

 with the bark of the main stem dull brown, but of the younger 

 slender branches bright reddish brown. Leaves extremely minute, 

 imbricated, slightly auricled at the base, and with the midrib 

 produced backwards at the base into a short blunt spur. Racemes 

 lateral and terminal, shortly stalked, 1 to 2 inches long, the 

 flowers with scarious bracts at the base of each pedicel. Pedicels 

 extremely short. Flowers crowded, white, tinged with pink, |^ inch 

 across. Petals oblong-oblanceolate, marcescent. The mature seeds 

 I have not seen. Leaves bright lively green. An elegant shrub, 

 in general appearance somewhat resembling the short - leaved 

 junipers. 



English Tamarisk. 



French, Tamarisque. German, Myriharie. 



Those ■who have been on the Southern and Eastern coasts of England must have 

 noticed this pretty evergreen shrub, sometimes almost the only green thing larger than a 

 herb which is able to resist the cutting east winds and dashing sea-spray of an unprotected 



