124 



PINACE^. 



of the branch stems occupied by the male catl:irs. The seeds are 

 oblong in form, with wings from one to two inches long, and from a 

 quarter to half an inch broad. 



It was introduced into Britain more than two-and-a-half centuries 

 ago, and it is to be found, either in a natural or cultivated state, in 

 most parts of the habitable globe ; differing much in its stature or 

 dimensions, and likewise in the size, form , and colour, of its leaves and 

 cones, by the soils and climates in which these are produced ; which 

 diversity has led to much confusion in its nomenclature, and to its being 

 so frequently re-introduced into this country as a new species of Pine. 

 But one after another of these altered forms of it are being identified, 

 and referred to the prototype. It attains heights of from twenty to 

 eighty feet, with its branches in regular whorls, somewhat curved 

 upward:^, and ascending at their extremities. The bark, when matured 

 and old, is very rough, and deeply furrowed. Pliny truthfully remarks : 

 " The Pinaster is none else than the Pinus Sylvestris (not our Syl- 

 vestris), the wild Pine ; wonderful in height, and branching from its 

 middle parts as the other Pines do more from their upper; this yields 

 resin more copiously; it grows in the plains." 



It is thoroughly hardy, sound in constitution, of very rapid growth, 

 particularly when young ; and one of the most accommodating of the 

 Pines as to soil and situation, and although producing somewhat coarse 

 wood, yet it is useful for many rural and domestic purposes, and like- 

 wise in some of the branches of arts and manufactures, and in trade 

 and commerce. All things considered, in relation to the climate of 

 Great Britain and Ireland, it is a most serviceable tree, inasmuch as in 

 any loamy, sandy, gravelly, or dry soils, it grows freely, no matter how 

 poor or barren, sandy or dry : but it will not succeed in wet, close, or 

 calcareous soils, with hard or impervious substrata ; and it is well 

 adapted for maritime and exposed districts, where the soil may chiefly 

 be composed of sand. It may, however, be termed more of a useful 

 than economically, valuable timber, or beautiful ornamental Pine. It 

 is a sparse rooter, and should be frequently transplanted in the first 

 few seasons of its growth, before being planted where it is to remain. 



As I have already indicated, it is to be found in many forms or 

 varieties, but the only ones which require notice here are : — Hamiltonii 

 (Lord Aberdeen's Pinaster), Lemoniana (Sir C. Lemon's;, Minor 

 (small-coned), Monopliylla (single-leaved). Nana (dwarf), Pendula 

 (pendent-branched), Tortuosa (twisted^branched), and Variegata (the 

 (variegated-leaved). 



