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178 The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland analogous to the cone-shaped base of the former; and from Coulter's observations it would appear that seedlings of Taxodium are also rare here, and that it is being beaten in the struggle by the Nyssa, the seedlings of which are very abundant. A disease l due to a fungus has attacked many of the trees in the Mississippi valley; the heartwood is found when the trees are cut down to be full of holes ^ to f inch in diameter. Taxodium is one of the most striking and characteristic trees in the Gulf States, having its branches often covered with Tillandsia ^lsnco^dcs, the " Spanish moss" of the inhabitants, the long grey masses of which wave in the wind and give it a strange appearance. The trunk takes many curious forms, which seem to be induced by the nature of the soil and the depth of the water, sometimes branching low and surrounded by buttresses, sometimes growing straight up to a considerable height (Plates 52-53). 2 From the stout wide-spreading roots arise woody cylindrical projections, sometimes above a foot in diameter and 5 to 7 feet high, which are called " cypress knees." The growth and functions of these have been the source of much discussion. 3 Berkeley 4 supposed that they serve to aerate the submerged roots; others have thought that they help to anchor the roots in soft muddy soil. As the knees, however, occur to some extent even on ground which is never flooded, as in the trees at Syon, these suppositions, though highly probable, must remain somewhat doubtful. The knees are hollow inside, and smooth externally, being covered with a reddish, soft, and spongy bark. They never show any sign of vegetation, and will not put forth shoots, even if wounded and covered with earth. CULTIVATION In England the Taxodium grows much better than might be expected consider ing how much colder and shorter are our summers than those of its native country. It was introduced by John Tradescant about 1640, and described by Parkinson 5 as Cuprcsstts americana. For some unexplained reason it has lost the popularity it once enjoyed, and is now seldom planted, though it grows well in the southern and western counties. I have raised it from American seed, which, however, must be soaked in warm water for some time, and placed in a warm house to get good results. It grows rapidly at first, but as the young wood is not ripened, and no terminal bud formed (which 1 Coulter, Missouri Bot. Garden Report, 1 899, p. 23. 2 For the negatives of the first of these photographs I am indebted to Miss E. Cummings of Brookline, Mass., a lady who is second to none in her love of and knowledge of trees. The second, which was sent by Mr. W. Ashe, represents a typical cypress swamp on the Roauoak river, North Carolina, which has never been cut for timber. 3 Sargent, loc. at. 1 52, note I ; Coulter, foe. fit. The best review I know of the literature on this subject is in a letter by R. H. Lamborn in Garden mid Forest, iii. p. 21, which should be consulted by those interested, and which is illustrated by a very curious photograph, taken at Lake Monroe in Central Florida, of the denuded roots of the tree, showing that in some cases, at least, the anchor theory is proved. 4 Card. Chron. 1 857, p. 549. 6 Parkinson, Theatr. 1477, fig. In Catalogue of Trees, London, 1730, p. 25, it is stated that the first tree, raised in Tradescant's garden near Lambeth, was then still living, being 40 feet high by 2 fathoms in girth. Taxodium 179 Sargent says is also the case in America), the young plant must be kept under glass for the first two or three winters in order to develop a straight leader. Many of the old trees which are to be found in England have evidently suffered from spring and autumn frosts when young, and have become stunted in consequence, but when the wood is ripe the tree will stand as much as 30 to 40" of frost, and I have seen it existing in the open air as far north as Copenhagen. It should be planted in deep, moist loam, and the most sheltered situation that can be found, and may then be expected in the south and south-west to grow into a very fine and ornamental tree. REMARKABLE TREES The trees at Syon have been frequently described and figured. They are planted in damp soil by the side of a sheet of water, and one of them has produced knees of i to 2 feet high. This tree, which is shown in Plate 54, measured, in 1903. 