424 



ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. 



PART III. 



with the bright green above; and the alternate reflection of the two surfaces 

 in the water heightens the beauty of this wonderful moving mirror, and aids in 

 forming an enchanting picture ; "which," saj's " Michaux, during my long excur- 

 sions in a canoe in these regions of solitude and silence, I contemplated with 

 unwearied admiration. Beginning at Pittsburg, and even some miles above 

 the junction of the Alleghany and Monongahela rivers, white maples, with 

 trunks 12 ft. or 15 ft. in circumference, are continually to he met with at 

 short distances." (Michx, p. 213, 214.) 



History. 'J 'his tree was introduced by Sir Charles Wager, in 1725, and 

 has since been in general cultivation. It was at first supposed to be a variety 

 of A. rubrum ; and, as such, is mentioned in Martyn's Miller, In the first 

 edition of Du Hamel, the two sorts are described as distinct varieties ; and 

 their specific distinctions were afterwards pointed out by Desfontaines, in the 

 Ann. du Miis. d'Hist. Nat. de Paris, vol. vii. p. 412. ; the principal distinction 

 consisting in the fruit of A. eriocarpum being woolly, and that of A. riibrum 

 being smooth. Both species are now in very general cultivation, throughout 

 Europe, as ornamental trees, 



Proj^erties and Uses. In America, wooden bowls are sometimes made of 

 the wood of this species, when that of the tulip tree cannot be procured. 

 At Pittsburg, and in the neighbouring towns, it is used, in cabinet-making, 

 instead of holly, and for inlaying furniture made of mahogany, cherry tree, 

 and walnut ; though it is not exactly suitable for this purpose, as it soon 

 changes colour. The hatters of Pittsburg prefer the charcoal of this wood 

 to every other for heating their boilers, as it alFords a more uniform and du- 

 rable heat than any other. Sugar is made from this species in districts where 

 the tree abounds, but the produce is not above half that obtained from the sap 

 of the sugar maple. The sap is in motion very early in this species, beginning 

 to ascend about the 15th of January ; so that, when sugar is made from it, the 

 work of extracting it is sooner completed. The cellular integument rapidly 

 produces a black precipitate with sulphate of iron. {Michaux.) In Europe, 

 this tree is chiefly planted for ornamental purposes, for which it is admii'ably 

 adapted by the rapidity of its growth, the graceful divergent direction of its 

 branches, the beauty of its leaves, and the profusion of its early flowers. 

 In mild seasons, such as the present spring of 1836, these flowers begin to 

 burst from their buds in the first week in January; and they are often fully 

 expanded by the end of February or beginning of March. 



Soil, Situation, Propagation, S^c. A. eriocarpum requires a deep free soil, 

 and more moisture than most of the other species. Though it will not grow 

 in swamps, yet it attains its greatest dimensions on the alluvial banks of 

 rivers which are occasionally inundated. It ripens its seeds, both in America 

 and Britain, by midsummer, or earlier; and, if these are immediately sown, 

 they come up, and produce plants which are 8 in. or 10 in. high, by the suc- 

 ceeding autumn. 



statistics. The largest tree in the neighbourhood of London is at Kew, Where, in 25 years, it has 

 attained the height of SO ft. ; in Staffordshire, at Trenthara, it is also SO ft. high. Price of plants, in 

 London, Is. 6rf, each ; at BoUwyller, 1 franc ; at New York, 25 cents, and seeds 1 dollar per quart. 



*t 16. A. ru' brum Li. The red-flotuering, or scarlet. Maple. 



Identification. Lin. Spec. 1496. ; Hayne Dcnd., p. 213. ; Dec. Prod., 1. p. 595. ; Don's Mill., 1. p. &50. 

 Synonymes. A. virginianum Herm. Par., t. 1., Mill. III., t. 8. f. 4., Trew. Set., t. 85, 86. ; A. coc- 



ci'neum Ait. ; soft M.iple, Swamp Maple, red Maple; E'rable rouge, Fr. ; rother Ahorn, Ger. 

 Engravings. Michx. Arb., 2. t. 14. ; Desf. Ann. Mus., 7. p. 413. t. 25. ; Tratt. Arch., 1. No. 9. ; 



Schmidt. Arb., 1. t. 6. ; Krause, t. 119.; <i\xrjig. ISO. in p. 457. ; and the plate of the tree in our 



Second Volume. 



Spec. Char., Sfc. Leaves cordate at the base, glaucous beneath, deeply and 

 unequally toothed, palmately 5-lobed, with acute recesses. Flowers con- 

 glomerate, 5-petaled, pentandrous. Ovaries smooth. {Don^s Mill., i. 

 p. 650.) A tree of the middle size, from North America in 1656, remark- 

 able for its red flowers, which are produced in April and May. 



Varieties. 



1 A. r. 2 coccineum and ^ A. r. 3 intermedhm are varieties of this species, 



