26 
AMERICAN NETTLE TREE. 
perpendicular : those of the female diffuse themselves horizontally and 
form a larger and rounder summit. 
The fruit is supported by long petioles, and is from 15 to 18 lines in 
length, of a light red color and of an oval shape. It is thick-skinned, 
intensely acid, and contains, like that of the Large Tupelo, a large oblong 
stone deeply channelled on both sides. An agreeable acidulous beverage 
might he made of it ; but the Lime Tree, which is found in the same 
country, is superior in the size and abundance of its fruit, and has, besides, 
the advantage of flourishing on barren, sun-beaten lands. 
This species is the smallest of the Tupelos, being rarely more than 80 
feet high and 7 or 8 inches in diameter. It accompanies the Large Tupelo 
in the swamps which are found upon the borders of the rivers, or in the 
midst of the forests. As its wood is soft and its dimensions too small to 
he applicable in the arts, it falls exclusively within the province of the 
/ amateurs of exotic plants. 
PLATE CXII1. 
A branch with leaves and fruit of the natural size . Fig . 1 , A stone separated 
from the pulp. 
AMERICAN NETTLE TREE. 
Polygamia dicecia. Linn. Âmentaceæ. Juss. 
Celtis occidentales. C. foliis ovatis, acuminatis , serratis, basi ineequalibus, 
supra scabris, subtus hirtis ; fructibus rubris. 
The American Nettle Tree, if not rare, is little multiplied in compari- 
son with the Oaks, the Walnuts and the Maples. As it is scattered singly 
through the forest, it is difficult to fix the point at which it ceases toward 
the north, hut I believe it is not found beyond the river Connecticut. In 
the Middle, Western and Southern States, it bears the name which I have 
( 
