THE MYRTLE FAMILY. 373 



cold of January, 1838, destroyed them after having attained 

 the height of 1 5 feet. Since then a species named E. poly- 

 anthum has stood for the last twenty years in an exposed 

 part of the garden ; it has attained the height of 20 and a 

 girth of 4 feet. The young shoots are occasionally injured, 

 but it is otherwise perfectly hardy, and might become a useful 

 timber tree in the Southern parts of England. Australia 

 also possesses other large trees of this family, such as 

 species of Angophora, Callistemon, and Tristania. A species 

 of the latter yields a fluid-like turpentine, from which circum- 

 stance it has received the name of Turpentine tree. In 

 New Zealand, Metrosideros rohusta and Callistemon ellipticum 

 are found, the latter a remarkably large tree, growing in 

 rocky places, and attaining the diameter of 4 or 5 feet ; the 

 wood being extremely hard, takes a beautiful polish, and 

 may be compared to Rosewood. Several other species of 

 Metrosideros of epiphytal nature, growing to the tops of the 

 highest trees, are also found ; like Ivy, they involve and 

 ultimately destroy the trees they surround, but the union 

 of their own stems forming a hollow tree, they entirely lose 

 their epiphytal character. They are very ornamental green- 

 house plants in this country, M. tomentosa, by its profusion 

 of scarlet flowers, having a striking eflect when seen at a 

 distance. 



A great number of this family from the Australian Colonies 

 have from time to time been introduced into this country, the 

 Kew collection in 1850 consisting of about 100 species. They 

 are highly ornamental greenhouse shrubs, such as species of 

 the genera Melaleuca, Calothamnus, Callistemon, Tristania, 

 Bceclcia, and others. Many have flowers with long stamens 

 standing out at right angles, which give the idea of a bottle 

 brush. The genera of Myrtaceee were generally arranged 

 under three sections — viz., Leptospermece, MyrtecB, and Cha- 

 mcelauciecB. The latter has been supposed to have suflicient 

 character to form a distinct family, consisting of about 50 

 species of beautiful little shrubs, natives of Australia, of 

 which several have been introduced into this country ; such 



