The pictures of many of the principal trees included here will go a long way 

 towards their identification when taken in conjunction with the letterpress. But, 

 for the benefit of those who may desire more intimate knowledge, there are also 

 included drawings of the fruits and flower-buds of certain of the trees. 



It should be added that identification by the bark only is not satisfactory. 

 It Avill be gathered from what has been said previously that only the. inner layers 

 of the bark of a grown tree are alive. The outer layers are dead and the cracks 

 in the surface of the bark of old trees are caused by the expanding of wood inside. 

 In very old jarrah, for instance, the bark is deeply indented. In a younger speci- 

 men of the same class it is not so deeply indented nor so rough, whereas in sap- 

 lings and very young trees the bark is quite smooth. 



Since it is impossible to identify many of our Eucalypts without a knowledge 

 of their reproductive organs, the following notes contain brief descriptions of the 

 flowers and more particularly of the fruits of our commoner trees. Many of these 

 trees are very similar in general appearance, and even in their bark; but any 

 doubt as to their identity can generally be settled by examining the fruits or "nuts. n 



The majority of our flowers consist of the following parts: The calyx, which 

 is the outer covering, usually green in colour, and which possesses lobes or sepals 

 which fold over and protect the more delicate portions when in the bud stage. The 

 corolla, which is usually brightly coloured, consisting of petals which serve to 

 attract insects by their bright colour, and also to protect the innermost parts. The 

 corolla lies inside the calyx, and is larger when fully expanded. The stamens? 

 which are arranged inside the corolla, are like small pins. They are arranged in 

 a circle, and consist of two parts; the stalk or filament, which bears on its summit 

 the anther, which is the male portion of the flower. The anthers are covered with 

 pollen. The centre of the flower is occupied by the ovary, which bears a stalk or 

 style on its summit. On the top of the style is the stigma, which is generally 

 shaped like a pin-head, and is slightly sticky. The ovary, style, and stigma col- 

 lectively form the gynoecium or female portion of the flower. 



In the case of Eucalypts, however, the sepals and petals are missing, or rudi- 

 mentary. In a few species the sepals remain as small teeth, on the calyx, or floral 

 receptacle, and in all the species the petals have become united into the cap or 

 operculum, that little lid which falls off when the bud bursts into bloom. There- 

 fore the operculum performs the protective functions of the sepals of common 

 flowers. The stamens of the Eucalyptus are large and usually coloured, and be- 

 sides performing their usual functions also serve as petals, insomuch that they are 

 coloured and attractive. The fruit of the Eucalyptus consists of the enlarged 

 calyx, which encloses and is adherent to the capsule, and is hard and woody, as- 

 suming various forms. So diversified are these forms that they offer the best 

 means of identifying this large genus. 



It is very probable that the Eucalyptus once had large sepals and petals, like 

 those of its near relatives the tea-tree and bottle-brush, and that these parts have 

 been reduced as being unnecessary. 



