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Cinnamomum (the ancient Greek name). Lauraceae. Evergreen trees and shrubs of Asia and Australia, with aromatic leaves and wood, of which a few are cultivated in the extreme southern United States.
Leaves usually thick, mostly opposite, strongly 3-nerved or pinnate-nerved: buds not scaly (exception in C. Camphora): fls. usually perfect, with 9 (or less) perfect stamens in 3 unlike rows and a. row of imperfect ones; perianth short-tubed, segms. 6 and nearly equal: fr. a small 1-seeded berry, in the cup-like perianth.-Upward of 50 species, among which are plants yielding cinnamon (C. zeylanicum), camphor (C. Camphora), cassia-bark (C. Cassia), and other aromatic and medicinal products. Various species may be expected in collections of economic plants, but most of them are not strictly horticultural subjects. It is not known whether some of the species in cult. in this country are passing under the proper names; possibly C. Tamala, Fr. Nees, widely distributed in the Far East, may be confused in our cultures.
The genus Cinnamomum embraces tropical and semi-tropical shrubs and trees, which are mostly of economic value, and in one or more cases are valuable shade trees for lawn and street planting. The leaves are evergreen, usually of a rich shining green, and in C. Camphora have a silvery blue color on the under surfaces. C. Camphora, the camphor tree, is hardy in the lower Gulf states, and is now being extensively planted, both for shade and extraction of gum. C. Cassia is not quite so hardy, but withstands a temperature of 20° F. without injury, and has been planted in Florida for manufacture of its various products,— oil, gum, buds and cinnamon bark. C. zeylanicum, is likely to be extensively grown in Mexico and the West Indies.— The various species are usually propagated by seeds, which are sown as soon as ripe in a shaded bed, the seedlings being transplanted when very small into pots and kept thus growing until permanent planting out. The species, without exception, are very difficult to transplant from the open ground, and hence pot-grown plants are almost a necessity. Cuttings of half- ripened wood of some species may be rooted in the spring in moderate heat, following the usual method of preparation, and planting in coarse sand. The soil best suited to cinnamomums in general, and C. Camphora in particular, is sandy loam, although a heavy loam, when well prepared, answers fairly well. The sandy soil of Florida, when moderately manured, suits all species so far tried admirably. (E. N. Reasoner.)
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