PRINCIPAL TREE REGIONS OF NORTH AMERICA
[Illustration: PRINCIPAL TREE REGIONS OF NORTH AMERICA]
A North Eastern
B North Western
AB North Eastern & North Western
C South Eastern
D Tropical Florida
E Texas-Mexican Boundary
F Rocky Mountains
G Oregon & California
H New Mexico & Arizona Mexican Boundary
MANUAL OF THE TREES OF NORTH AMERICA
(EXCLUSIVE OF MEXICO)
BY
CHARLES SPRAGUE SARGENT
_Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University_
_Author of The Silva of North America_
_WITH SEVEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-THREE ILLUSTRATIONS FROM DRAWINGS BY_
CHARLES EDWARD FAXON
_AND_
MARY W. GILL
_Second Edition_
[Illustration: The Riverside Press]
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY
_The Riverside Press Cambridge_
1922
COPYRIGHT, 1905 AND 1927, BY CHARLES SPRAGUE SARGENT
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
TO
M. R. S.
THE WISE AND KIND FRIEND OF THIRTY YEARS
THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED
WITH GRATITUDE AND AFFECTION
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
The studies of the trees of North America (exclusive of Mexico) which
have been carried on by the agents and correspondents of the Arboretum
in the sixteen years since the publication of the _Manual of the Trees
of North America_ have increased the knowledge of the subject and made
necessary a new edition of this _Manual_. The explorations of these
sixteen years have added eighty-nine species of trees and many recently
distinguished varieties of formerly imperfectly understood species to
the silva of the United States, and made available much additional
information in regard to the geographical distribution of American
trees. Further studies have made the reduction of seven species of the
first edition to varieties of other species seem desirable; and two
species, _Amelanchier obovalis_ and _Cercocarpus parvifolius_, which
were formerly considered trees, but are more properly shrubs, are
omitted. The genus Anamomis is now united with Eugenia; and the Arizona
_Pinus strobiformis_ Sarg. (not Engelm.) is now referred to _Pinus
flexilis_ James.
Representatives of four Families and sixteen Genera which did not appear
in the first edition are described in the new edition in which will be
found an account of seven hundred and seventeen species of trees in one
hundred and eighty-five genera, illustrated by seven hundred and
eighty-three figures, or one hundred and forty-one figures in addition
to those which appeared in the first edition.
An International Congress of Botanists which assembled in Vienna in
1905, and again in Brussels in 1910, adopted rules of nomenclature which
the world, with a few American exceptions, has now generally adopted.
The names used in this new _Manual_ are based on the rules of this
International Congress. These are the names used by the largest number
of the students of plants, and it is unfortunate that the confusion in
the names of American trees must continue as long as the Department of
Agriculture, including the Forest Service of the United States, uses
another and now generally unrecognized system.
The new illustrations in this edition are partly from drawings made by
Charles Edward Faxon, who died before his work was finished; it was
continued by the skillful pencil of Mary W. Gill, of Washington, to whom
I am grateful for her intelligent coöperation.
It is impossible to name here all the men and women who have in the last
sixteen years contributed to this account of American trees, and I will
now only mention Mr. T. G. Harbison and Mr. E. J. Palmer, who as agents
of the Arboretum have studied for years the trees of the Southeastern
States and of the Missouri-Texas region, Professor R. S. Cocks, of
Tulane University, who has explored carefully and critically the forests
of Louisiana, and Miss Alice Eastwood, head of the Botanical Department
of the California Academy of Sciences, who has made special journeys in
Alaska and New Mexico in the interest of this _Manual_. Mr. Alfred
Rehder, Curator of the Herbarium of the Arboretum, has added to the
knowledge of our trees in several Southern journeys; and to him I am
specially indebted for assistance and advice in the preparation of the
keys to the different groups of plants found in this volume.
This new edition of the _Manual_ contains the results of forty-four
years of my continuous study of the trees of North America carried on in
every part of the United States and in many foreign countries. If these
studies in any way serve to increase the knowledge and the love of trees
I shall feel that these years have not been misspent.
C. S. Sargent.
Arnold Arboretum
September, 1921
PREFACE
In this volume I have tried to bring into convenient form for the use of
students the information concerning the trees of North America which has
been gathered at the Arnold Arboretum during the last thirty years and
has been largely elaborated in my _Silva of North America_.
