RETINOSPORA PI6-IFEKA. 



247 



exceeding 1 foot high. It spreads horizontally on all sides, but not 

 upwards, and forms a dense tuft of green spray, as ornamental as 

 it is curious. It is one of the best dwnrf Conifers for rock-woi*k 

 and small gardens. 



Retinospora pisifera is easily distinguished from R. obtusa by 

 the feathery appearance of its foliage. The trunk is erect and fur- 

 nished with spreading branches, here and there one projecting 

 beyond its nearest neighbours, the general outline of the tree being 



Fig. 57. — Retinospora pisifera. 



pyramidal without being formal. The branchlets are slender, and the 

 scale-like leaves distinctly four rowed, but somewhat distant, more 

 pointed and less closely appressed than in B. obtusa; in colour they 

 are light fulvous green above and marked with two glaucous lines 