90 feet by 12, but there is a much taller one on the other side of the water, which, when we saw it last in 1905, was no feet high, and is the tallest we know of in Europe. Another in the Duke's walk is 85 feet by 10 feet 3 inches. But those at Whitton, near Hounslow, are even more remarkable, and are believed to have been planted by the Duke of Argyll between 1720 and 1762. They grow on gravelly soil, which, though apparently dry, is probably underlaid by damp alluvium. There are five trees standing in a group, of which the largest, carefully measured by us both in 1905, was 98 to 100 feet high by 13 feet 6 inches in girth ; the others are all large, healthy, and growing trees (Plate 55). At Pain's Hill, Surrey, there are two good trees: one, 1 measured by Henry in 1904. is 90 feet by 10 feet 9 inches, the other is 80 feet by 8 feet 6 inches. At Parkside Gardens, Wimbledon, a tree is growing which is remarkably like the Ginkgo at Kew in habit. The bole at 7 feet divides into two stems, which give off seven or eight ascending branches. In 1904, measured by Henry, it was 65 feet by 11 feet 2 inches. At Gothic Lodge, Wimbledon, the residence of Sir William Preece, there is a tree with a fine bole of 20 feet, dividing into several upright stems. In 1904, measured by Henry, it was 90 feet by 11 feet. This is perhaps the tree mentioned by Miller,2 who says that a " tree at Wimbledon in the garden of Sir A. Janssen, Bart., bore cones for some years past and seeds which have been as good as those brought from America." At White Knights, Reading, there are several trees, but none of large size, the biggest measuring, in 1904, 67 feet by 7 feet 10 inches. They are remarkable, however, for variety of habit. One is a tall, narrow tree with upright branches, almost fastigiate. In another tree the stem is twisted, as often occurs in the chestnut, and most of the branches are twisted also in the direction against the sun. Loudon mentions these as young trees of peculiar habits. 1 This is probably the tree, reported in Wootis and forests, February 4, 1885, to be 83 feet in height by 10 feet in girth at 3 feet above the ground. * M iller, Card. Diet., ed. 8, sub Cvfressus disticha ( 1768),
180 The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland Taxodium 181 At Barton, Suffolk, there are three trees, which measured in 1903, («) in the Arboretum, 50 feet by 5 feet 5 inches, dying ; (b) a smaller tree beside it, in a worse condition; (c) on the lawn, 56 feet by 4 feet 3 inches. The latter tree 1 was planted in 1826, the other two in 1831. It is evident that the dry though deep soil at Barton is not favourable to the growth of this species. At Frogmore, Windsor, there are two specimens very different in habit. One, a clean-stemmed tree, growing near water, but without knees, is 80 feet by 8 feet 6 inches. The other, not so large, has a weeping habit, and is branched to the ground. At Strathfieldsaye there is a tree, mentioned by Loudon as being 46 feet in height by 3 feet 4 inches in diameter, which I found in 1903 to be 63 feet high by 9 feet in girth. It is growing in stiff clay soil and has no knees; the stem is deeply furrowed. At Dropmore there is a tree beside a pond, planted in 1843, ant^ now measuring 60 feet by 5 feet 9 inches. At South Lodge, Enfield, a tree is growing near water, with small knees, which, measured by Henry in 1904, was 77 feet by n feet 10 inches. At Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, Mr. W. Miller 2 reports that a tree, mentioned by Loudon as 47 feet by 2 feet 3 inches in 1843, nacl attained, in 1887, 75 feet by 11 feet 6 inches at 3 feet from the ground. At Longford Castle,3 Salisbury, there are two trees, growing within a few yards of the river Avon. One, very tall, has a straight trunk free from branches for about 30 feet, and a girth of 8 feet 10 inches at 4 feet from the ground. The other is 6 feet in girth, and branches at 7 feet up. At Brockett's Park, near Hatfield, the residence of Lord Mountstephen, there are many trees planted along a walk on the banks of the Lee, and forming an irregular line in which the trees vary very much in size. In the sheltered part of the valley, where the soil and situation are very favourable, they average 70 to 80 feet high, the best I measured being 80 feet by 10 feet and 86 feet by 9 feet. But lower down the stream, where the valley is more exposed to the wind, they are stunted, and not more than half the height of those above. There are knees on some of the trees overgrown with moss and meadowsweet, but not so large as those at Syon. At Upper Nutwell, near Exeter, there is a tree which Mr. G. H. Hodgkinson informed me in June 1904 was 84 feet high by n feet 9 inches in girth. Large trees have been reported at many other places, especially in the south of England, viz.: Connington Castle, 4 Huntingdonshire, a tree 70 feet by 7 feet in 1877; Watford, 5 Herts, 85 feet by 14 feet in 1884; Stanwell,6 Surrey, a tree 13 feet in girth in 1904; Embley, 7 near Romsey, Hampshire, a tree 8f feet in girth in 1872, standing on the top of a hill. 1 Bunbury, Arboretum Notes, 1 61. 4 Ibid. 1 877, x"- 405. 7 Bunbury, Arboretum Notes, 1 61, 2 Card. Chron. 1 905, xxxvii. 12. 6 Woods and Forests, 1 884, p. 546. 3 Can/en, 1 890, xxxvii. 538. 