The indigenous trees of no other region of equal extent are, perhaps, so
well known as those that grow naturally in North America. There is,
however, still much to be learned about them. In the southern states,
one of the most remarkable extratropical regions in the world in the
richness of its arborescent flora, several species are still imperfectly
known, while it is not improbable that a few may have escaped entirely
the notice of botanists; and in the northern states are several forms of
Cratægus which, in the absence of sufficient information, it has been
found impracticable to include in this volume. Little is known as yet of
the silvicultural value and requirements of North American trees, or of
the diseases that affect them; and one of the objects of this volume is
to stimulate further investigation of their characters and needs.
The arrangement of families and genera adopted in this volume is that of
Engler & Prantl’s _Die Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien_, in which the
procession is from a simpler to a more complex structure. The
nomenclature is that of _The Silva of North America_. Descriptions of a
few species of Cratægus are now first published, and investigations made
since the publication of the last volume of _The Silva of North
America_, in December, 1902, have necessitated the introduction of a few
additional trees described by other authors, and occasional changes of
names.
An analytical key to the families, based on the arrangement and
character of the leaves, will lead the reader first to the family to
which any tree belongs; a conspectus of the genera, embodying the
important and easily discovered contrasting characters of each genus and
following the description of each family represented by more than one
genus, will lead him to the genus he is trying to determine; and a
similar conspectus of the species, following the description of the
genus, will finally bring him to the species for which he is looking.
Further to facilitate the determination, one or more letters, attached
to the name of the species in the conspectus following the description
of the genus, indicate in which of the eight regions into which the
country is divided according to the prevailing character of the
arborescent vegetation that species grows (see map forming frontispiece
of the volume). For example, the northeastern part of the country,
including the high Appalachian Mountains in the southern states which
have chiefly a northern flora, is represented by (A), and a person
wishing to learn the name of a Pine-tree or of an Oak in that region
need occupy himself only with those species which in the conspectus of
the genus Quercus or Pinus are followed by the letter (A), while a
person wishing to determine an Oak or a Pine-tree in Oregon or
California may pass over all species which are not followed by (G), the
letter which represents the Pacific coast region south of the state of
Washington.
The sign of degrees (°) is used in this work to represent feet, and the
sign of minutes (′) inches.
The illustrations which accompany each species and important variety are
one half the size of nature, except in the case of a few of the large
Pine cones, the flowers of some of the Magnolias, and the leaves and
flower-clusters of the Palms. These are represented as less than half
the size of nature in order to make the illustrations of uniform size.
These illustrations are from drawings by Mr. Faxon, in which he has
shown his usual skill and experience as a botanical draftsman in
bringing out the most important characters of each species, and in them
will be found the chief value of this Manual. For aid in its preparation
I am indebted to him and to my other associates, Mr. Alfred Rehder and
Mr. George R. Shaw, who have helped me in compiling the most difficult
of the keys.
C. S. Sargent.
Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain, Mass.
January, 1905.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Map of North America (exclusive of Mexico) showing the eight
regions into which the country is divided according to the
prevailing character of the trees _Frontispiece_
Synopsis of the Families of Plants described in this work xi
Analytical Key to the Genera of Plants described in this work,
based chiefly on the character of their leaves xvi
Manual of Trees 1
Gymnospermæ 1
Angiospermæ 96
Monocotyledons 96
Dicotyledons 118
Apetalæ 118
Petalatæ 342
Polypetalæ 342
Gamopetalæ 790
Glossary of Technical Terms 893
Index 899
SYNOPSIS
OF THE FAMILIES OF PLANTS DESCRIBED IN THIS BOOK
Class I. GYMNOSPERMÆ.
Resinous trees; stems formed of bark, wood, or pith, and increasing in
diameter by the annual addition of a layer of wood inside the bark;
flowers unisexual; stamens numerous; ovules and seeds 2 or many, borne
on the face of a scale, not inclosed in an ovary; embryo with 2 or more
cotyledons; leaves straight-veined, without stipules.
I. Pinaceæ (p. 1). Flowers usually monœcious; ovules 2 or several;
fruit a woody cone (_in Juniperus berry-like_); cotyledons 2
or many; leaves needle-shaped, linear or scale-like,
persistent (_deciduous in Larix and Taxodium_).
II. Taxaceæ (p. 90). Flowers diœcious, axillary, solitary; ovules 1;
fruit surrounded by or inclosed in the enlarged fleshy
aril-like disk of the flower; cotyledons 2; leaves linear,
alternate, persistent.
