- Ï T J
1 1
Stamens 4—5, very short. Style short. Fruit compressed, indehiscent,
samara-like, turgid, 2—3-celled. Seeds oblong. (Doris Mill.)
Leaves compound, alternate, stipulate, deciduous ; pinnate, 3- rarely 5-
foliolate, with pellucid dots, the lateral leaflets inequilateral. Floivers
vvlutisli, cymose : cymes corymbed or panicled.—Deciduous shrubs o r low
trees, natives of North America and Asia. There is only one species in
British gardens, which is o f the easiest culture, and is propagated by seeds
and cuttings, p u t in in autumn, and covered with a hand glass.
Ï * 1. P. t b i f o h a ' t a L . The thresi-leajleted Pte le a , or Shrubby Trefoil.
Identification. Lin. Sp., 173. ; Willd. Sn. P l., I. 670. ; Dec. P ro d ., 2. p. 82. ; D o n ’s Mill., I. p. 806. :
Tor. «tikI Gray, 1. p. 215.
St/nonymes. Orme de Samarie à trois Feuilles, Fr. ; d reybla ttrige Lede rblume, Ger.
Engravings. Dill. E lth ., t. 122. ; Schmidt Arb., 2. t. 76. : th e plate in Arb. B rit., 1st. e d i t , vol. v. ;
and o u r^ g . 193.
Spec. Char., Sfc. Leaf o f three leaflets th a t are ovate acute, the middle one
much tapered towards its base. Flowers in corymbs, usually tetrandrous.
(Dec. Prod.) A low tre e or shrub. Lake Fide to Florida and Texas.
Height Gft. to lO ft. Introd. 1704. Flowers w h itish ; Ju n e and J u ly ;
Capsules greenish ; ripe in October. Decaying leaves o f a remarkably clear
rich yellow. Naked young wood dark purplish brown.
Varieties.
Î * P . /. 2 pentaphylla Munchh. has 5 leaflets, H. S.
Î a P . /. 3 pubéscens P u rsh has th e leaflets pubescent.
When this plant is pruned up with a single stem, it forms a handsome low
tree with a hemispherical head ; but in British gardens it is more frequently
193. Plfele.T trifoliàta.
found as a large shrub, with numerous stems proceeding from th e rootstock.
The shoots and leaves pubescent when young. Ovary o f the starainate
flowers abortive. Odour of the flowers disagreeable. Capsules with flattened
wings, somewhat resembling those o f the elm.
Other Species o f Ptelea. —■ P. Baldiuiim is described by Torrey and Gray as
a shrub not more than a foot high, but it has not yet been introduced
XVII. x a n t h o x y l a ' c e æ . XVI I I . c o r i a ' c e æ . 145
G e n u s I I I .
A IL A 'N T U S D e s f. T h e A i l a n t o . L m . Syri. Polygàmia Monoe'cia.
Identification. Desf. Act. Acad. P a r., 1786 p. 263 ; De c. P ro d ., 2. p. *• P’
being, it is said, tre e of heaven, hence th e German name, Gotterbaum, tre e o f th e gods.
Gen. Char. Male floivers. Calyx 5 d d t . Pcta/s 5, longer than the calyx.
Stamens 10. th e 's opposite the petals shortest. Disk ceatvak—Hermaphrodite,
or female, flowers. Calyx, petals, and disk as in the male, but with
r. ’ ^ • r» tt .-.4. Q__dite.oY jemaie,jiowcrs.caava K r«i-»l/An(r • l-npHPfi.
fewer stamens. Ovaries 3—5, distinct. Samara; 3—5, oblong ; 1-celled,
1-seeded. (Doris M ill.) . . • . r.;
Leaves com p o u n d ,alte rnate,exstipulate,deciduous; nnpari-p”’"oto A/n,,,,,-.
erminal, small, greenish. — One species, a deciduous tree trc
i-pinnate. Flowers
Prom China.
¥ 1. A. GLANDULO'SA Desf. The glandulous-/eawd Ailanto.
Identification. Desf. Act. Acad. P.ar. U»«. P - f ? - ! ' P ' ®®’ “ ''-I '--PEngravings.
S p e J ch a r., 4c. Leaves impari-pinnate ; the leaflets coarsely toothed a t the
base ; the te e th glandulous on the under side. (Dec. Prod.) A large tree.
North o f China. Height 50 ft. to 60 ft. Introd. 1751. Flowers whitish
green, exhaling a disagreeable o d o u r; August. Capsules like the k e js ol
th e ash, but smaller ; ripe in October. Decaying leaves brownish but drop-
iiino- with the first frost, without any great change o f colour. Hie leaflets
oftS i separating from the petiole of th e leaf, and leaving it for some weeks
attached to the tree. Naked young wood
rusty brown, without buds.
The leaves on vigorous young trees are
sometimes 6 ft. in length. The fruit, which
has been ripened a t White Knights, resembles
the keys of the ash, b u t is smaller. The tree
grows with great rapidity for th e first 10 or
12 yeans, producing shoots from 3 ft. to 6 ft.
in length at first, and attaining the height of
15 or 20 feet in 5 or 6 years, in favourable
situations. Afterwards its growth is much
slower. I t grows in any soil, tliough one tha t
is light and somewhat humid, and a sheltered
situation, suit it best. In France, it is said to
thrive on chalky soils, and attain a large size
where scarcely any other tree will grow. It
is readily projiagated by cuttings of the roots. 194. ritVt/HiHi g landulòsa.
S e c t i o n .TV.
Frriit gynobasic ; that is, inserted into a fleshy Reccplacle, loilh which the Style
is continuous.
O r d e r X V I I I . C O R IA 'C EÆ .
O r d . C h a r . Flowers either hermaphrodite, monoecions, or dioecious. Caiyx
cam|)aniilate, 5-parted. Fetals b. Stamens 10. Carpels 5.—Low shrulis,
natives o f temperate and warm climates.