Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 1.djvu/727

Rh BOTANY.] AMERICA 685 (Quercus alba and Quercus obtusiloba), and the scarlet oak (Quercus cocdnea}. None of these, in regard to the quality of their timber, can stand comparison with the British oak, though some of them are very valuable. The western or Californian and Oregon districts of this region are in many respects distinct in character. Pole- moniacece abound ; also Esclischoltzia californica, species of Platystemon, Nemophila, Gilia, Collinsia, Clarkia, Bar- tonia, and Eutocha. Coniferse also exist in abundance, some of them possessing great botanical interest, such as Abies Douglasii, Pattoniana, nobilis, amabilis, grandis, lasiocarpa. Pinus Lambertiana, Sabiniana, insignis, Jeffreyi, pon- derosa, monticola, californica, Fremontiana, Coulteri,flexilis, Thuja gigantea, Sesquoia gigantea, Juniperus dealbata and occidentalis, and Castanea chrysophylla. Pinus ponderosa predominates in the forests of Upper Oregon, and along with it occur Abies balsamea, canadensis, Douglasii, nobilis, and alba. Vivid colours mark the basaltic region of Upper Oregon. Rhododendron macrophyllum is found in Vancouver Island. Barley, oats, rye, wheat, buckwheat, and maize, along with the common fruit-trees and culinary vegetables of the temperate regions, are cultivated. The region of Magnolias lies between parallels 30 and 36, embracing the southern portion of North America. Nearly seventy species are known to exist. Cycadacece, Anonacew, Sapindacece, Zingiberacea?, Melastomacece, Cac- tacece, and numerous other tropical forms, show themselves. The forest trees display either broad shining foliage like the Liriodendron and sEsculus, or pinnated leaves like the Acacia and Robinia. They are, moreover, decked with magnificent blossoms. Rice, sugar-cane, and cotton are the special objects of culture in this region. The region of Cactuses and Peppers includes Mexico, Guatemala, and South America to the Amazon (to an elevation of 5000 feet above the sea-level), as also Guiana, certain parts of Peru, and New Granada. The leaves of the plants of the isthmus of Panama are covered with hair and tomentum, while greenish and yellow flowers predomi nate. The included portion of South America produces Mauritia flexuosa, the Murichi or Ita Palm, and Victoria regia. The vegetable-ivory palm (Phytelephas macrocarpa] is a native of Columbia and Peru. Yams, plantains, chocolate, sugar, coffee, cocoa-nut, &c., are cultivated in this region. The Mexican highlands, rising over 5500 feet above the sea-level, produce Pinus religiosa, Pinus apidcensis, Pinus Hartwegii, Pinus Montezumce, and Taxodium distichum. European grains are cultivated with success. The region of medicinal bark trees (Cinchonas} em braces the Cordilleras between parallels 5 N. and 20 S., where the elevation ranges between 5000 and 9600 feet. In the lower parts of this region coffee, maize, and potato are cultivated. The region of Calceolarias and Escallonias is, generally speaking, coextensive with the preceding, but at an ele vation greater than 9600. The West Indian region is marked by the prevalence of ferns and orchids, and has a vegetation intermediate be tween that of Mexico and the north of South America. We next come to the region of Palms and Melastomas, which lies to the east of the Andes, between the Equator and the Tropic of Capricorn. Here the luxuriance of vegetable life is almost startling to European eyes. The forest trees of Brazil tower to an almost incredible height, while the very underwood is composed of Palms, Melasto- macecB, Myrtaceoe, Crotons, and Tree Ferns. In the tree less belts are found Heli jonias, Dorstenias, and tall grasses. Immense Compositae, Vernonias, arborescent Solanums, and species of Fuchsia, Solandra, Lasianclra, Lauras, Ficus, and Cassia abound. The trees are covered, stem and branch, with Ferns, Araceae, Tillandrias. Orchids, Cactuses, Pepero- mias, Gesneras, and innumerable other epiphytic plants. The region of arborescent Compositor, extending from the Tropic of Capricorn to lat. 40 S., embraces Southern Brazil, La Plata, and Chili. The distinctive features of the Upper Cordilleras reappear here; Calceolarias and Escal lonias abound. Thuja tetragona, Podocarpus chiliana, Thuja chilensis, and Chili pine (Araucaria imbricata), are native to this region, the last-named being a hardy conifer, extend ing along the Chilian Andes from 37 to 40 S. In the neighbourhood of Ptio Janeiro is found Araucaria brazi- liana. Wheat, vine, peach, and many European plants are cultivated to great perfection in this region. The Antarctic region comprehends the Strait of Magal- haens, Tierra del Fuego, and the Falkland Islands. Many European, and more especially British, genera appear in this region, and species of Saxifraga, Gentiana, Arbutus, Primula, and other Arctic and North Temperate forms are common. In Fuegia the evergreen beech (Fagus Forsteri), the deciduous beech (Fagus antarticd), and Drymis Win- teri, correspond to the birch, oak, and mountain ash of Scotland. The Fuchsia is a native of Fuegia. Among shrubs maybe mentioned Chiliotricum amelloides, Veronica elliptica and decussata, Empetrum rubrum, and Pernettya empetrifolia ; among ferns, Lomaria alpina arid Magel- lanica; and among lichens, Usnea melaxantha. Northern America, though its vast forests have now Chief in- been exposed for centuries to the axe of civilised man, is rtigenous still one of the best wooded regions of the world. Among R 1 * 10 ^, the principal forest-trees are the pine, oak, ash, hickory, CKa con _ red-beech, Canadian poplar, chestnut, black walnut, maple, tinent. tulip-tree, and white cedar. Central America produces extensively mahogany, pimento, sarsaparilla, vanilla, Peruvian balsam, and many other valuable woods and drugs. Nearly two-thirds of the surface of South America are still covered with gigantic forests, which must ultimately disappear, like many of those in the north, before the combined efforts and necessities of commerce and agri culture. The most distinctive and valuable forest-trees of South America are the greenheart and the mora. The cow-tree, which yields a juice very like milk in its pro perties, is also a remarkable product of this region. Maize is by far the most important farinaceous product of the New World. It was the only grain which the earliest European settlers found cultivated, to some extent, by the natives. For nutrition it is inferior to wheat, but it is much more prolific, and is suited to a greater variety of soils. Tobacco is also indigenous to America, whence its use has extended over the whole world. Among roots, the potato, which we also owe to America, is without a rival. Millet, tapioca, arrow-root, cocoa, copaiva, cinchona, jalap, sassafras, nux-vomica, the cochineal plant, the agave or American aloe, and the pine-apple are also indigenous to the continent. It is impossible here to do more than touch on the vast subject of the botany and the indigenous vegetable pro ducts of the New World. For fuller information, in addi tion to that contained in articles in the present work that treat of the geographical distribution of plants, the reader is referred to the numerous valuable American works of such authors as Beck, Bigelow, Breckenridge, Brown, Carson (Medical Botany), Darby, Darlington (Agricultural Botany), Asa Gray, Harvey (Algre), Raven el, Sprague, Strong, Torrey, &c. An extended description of the forest trees of North America will be found in the great work of Michaux and Nuttall, The North American Sylva. The origin, history, languages, and condition of the Ethnolog American nations present ample materials for speculation ; but before touching on these subjects, the question presents