Class II. ANGIOSPERMÆ.
Carpels or pistils consisting of a closed cavity containing the ovules
and becoming the fruit.
Division I. MONOCOTYLEDONS.
Stems with woody fibres distributed irregularly through them, but
without pith or annual layers of growth; parts of the flower in 3’s;
ovary superior, 3-celled; embryo with a single cotyledon; leaves
parallel-veined, persistent, without stipules.
III. Palmæ (p. 96). Ovule solitary; fruit baccate or drupaceous, 1 or
rarely 2 or 3-seeded; leaves alternate, pinnate, flabellate or
orbicular, persistent.
IV. Liliaceæ (p. 110). Ovules numerous in each cell; fruit 3-celled,
capsular or baccate; leaves linear-lanceolate.
Division II. DICOTYLEDONS.
Stems formed of bark, wood, or pith, and increasing by the addition of
an annual layer of wood inside the bark; parts of the flower mostly in
4’s or 5’s; embryo with a pair of opposite cotyledons; leaves
netted-veined.
Subdivision 1. Apetalæ. Flowers without a corolla and sometimes without
a calyx.
Section 1. Flowers in unisexual aments (_female flowers of Juglans and
Quercus solitary or in spikes_); ovary inferior (_superior in
Leitneriaceæ_) when a calyx is present.
V. Salicaceæ (p. 119). Flowers diœcious, without a calyx. Fruit a
2—4-valved capsule. Leaves simple, alternate, with stipules,
deciduous.
VI. Myricaceæ (p. 163). Flowers monœcious or diœcious; fruit a dry
drupe, covered with waxy exudations; leaves simple, alternate,
resinous-punctate, persistent.
VII. Leitneriaceæ (p. 167). Flowers diœcious, the staminate without a
calyx; ovary superior; fruit a compressed oblong drupe; leaves
alternate, simple, without stipules, deciduous.
VIII. Juglandaceæ (p. 168). Flowers monœcious; fruit a nut inclosed in
an indehiscent (Juglans) or 4-valved (Carya) fleshy or woody
shell; leaves alternate, unequally pinnate without stipules,
deciduous.
IX. Betulaceæ (p. 200). Flowers monœcious; fruit a nut at the base of
an open leaf-like involucre (Carpinus), in a sack-like
involucre (Ostrya), in the axil of a scale of an ament
(Betula), or of a woody strobile (Alnus); leaves alternate,
simple, with stipules, deciduous.
X. Fagaceæ (p. 227). Flowers monœcious; fruit a nut more or less
inclosed in a woody often spiny involucre; leaves alternate,
simple, with stipules, deciduous (_in some species of Quercus
and in Castanopsis and Lithocarpus persistent_).
Section 2. Flowers unisexual (_perfect in Ulmus_); calyx regular, the
stamens as many as its lobes and opposite them; ovary superior,
1-celled; seed 1.
XI. Ulmaceæ (p. 308). Fruit a compressed winged samara (Ulmus), a
drupe (Celtis and Trema), or nut-like (Planera), leaves
simple, alternate, with stipules, deciduous (_persistent in
Trema_).
XII. Moraceæ (p. 328). Flowers in ament-like spikes or heads; fruit
drupaceous, inclosed in the thickened calyx and united into a
compound fruit, oblong and succulent (Morus), large, dry and
globose (Toxylon), or immersed in the fleshy receptacle of the
flower (Ficus); leaves simple, alternate, with stipules,
deciduous (_persistent in Ficus_).
Section 3. Flowers usually perfect; ovary superior or partly inferior,
1—4-celled; leaves simple, persistent in the North American species.
XIII. Olacaceæ (p. 336). Calyx and corolla 4—6-lobed; ovary
1—4-celled; fruit a drupe more or less inclosed in the
enlarged disk of the flower; leaves alternate or fascicled,
without stipules.
XIV. Polygonaceæ (p. 338). Calyx 5-lobed; ovary 1-celled; fruit a
nutlet inclosed in the thickened calyx; leaves alternate,
their stipules sheathing the stems.
XV. Nyctaginaceæ (p. 340). Calyx 5-lobed; ovary 1-celled; fruit a
nutlet inclosed in the thickened calyx; leaves alternate or
opposite, without stipules.
