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CARPINUS. Lin. Gen. Plant. 952. [fo called of 
carpere, Lot. to crop*, becaufe it may be eafily cropped, 
.or its wood is eafily cleft.] The Hornbeam, or Hard- 
beam, in French Charnie. 
The Characters are. 
It hath male and female flowers, growing feparate on the 
fame plant. ‘The male flowers are difpofed in a cylindrical 
rope or katkin, which is loofe and fcnly, each fc ale covering 
one flower , which hath no petals , but ten flmall Jia 
mina , terminated by comprejfled hairy fummits. The female 
flowers are difpofed in the fame form , and are 'Jingle under 
each fcale •« thefe have one petal , which is f japed like a 
cup , cut into fix parts, and two jhort germen, each hawing 
two hairy fiyles , crowned by a Jingle jligyna. The katkin 
afterward grows large , and at the bafe of each fcale is 
lodged an oval angular nut. 
This genus of plants is ranged in the eighth fefoion 
of Linnaeus’s twenty-firft clafs, intitled Monoecia Po- 
lyandria, the plants of this clafs having male and fe- 
male flowers growing feparate on the fame tree, and 
thofe of this lection have many ftamina. 
The Species are, 
1. Carpinus ( Vulgaris ) fquamis ftrobilorum planis. 
Hort. Clift. 447. Hornbeam with flat fcale s to the cones. 
Carpinus. Dod. Pempt. 841. Common Hornbeam. 
2. Carpinus ( Oftrya ) fquamis ftrobilorum infiatis. Hort. 
Cliff. 447. Hornbeam with inflated feales to the cones. 
Oftrya ulmo fnnilis, fruftu racemofo lupulo fimilis. 
C. B. P. 427. The Hop Hornbeam. 
3. Carpinus ( Orient alis ) foliis ovato-lanceolatis ferratis 
ftrobilis brevibus. Hornbeam with oval , fpear-Jhaped , 
flawed leaves , and the Jhortefl cones. Carpinus Orien- 
talis folio minori, fruetu brevi. T. Cor. 40. Eafiern 
Hornbeam , with a [mailer leaf and [sorter fruit. 
4. Carpinus ( Virginiana ) foliis lanceolatis acuminatis, 
ftrobilis longiflimis. Hornbeam with pointed fpear-JJoaped 
leaves , and the longefl cones. Carpinus Virginiana flo- 
. refeens. Pluk. Virginia flowering Hornbeam. 
The firft fort is very common in many parts of Eng- 
land, but is rarely fuffered to grow as a timber-tree, 
being generally reduced to pollards by the country 
people yet where the young trees have been pro- 
perly treated, they have grown to a large fize. I have 
feen fome of them in woods, upon a cold ftiff clay, 
which have been near feventy feet high, with large, 
noble, . fine items, perfectly ftrait and found. Of 
late years, this has been only confidered as a fhrub, 
and never cultivated but for under-wood in the coun- 
try, and in the nurferies to form hedges, after the 
French tafte ; for in moft of their great gardens, 
their cabinets, &c. are formed of thefe trees, as are 
their trelliffes and hedges which furround their plan- 
tations. But fince thefe fort of ornaments have been 
almo'ft banifhed from the Englifh gardens, there has 
been little demand for thefe trees in the nurferies. 
As this tree will thrive upon cold, barren, expofed 
hills, and in fuch fituations where few other forts will 
grow, it may be cultivated to great advantage by 
the proprietors of fuch lands. It will refill: the vio- 
lence of winds better than moft other trees, and is by 
no means flow in its growth. But where thefe are 
propagated for timber, they fhould be rafted from 
feeds, upon the fame foil, and in the fame fituation, 
where they are defigned to grow ^ and not brought 
from better land, and a warmer fituation, as is too 
frequently praftifed. Nor fhould they be propagated 
by layers, which is the common method where they 
are intended for hedges or under- wood *, for which 
thofe fo raifed will anlwer the purpofe full as well as 
thofe raifed from feeds, but the latter muft always be 
preferred for timber-trees. 
