. North American trees : being descriptions and illustrations of the trees growing independently of cultivation in North America, north of Mexico and the West Indies . Trees. 6o2 Manchineel The twigs are rather stout, smooth, yellowish or grayish brown and bear small leaf scars. The leaves are alternate, thick, leathery, linear-oblong or nar- rowly oblong, 8 to 16 cm. long, pointed at the apex, narrowly wedge-shaped at the base, sharply but finely toothed on the margin, bright green and smooth above, paler and smooth beneath, the whitish midrib prominent on both sides; the leaf-stalk is rather
. North American trees : being descriptions and illustrations of the trees growing independently of cultivation in North America, north of Mexico and the West Indies . Trees. 6o2 Manchineel The twigs are rather stout, smooth, yellowish or grayish brown and bear small leaf scars. The leaves are alternate, thick, leathery, linear-oblong or nar- rowly oblong, 8 to 16 cm. long, pointed at the apex, narrowly wedge-shaped at the base, sharply but finely toothed on the margin, bright green and smooth above, paler and smooth beneath, the whitish midrib prominent on both sides; the leaf-stalk is rather stout, channelled, about 3 cm. long, with two yellowish glands at the base of the leaf-blade. The flowers are quite small, yellow, usually monoecious, in terminal, interrupted spikes 5 to 9 cm. long. The fruit is a 2-lobed grayish brown capsule about i cm. in diame- ' r- , . â .,.â â ter: the seeds are 6 to 7 mm. Ions;, Fig. 553. â South Amencan Milk Tree. ' °' compressed, eUipsoid, coated with a reddish waxy substance, their testa dark brown and crustaceous. The milky sap is very abundant and it is said to exude profusely when the leaves are abraded by the wind, so as to spread all over the ground underneath the tree. IV. MANCHINEEL GENUS HIPPOMANE LINN^US Species Hippomane Mancinella Linnaeus HIS evergreen tree of beaches and marshes of peninsular Florida, the Keys and from the Bahamas to tropical America, is probably the most poisonous member of our arborescent flora. In Florida it never reaches its maximum height of 18 meters and a trunk diameter of 9 dm., but scarcely exceeds one fourth these dimensions. The branches are spreading, or somewhat drooping, perfect trees being round- topped. The bark is 12 to 25 mm. thick, closely scaly, brown or gray. The twigs are stout and pithy and marked by prominent leaf scars. The leaves are alternate, thick and leathery, ovate or oval, 4 to 10 cm. long, sharp or short taper-pointed, rounded or somewhat heart-shaped at the base,
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