Subdivision 2. Petalatæ. Flowers with both calyx and corolla (_without a
corolla in Lauraceæ, in Liquidambar in Hamamelidaceæ, in Cercocarpus in
Rosaceæ, in Euphorbiaceæ, in some species of Acer, in Reynosia,
Condalia, and Krugiodendron in Rhamnaceæ, in Fremontia in Sterculiaceæ,
in Chytraculia in Myrtaceæ, in Conocarpus in Combretaceæ and in some
species of Fraxinus in Oleaceæ_).
Section 1. Polypetalæ. Corolla of separate petals.
A. Ovary superior (_partly inferior in Hamamelidaceæ; inferior in Malus,
Sorbus, Heteromeles, Cratægus, and Amelanchier in Rosaceæ_).
XVI. Magnoliaceæ (p. 342). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals in 3 or
4 rows of 3 each; fruit cone-like, composed of numerous
cohering carpels; leaves simple, alternate, their stipules
inclosing the leaf-buds, deciduous or rarely persistent.
XVII. Anonaceæ (p. 353). Flowers perfect; sepals 3; petals 6 in 2
series; fruit a pulpy berry developed from 1 or from the union
of several carpels; leaves simple, alternate, without
stipules, deciduous or persistent.
XVIII. Lauraceæ (p. 356). Flowers perfect or unisexual; corolla 0;
fruit a 1-seeded drupe or berry; leaves simple, alternate,
punctate, without stipules, persistent (_deciduous in
Sassafras_).
XIX. Capparidaceæ (p. 365). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals 4;
fruit baccate, elongated, dehiscent; leaves alternate, simple,
without stipules, persistent.
XX. Hamamelidaceæ (p. 366). Flowers perfect or unisexual; sepals and
petals 5 (_corolla 0 in Liquidambar_); ovary partly inferior;
fruit a 2-celled woody capsule opening at the summit; leaves
simple, alternate, with stipules, deciduous.
XXI. Platanaceæ (p. 371). Flowers monœcious, in dense unisexual
capitate heads; fruit an akene; leaves simple, alternate, with
stipules, deciduous.
XXII. Rosaceæ (p. 376). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals 5 (_petals
0 in Cercocarpus_); ovary inferior in Malus, Sorbus,
Heteromeles, Cratægus, and Amelanchier; fruit a drupe (Prunus
and Chrysobalanus), a capsule (Vauquelinia and Lyonothamnus),
an akene (Cowania and Cercocarpus), or a pome (Malus, Sorbus,
Heteromeles, Cratægus, and Amelanchier); leaves simple or
pinnately compound, alternate (_opposite in Lyonothamnus_),
with stipules, deciduous or persistent.
XXIII. Leguminosæ (p. 585). Flowers perfect, regular or irregular;
fruit a legume; leaves compound, or simple (Dalea), alternate,
with stipules, deciduous or persistent.
XXIV. Zygophyllaceæ (p. 630). Flowers perfect; calyx 5-lobed; petals
5; fruit capsular, becoming fleshy; leaves opposite, pinnate,
with stipules, persistent.
XXV. Malpigiaceæ (p. 631). Flowers usually perfect rarely dimorphous;
calyx 5-lobed; petals 5, unguiculate; fruit a drupe or samara;
leaves opposite, simple, entire, persistent; often with
stipules.
XXVI. Rutaceæ (p. 633). Flowers unisexual or perfect; fruit a capsule
(Xanthoxylum), a samara (Ptelea), of indehiscent winged
1-seeded carpels (Helietta), or a drupe (Amyris); leaves
alternate or opposite, compound, glandular-punctate, without
stipules, persistent or rarely deciduous (_0 in Canotia_).
XXVII. Simaroubaceæ (p. 641). Flowers diœcious, calyx 5-lobed; petals
5; fruit drupaceous (Simarouba), baccate (Picramnia), a samara
(Alvaradoa); leaves alternate, equally pinnate, without
stipules, persistent.
XXVIII. Burseraceæ (p. 645). Flowers perfect; calyx 4 or 5-parted;
petals 5; fruit a drupe; leaves alternate, compound, without
stipules, deciduous.
XXIX. Meliaceæ (p. 648). Flowers perfect; calyx 5-lobed; petals 5;
fruit a 5-celled dehiscent capsule; leaves alternate, equally
pinnate, without stipules, persistent.
XXX. Euphorbiaceæ (p. 649). Flowers perfect; calyx 4—6-parted
(Drypetes), 3-lobed (Hippomane), or 0 (Gymnanthes); petals 0;
fruit a drupe (Drypetes and Hippomane), or a 3-lobed capsule
(Gymnanthes).
