ARAUCARIA (from Araucanos, its name is Chili). SYN. Eutacta. ORD. Coniferoe. A noble genus of dioecious or sub-dioecious evergreen trees, with usually imbricated persistent flat sessile scale-like leaves. Male cones large, cylindrical, terminal; female ones very large, globular, terminal, with dense ligneous deciduous scales, each bearing a solitary seed. The majority of the species are not, unfortunately, sufficiently hardy to withstand our?? winters out of doors. Few trees can compete with them in symmetry and elegant proportion for conservatory decoration, where they may be grown in large tubs, or planted out. Small plants grown in pots are most serviceable for table and other decorative purposes. They thrive in a good fibrous loam, mixed with leaf soil and sand. Propagation by means of seed is the surest and most satisfactory method; the seed should be sown in pans or boxes, or if in large quantities, in a bed, with but gentle heat; they usually take some time to germinate. Cuttings are procured by taking off the leading shoots, and fixing them firmly in a pot of sand; they first require a cool place, but may afterwards be subjected to slight warmth. When rooted, they should be potted off into the soil above mentioned. The young growths which afterwards shoot from the plant, whence the cutting, may be taken off and treated in much the same manner. These are the only methods of propagation worth pursuing. ARAUCARIA Balansae (Balansa's). male cones cylindrical-conical, 2in. female cones elliptic globose, 4in.; scales obovate, cuneate. l. arcuately-uncinate, ovate triangular, imbricated round the distichous, simple branchlets. h. 130ft. to 160ft. New Caledonia, 1875. A fine greenhouse plumosely branched tree. ARAUCARIA Bidwillii (Bidwill's).* Bunya-Bunya Pine; Moreton Bay Pine. cones sub-globose, longest diameter 10in. to 12in., shortest 9in. to 10in. l. ovate-lanceolate, in two nearly horizontal rows, acuminated, slightly convex above, concave beneath, leathery, deep shining green. h. 150ft. Moreton Bay. Habit very regular and symmetrical. Greenhouse species. ARAUCARIA brasiliensis (Brazilian). l. oblong-lanceolate, much attenuated at the point, loosely imbricated, deep green; lower part of the trunk usually free from branches, terminating in a rounded head. h. 70ft. to 100ft. Brazil, 1819. ARAUCARIA b. gracilis, and ARAUCARIA b. Ridolfiana are two forms of this species. ARAUCARIA columnaris (columnar). A synonym of ARAUCARIA Cookii. ARAUCARIA Cookii (Cook's).* l. awl-shaped, short, densely imbricated around the frondose branches. Described by Mr. Abbay as having "a somewhat curious habit, even when growing alone, of shedding their branches for five-sixths or more of their height, and then replacing them by a smaller and more bushy growth, so that the tree at a distance presents a very columnar appearance, the resemblance being increased by the summit being crowned with a mass of foliage somewhat like a capital." h. 200ft. New Caledonia, 1851. SYN. ARAUCARIA columnaris. ARAUCARIA Cunninghami (Cunningham's).* l. on the sterile branches needle-shaped, obscurely quadrangular, rigid, acute; on the fertile branches shorter, stouter, closely appressed, bright green; upper branches ascending, lower ones horizontal. h. 100ft. Moreton Bay. This fine species we have found to be quite hardy on the south-west coast of England. ARAUCARIA Cunninghami glauca (milky-green). A very handsome variety, with silvery glaucous leaves. ARAUCARIA excelsa (lofty).* The Norfolk Island Pine. l. awl-shaped, curved, sharply acuminated, bright green, densely packed on the frondose, deltoid, horizontal, or pendulous branches. When well grown, this is a beautifully symmetrical greenhouse or conservatory species, attaining to a height of 150ft., and a circumference of 20ft. or more. Norfolk Island. This is especially desirable in a small state. There are several varieties known, the best being; ARAUCARIA e. glauca, having lighter green, and very glaucous foliage; and ARAUCARIA e. robusta, which is larger in all its parts. ARAUCARIA Goldieana (Goldie's).* Allied to ARAUCARIA Rulei. l. produced in whorls, pendulous, dark green, varying in size. New Caledonia Most distinct and elegant for conservatory decoration. ARAUCARIA imbricata (imbricated).* The Monkey Puzzle. fl., male and female catkins on separate trees; the males are six or seven in a cluster, pedunculate, yellow, and oval with numerous scales, imbricated, long, and recurved at the points; the female catkins are oval, with numerous wedge-shaped scales, with narrow oblong brittle points; they are produced at the ends of the branches. cones, when fully ripe globular, from 3in. to 4in. in diameter, dark brown. The branches are horizontal, inflexed, and ascending at the extremities, and are produced in whorls. l. ovate-lanceolate, sessile, thickened at the base, stiff, leathery, straight, somewhat keeled-shaped below, and strongly mucronate at the apex; verticillate, with seven or eight in a whorl, imbricate, and closely encircling the branches, concave, glabrous, shining, marked with longitudinal lines, dotted on both sides. h. 50ft. to 100ft. Chili, 1796. A well known hardy tree, of striking aspect, and indispensable to Arboreta and shrubberies. ARAUCARIA Mulleri (Muller's). l. oval, imbricated, almost flat, longitudinally marked with small, whitish spots arranged in series, cones ovoid, 5 1/2in. long, 3 1/2in. broad; scales about 12/5in. long and broad. New Caledonia, 1884. Plant ultimately forming a large tree, with spreading, plume-like branches. (F. & P. 1884, p. 27; I. H. ser. iv. 449.) ARAUCARIA Rulei (Rule's).* male cones oblong obtuse; female cones oval. l. oblong-lanceolate, with a prominent dorsal nerve, more closely appressed, and less sharply pointed than in the foregoing species; imbricated in four rows. Branches horizontal; branchlets often quite pendulous. h. 50ft. Papuan Archipelago. ARAUCARIA Rulei elegans (elegant).* l. smaller; whorls of branches closer together; branchlets more slender. An elegant form; and, from its comparative dwarf and graceful habit, should be very generally grown.