Argania
(from argam, its aboriginal name). ORD. Sapotaceoe. A very fine greenhouse evergreen tree, said by Don to flourish against a south wall, out of doors, with the protection of a mat in severe weather. It will thrive in ordinary garden soil. Increased by layers and cuttings in autumn and spring, the latter requiring a bell glass covering; both operations must be performed in a moderately heated greenhouse.
A. Sideroxylon (Iron-wood). fl., corolla greenish yellow, cup-shaped, five-parted, with ovate-lanceolate, sub-emarginate segments; lateral and axillary, scattered, crowded, sessile. fr. dotted with white, size of a plum, full of white, milky juice. July. l. lanceolate, entire, bluntish, glabrous, paler beneath; branches terminated by strong spines. h. 15ft. to 20ft. Morocco, 1711. As the specific name implies, the wood is excessively close and hard, so much so that it sinks in water. SYNS. Elaeodendron Argan, Sideroxylon spinosum.