PINUS PINASTER. 
;? 
the Pinaster , which, he says, grows in great quantities in the forest of Edough, near Bone, in Algeria. 
It also occurs on the Mediterranean coast of the south of France. In Italy, according to Schow (Schow 
“On the Coniferous Plants of Italy,” translated in Journal of the Horticultural Society , vol. iii. p. 119), 
it grows on the sandy plains and on the lower mountains on the south slope of the northern and on the 
western slope of the central Apennines—Poegli, Sestri, Spezia, Sarzana, Viareggio, Marchia di Pisa, 
Mont Pisano, as well as, according to Savi, in the Maremmes of Sienna, and on the different groups of 
mountains to the west of the Apennines, and even on Mount Argentaro, according to Brocchi. It is 
not found to the south of this mountain, nor before we come to the north of the Apennines. It has 
been said to have grown on the Pianura del Cavallino, near Venice (Pollini, Naccari); but Professor 
Schow states that the specimens he found in that locality belonged to Pinus Pinea ; for although they 
had no cones, the young leaves were ciliated, and the old ones thinner and stiffer than those of P. Pinaster. 
The Professor also mentions that the variety with shorter leaves and smaller cones seems to prefer the 
low mountains, whilst the larger - leaved, larger-coned variety prefers, on the contrary, sandy plains: 
a sufficient indication of which is the natural habitat of the tree. The upper limit of this tree in the 
Apennines is 2800 feet above the sea (Mont Pisano). This species has been said to occur in Austria 
and Hungary, but Professor Schow says that what has there been taken for it is nothing but P. 
A ustriaca. Visiani, however, says it grows in the islands of Brazza, Lesina, and Carzola. 
It is also a native of Corsica, where it takes the form of the variety named P. Hamiltonii , which 
more particularly abounds in the neighbourhood of Corte, a small town in Corsica, where it attains 
large dimensions. That variety is frequently designated as the “ Pin de Corte,” from the name of 
this town. It is the same variety which occurs in Spain and Italy. 
The Pinaster is also a native of Greece, and extends into Asia Minor. M. Kotschy states that 
he found the P. maritima on the Cilician and Caramanian mountains; but the P. maritima referred 
to by him is not Pinus Pinaster. From specimens collected by him and preserved in the Kew 
Herbarium, we see that his P. maritima is P. Brutia , a different species. But Prince Tchihatcheff 
(“ Asie Mineure,” ii. p. 306) states that it is found in Bithynia and Cilicia, and that it is widely spread 
in the latter on the southern slope of the Boulgardagh, especially in the neighbourhood of Galek, 
and that it extends up that mountain-range as high as 1786 metres; and there seems to be no doubt 
that he refers to the true P. Pinaster and not to P. Brutia , like Kotschy; for he not only specifies 
it as “ P. Pinaster , Soland., P. sylvestris, var. P. maritima Lurk. non. Ait.,” but adds P. Brutia as 
an Asia Minor plant, giving Pontus and the Boulgardagh (Cilicia) as the localities, and citing Kotschy’s 
collection. There is no evidence of its ever having been found farther east than Asia Minor. 
Lambert gives Switzerland as a habitat of this tree: “ On the mountains of Switzerland the 
native forests are seldom suffered to stand, being usually either cut into shingle for covering the roofs 
of houses, or employed for the extraction of pitch.” And Loudon, perhaps merely adopting his 
statement, says, “It abounds in Switzerland, where its timber is said to be used in forming shingles.” 
The allusions here must be to the Italian Alps, for in the true Swiss Alps we believe it does not 
occur. It is not in Host’s “ Flora Austriaca,” nor in Hausman’s “ Tyrol Flora,” two of the most 
recent and reliable authorities. 
History. —Before this species was described by any scientific botanist (which appears to have been 
first done by Bauhin in 1623), it had been already introduced into England by Gerard in 1596. We 
still have some old trees remaining, but none nearly approaching that date. U ntil a few years ago the 
individual tree which had the reputation of being the oldest was one which grew in the garden of the 
Bishop of London’s Palace at Fulham, but it dated only from about 100 years afterwards, viz., 1685 ; 
it died about 1862, and was then cut down. It was 80 feet high when measured for Loudon in 1835. 
The next oldest are said to be at Syon, Pains Hill, and Whitton. The largest mentioned by Loudon 
were some at Westwich House, Norfolk, which in about 100 years (planted in 1702, and measured 
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