The feeds of this tree fhould be fown in the autumn, 
icon after they are ripe j for ‘if they are kept out of 
the ground till fpring, the plants will not come up 
till the following year. When the plants appear, they 
muft be kept very clean from weeds, and treated as 
other foreft-trees * in two years time they will be fit 
to tranfplant, for the fooner ail trees which are de- 
figned for timber are planted where they ‘are to re- 
main, the larger they will grow, and the wood will ■ 
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be firmer and more durable. If thefe are not Inter- 
mixed with other kind of trees, they fhould be planted 
pretty dole ; especially on the outfide of the plan- 
tations, that they may prated and draw each other 
up : and if they are kept clean from weeds three or 
four years, it will greatly promote' their growth, after 
which the plants will have obtained fufficient ftrength 
to keep down the weeds. 
' As the trees advance in their growth, they muft 
be thinned, which fhould be done with caution, cut- 
ting away the moft unpromifmg plants gradually, fo 
as not to let much cold air at once, to thofe which 
are left, efpecially on the borders of the plantation. 
For in all young plantations of timber, it is much the 
better method, to take away a few trees every year, 
where it is wanted, than, as is commonly pratlifed, 
to let all grow till it is fit to cut as under-wood, and 
then cut all away, except thofe intended for timber ; 
whereby fo much cold air is fuddenly let in upon 
them, as to flop their progrefs for fome years : but 
by this method a prefent advantage is gained, which 
is now more generally attended to, than the future 
profit. 
The timber of this tree is very tough and flexible, 
and might be converted to many ufeful purpofes, when 
fuffered to grow to a proper fize 7 but as they have 
been generally treated otherwife, the principal ufes 
it has been applied to, was for turnery ware, for 
which it is an excellent wood, and alio for making 
mill-cogs, heads of beetles, &c. It is alfo excellent fuel. 
The leaves of this tree remain upon them, till the 
young buds in the fpring thru ft them off, fo they af- 
ford much fhelter to birds in winter ; and this ren- 
ders them very proper to plant round the borders of 
other plantations in expofed fituations, where they 
will defend the other trees in winter, and thereby 
greatly promote their growth. 
The Hop Hornbeam fheds its leaves in winter, with 
the Elm, and other deciduous trees. This tree, 
tho’ but lately much known in England, is very 
common in Germany, growing promifeuoufly with 
the common fort. It is alfo faid to grow plentifully 
in many parts of North America, but it is doubtful 
whether that is not a different fort from this. The 
Hop Elornbeam is of quicker growth than the com- 
mon fort, but what the wood of that will be I do 
not know *, for there are but few of the trees in 
England growing upon their own roots, moft of them 
having been grafted upon the common Hornbeam, 
which is the ufual method of propagating them in 
the nurferies *, but the trees fo raifed are of fhort du- 
' ration, for the graft generally grows much fafter 
than the ftock, fo that in a few years there is a great 
difproportion in their fize ; and where they happen 
to ftand expofed to ftrong winds, the graft is fre- 
quently broken from the ftock, after many years 
growth ; for which reafon, I would caution every 
perfon not to purchafe any of thefe trees which have 
been fo propagated. 
The Virginian flowering Hornbeam is ftill lefs com- 
mon than the laft, and only to be feen in curious gar- 
dens ; it is equally as hardy as the other, and may be 
increafed by layers. 
This fort will grow to the height of thirty feet, or 
more, and is of quicker growth than either of the 
.former forts: it fheds its leaves in autumn, about 
the fame time with the Elm *, and, during the time 
of its verdure, this tree makes a good appearance, 
being well clothed with leaves, which are of a deep, 
ftrong, green colour, refembling more the long-leaved 
Elm than the Hornbeam. 
The Eaftern Hornbeam is a tree of humble growth, 
rarely rifmg above ten or twelve- feet high in this 
country, fhooting out many horizontal irregular 
branches, fo cannot eafily be trained up to a idem. 
The leaves of this fort are much fin after than thofe 
of the common Elornbeam, and the branches grow 
clofer together, therefore may be very proper for low 
hedges, where they are wanted in gardens ; being a 
very tonfile plant, it may foe kept in lefs compafs 
than 
