40 
Vernacular Name. The term " Flame-tree " refers to the abundance of the 
fiery red blossoms which give the tree, when in full flower, the appearance of being on 
fire. The precise colour of the flower is brilliant scarlet. 
A large Flame-tree in full bloom is a noble and gorgeous sight, and is calculated 
to impress the most phlegmatic person with the beauty of our flora. In its native 
habitats it is best looked upon from an eminence, and the contrast between the flame- 
looking mass of a comparatively large tree and the more or less sombre foliage of all 
other trees never fails to arrest attention. It is a brush tree, and in the bush it always 
has fairly good conditions, including plenty of shelter. Under cultivation it is very 
often the case that it lacks one of the essentials of good soil, moisture or shelter, and 
hence instead of being in flower in one mass, before a single leaf unfolds, it may flower 
in patches, with more or less foliage, giving the tree a bizarre, and not so fully ornamental 
an appearance as when the whole shapely tree is ablaze, to be succeeded by the pale- 
green, also beautiful foliage. 
Aboriginal Name. The late Sir William Macarthur quoted the name 
" Couramyn " (N.S.W. Cat. Paris Exhib., 1855), as in use in the Illawarra. It is to 
be noted that the same name was applied to the Kurrajong, so it probably refers to 
the fibrous bark. In the N.S.W. Cat. Paris Exhib. 1862, " Weery Wegne " is quoted 
by him as in use by the aborigines, presumably also at the Illawarra. 
Synonym. Sterculia acerifolia A. Cunn. in London's Hort. Brit. 392 (partly) 
(1830). 
Fruit. A dye is obtained from the seed-vessels, according to the late Mr. 
W. Guilfoyle. It can only be of academic interest. 
Bark. The bark is fully 2 inches thick when the tree is full grown, and 
furnishes bast of a most beautiful lace-like texture. The fibre is very simply prepared 
by steeping, and is suitable for cordage and nets, ropes, mats, baskets, &c., and is useful 
as a paper material. The tow is of a very elastic nature, and is suitable for upholstering 
purposes, such as stuffing mattresses or pillows. (Guilfoyle.) The fibre used to be 
employed by the blacks for making nets and fishing-lines. 
Exudation. It exudes a gum which swells up in water. The mucilage 
of Steretdia pUitanifolia (young shoots) consists of araban with some galactan, according 
to K. Yoshimura, Bull. Coll. Agric. Imp. Univ. Tokyo, 1895, 2, 207; Journ. Chem. 
Soc. Ixx (li), CO, and doubtless the composition of Australian Sterculia gums will be 
found to be similar. 
Timber. Wood soft, light, and of a light colour. Like other woods of this 
t can be torn away by the finger-nail, so it can have but a very limited use. 
ab in the Technological Museum, which had been seasoned over twenty-five years 
having been exhibited at the London International Exhibition of 1862), had a weight 
which corresponds to 27 Ib. 4 oz. per cubic foot. 
It and allied timbers might be experimented with by our entomologists to see 
to any extent be substituted for cork, although I am aware they lack some 
of the properties of that substance. 
