30 THE TREES AND SHRUBS [LECT. 



The next kind of Fir enumerated by Pliny is the 

 Pinaster, but whether this be the same as the species 

 now known by that name seems doubtful. 



It is called by Theophrastus TrevKrj aypia, and 

 Pliny says that it is nothing else than a wild variety 

 of Pine. lie informs us, however, that it rises to 

 a surprising height, that it throws out branches 

 from the middle of its trunk, and that it yields 

 a more copious supply of resin than the Pine. 



" Many people," he says, " think that this is the 

 same tree which grows along the shores of Italy, 

 and is known by the name of Tibuhis ; but the 

 latter-is slender, and more compact than the Pine ; 

 it is likewise free from knots, and hence used in 

 the construction of light galleys. It is also as 

 deficient in resinous matter as the Pinus. 



Now it seems doubtful from this description, 

 whether the tree called Pinaster by Pliny ought to 

 be identified, as has been generally done, with that 

 so called in modern times. 



It does not appear that Pliny's Pinaster grows 

 near the sea, although the Tidulus, which has been 

 mistaken for it, does ; and the Fir so common on 

 the sandy flats of Greece is not the Pinaster or 

 Cluster Pine which has proved so invaluable in 

 reclaiming large tracts of country on the western 

 coasts of France, but the P. maritima, which is pro- 

 bably the same species as P. JiaZepensis, the Aleppo 

 Pine of modern authors. 



We next find noticed the Picea, so called from 

 the abundance of resinous juice it exudes. It loves 



