TOLUIFERA, in botany, balsam of Mtn tree, a genus of the Decandria Mo nogynia class and order. Natural order of Terebintacem, Jussieu. Essential charac ter : calyx five-toothed, bell-shaped ; pe tals five, the lowest twice as big, obcor date : style none. There is but one spe cies, viz. T. balsamum, balsam of solo tree. It is a native of Spanish America, in the province of Toll', near Carthage na ; it is a tree of a considerable size, the bark is thick, rough, and of a brown co lour, the branches spread wide on every side ; leaves alternate, oblong, four inches long, and two broad in the middle, rounded at the base, acuminate at the end, smooth, of a light green colour, on very short foot stalks ; the flowers are produced in small axillary racemes, or bunches, each on a slender pedicle ; the corolla has four narrow petals of a yellow colour, a little longer than the calyx, and a fifth, the claw of which is of the same length as the other petals, and the top ovate cordate ; stamens within the tube, and terminated by oblong erect sulphur coloured anthers ; fruit roundish, the size of a large pea, divided into four cells, each containing one oblong ovate seed.
The balsam of 'Colo, which is brought to Europe in little gourd shells, is obtained by making incisions in the bark of the tree ; it is collected in spoons, which are made of black wax, and from them it is poured into proper vessels ; it is of a reddish yellow colour, transparent, in consistence thick, and tenacious ; by age it grows hard and brittle, so that it may be rubbed into a powder between the finger and thumb ; its smell is extremely fragrant ; its taste is warm and sweetish ; thrown into the fire it immediately liqui-. fies, takes flame, and disperses its agree able odour.