8 Reported by Sir Hugh Beevor I have seen no trees in Scotland of any size, and Henry has heard of none in Ireland, but there is one in the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens 31 feet by 3 feet in 1905. r TIMBER According to Sargent the timber is light and soft, close, straight grained, not strong, easily worked, and very durable in contact with the soil. It is largely used for building, most of the houses in Louisiana and the Gulf States being built from it, and large quantities are also now exported to the North, where it is found a most valuable wood for doors, sashes, balustrades, and greenhouses. The Stearns Lumber Company of Boston, U.S.A., are making a speciality of it, and from a pamphlet published by this firm I take the following particulars: The timber varies considerably in different localities, and they consider, after long experience, that the so-called Gulf Cypress, grown in Florida, is better than the Louisiana Red Cypress, or that from the Atlantic coast of Georgia. Farther north it is apt to be more shaky and of coarser grain; and it is claimed that the seasoning is better done in the South than in the Northern States, from one to five years being required to do this properly, according to the dimensions of the timber, and that the longer in reason that it is kept in the pile before using the better. It is said to be more durable, and to shrink and swell less than spruce or pine, to take paint well, and, as it contains no pitch, to resist fire longer than other coniferous woods. It is quoted from the Richmond Despatch that a house, built by Michael Braun in 1776, and still owned and occupied by his descendants, was covered with cypress shingles, which were only removed in 1880. Such shingles are now made by machinery at a very low price, and would be well worth trying for roofing houses in England, as they are very light in weight and inexpensive, and though I have no evidence that they are better than shingles made from English oak, their much greater size makes them easier to lay, and they can be cut to fancy patterns, which makes them very ornamental for roofing. This wood is also highly recommended for doors, sashes, tanks, and other purposes where a great power of enduring damp is required. It occasionally produces very ornamental wood, which is mottled and grained with red and brown, and some doors made of this wood, two of which I now possess, are extremely handsome. Whether the wood grown in England will prove equally good I cannot say, as large trees are so seldom cut down in England that I have been unable to try it, but would certainly advise anyone who may have the opportunity to do so. (H. J. E.)
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»f rees Great Britain Ireland BY H
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Trees of Great Britain Ireland BY H
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PREFACE THE United Kingdom offers a
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CONTENTS PAGE DEDICATION ........ v
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The Trees of Great Britain and Irel
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The Trees of Great Britain and Irel
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8 The Trees of Great Britain and Ir
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12 The Trees of Great Britain and I
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lo The Trees of Great Britain and I
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2,4 The Trees of Great Britain and
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32, The Trees of Great Britain and
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SOPHORA Sophora, Linnaeus, Gen. PI.
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Page 99: 176 The Trees of Great Britain and
Page 111 and 112: 2OO The Trees of Great Britain and
Page 113 and 114: a 7" KSrJi «£^«~ **». . "" ^ '"
Page 115 and 116: INARCHED BP;ECH AT ASIIRIDGE TLATE
Page 117 and 118: 13KECII WOOD AT SLINHON A ru 6.
Page 119 and 120: BEECH AT NEWBATTLE Pi .ATE 8.
Page 121 and 122: I BEECH AT GORDON CASTLE TLAI-K 10.
Page 123 and 124: KING BEECH AT KNOLE I'LAIE 12.
Page 125 and 126: AILANTHUS AT BELTON PLATE 14.
Page 127 and 128: SOI'HORA AT CAMBRIDGE PLATE 16.
Page 129 and 130: ARAUCARIA FOREST IN CM ILK I'l.MT.
Page 131 and 132: ARAUCARIAS AT BEAUFORT
Page 133 and 134: MAIDENHAIR T liEK AT FKOGMOKF. PLAT
Page 135 and 136: TULIP TREE IN NORTH CAROLINA 1'LATE
Page 137 and 138: TULIP TREE AT KILLERTON PLATE 26.
Page 139 and 140: PLATE SERVIAN SPRUCE IN BOSNIA 28.
Page 141 and 142: MENZIES' SPRUCE AT BEAUFORT PLATE 3
Page 143 and 144: YEW AVENUE AT MIDIIURST PLATE 32.
Page 145 and 146: i '*m i t /n b &; y'JM i /Jk, - •
Page 147 and 148: •• *-' YEW AT WHITTIKGHAME PLAT
Page 149 and 150: CRYPTOMERIA FOREST IN NORTH JAPAN 1
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CRYPTOMEKIAS AT IMAICHI I'l.ATE 40.
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CRYPTOMERIA AT HEMSTED PLATK 42.
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PYRUS. PLATE 44.
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SORB TREE AT ARLEV PLATE 46.
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SERVICE TREE AT RICKMANSWORTH >.mmm
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'^iji^m^^Jt^.^M. SERVICE TREE AT SY
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DECIDUOUS CYPRESS IN VIRGINIA PLATE
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DECIDUOUS CYPRESS AT SYON Tr.ATE 54
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GIANT THUYA IN VANCOUVER'S ISLAND P
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Plate 58 represents the trunk of wh
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j« WESTERN HEMLOCK GROWING ON FALL
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