C. Deodara. Proceeding eastward from the Lebanon, we come, after another 1400 miles, to the Cedar forests of Afghanistan, which extend thence continuously eastward along the Himalaya, almost to the confines of Nepal. The Cedrus Deodara is in India exclusively a western tree; it begins where the influence of the monsoons is much diminished, that is, where the climate begins to approximate to that of the Levant. It inhabits various elevations between 4,000 and 12,000 feet, and in Afghanistan outnumbers all other Pines in abundance of individuals. The C. Deodara has a much more pendulous leader and ends to its branches, and longer leaves, of a more glaucous hue, than C. Libani, though not such silvery leaves as the C. Atlantica. The cones are as large as those of C. Libani, but the scales and seeds are of the same form as those of C. Atlantica, and hence markedly different from those of C. labani.
From what has been said respecting each of these Cedars, it is evident, that the distinctions between them are so trifling, and so far within the proved limits of variation of Coniferous plants, that it may reasonably be assumed that all originally sprang from one. It should be added, that there are no other distinctions whatever between them—of bark, wood, leaves, male-cones, anthers, or the structure of these—nor in their mode of germination or duration, the girth they attain, or their hardiness.[1] Also, that all are very variable in habit; so much so, indeed, is this the case with the Deodar, which is the most distinct of all in habit, that though it was not introduced much more than thirty years ago, there are already five distinct varieties sold by nurservmen, some as stiff, others as dark-coloured, and others as short-leaves as the Lebanon Cedar. Also, that though the difference in the shape of the scales and seeds of Deodara and Libani are very marked, they vary much; many forms of each overlap; and further transitions between the most dissimilar, may be established by intercalation of seeds and scales from C. Atlantica.
To render these distinctions more clear, I have had drawings of the three Cedars made from native and cultivated specimens, selected by Professor Oliver and myself from the Herbarium and Museum at Kew, and which represent what we believe to be the most decided characters that they severally present; and that these are both faithful and characteristic portraits, Mr. Pitch's name is sufficient guarantee. They represent, in each case, the fully formed cone, and the same on the eve of bursting; the average and extreme forms of scales and seeds, the anthers, the foliage, and the extreme and mean lengths of the leaves.
Hitherto, C. Atlantica has been almost universally considered a
- ↑ The assumed distinctive characters between the Deodar and Lebanon Cedar that were founded on the form of the cones, the falling away of their scales, the shape of the leaf in section, the wood, its odour and durability, have all been satisfactorily disproved long ago.