XXXI. Anacardiaceæ (p. 655). Flowers usually unisexual, diœcious or
polygamo-diœcious (_Pistacia without a calyx, and without a
corolla in the North American species_); fruit a dry drupe;
leaves simple or compound, alternate, without stipules,
deciduous (_persistent in Pistacia and in one species of
Rhus_).
XXXII. Cyrillaceæ (p. 665). Flowers perfect; calyx 5—8-lobed; petals
5—8; fruit an indehiscent capsule; leaves alternate, without
stipules, persistent (_more or less deciduous in Cyrilla_).
XXXIII. Aquifoliaceæ (p. 668). Flowers polygamo-diœcious; calyx 4 or
5-lobed; petals 5; fruit a drupe, with 4—8 1-seeded nutlets;
leaves alternate, simple, with stipules, persistent or
deciduous.
XXXIV. Celastraceæ (p. 674). Flowers perfect, polygamous or diœcious;
calyx 4 or 5-lobed; petals 4 or 5; fruit a drupe, or a capsule
(Evonymus); leaves simple, opposite or alternate, with or
without stipules, persistent (_deciduous in Evonymus_).
XXXV. Aceraceæ (p. 681). Flowers diœcious or monœciously polygamous;
calyx usually 5-parted; petals usually 5, or 0; fruit of 2
long-winged samara joined at the base; leaves opposite, simple
or rarely pinnate, without or rarely with stipules, deciduous.
XXXVI. Hippocastanaceæ (p. 702). Flowers perfect, irregular; calyx
5-lobed; petals 4 or 5, unequal; fruit a 3-celled 3-valved
capsule; leaves opposite, digitately compound, long-petiolate,
without stipules, deciduous.
XXXVII. Sapindaceæ (p. 711). Flowers polygamous; calyx 4 or 5-lobed;
corolla of 4 or 5 petals; fruit a berry (Sapindus and
Exothea), a drupe (Hypelate), or a 3-valved capsule
(Ungnadia); leaves alternate, compound, without stipules,
persistent, or deciduous (Ungnadia).
XXXVIII. Rhamnaceæ (p. 718). Flowers usually perfect; calyx 4 or
5-lobed; petals 4 or 5 (_0 in Reynosia, Condalia, and
Krugiodendron_); fruit drupaceous; leaves simple, alternate
(_mostly opposite in Reynosia and Krugiodendron_), with
stipules, persistent (_deciduous in some species of Rhamnus_).
XXXIX. Tiliaceæ (p. 732). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals 5; fruit
a nut-like berry; leaves simple, alternate, mostly oblique at
base, with stipules, deciduous.
XL. Sterculiaceæ (p. 749). Flowers perfect; calyx 5-lobed; petals 0;
fruit a 4 or 5-valved dehiscent capsule; leaves simple,
alternate, with stipules, persistent.
XLI. Theaceæ (p. 750). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals 5; fruit a
5-celled woody dehiscent capsule, loculicidally dehiscent;
leaves simple, alternate, without stipules, persistent or
deciduous.
XLII. Canellaceæ (p. 753). Flowers perfect; sepals 3; petals 5;
filaments united into a tube; fruit a berry; leaves simple,
alternate, without stipules, persistent.
XLIII. Kœberliniaceæ (p. 754). Flowers perfect; sepals and petals 4,
minute; leaves bract-like, alternate, without stipules,
caducous.
XLIV. Caricaceæ (p. 755). Flowers unisexual or perfect; calyx 5-lobed;
petals 5; fruit baccate; leaves palmately lobed or digitate,
alternate, without stipules, persistent.
B. Ovary inferior (_partly inferior in Rhizophora_).
XLV. Cactaceæ (p. 757). Flowers perfect; petals and sepals numerous;
fruit a berry; leaves usually wanting.
XLVI. Rhizophoraceæ (p. 763). Flowers perfect; calyx 4-parted; petals
4; ovary partly inferior; fruit a 1-celled 1-seeded berry
perforated at apex by the germinating embryo; leaves simple,
opposite, entire, with stipules, persistent.
XLVII. Combretaceæ (p. 764). Flowers perfect or polygamous; calyx
5-lobed; petals 5 (_0 in Conocarpus_); fruit drupaceous;
leaves simple, alternate or opposite, without stipules,
persistent.
XLVIII. Myrtaceæ (p. 768). Flowers perfect; calyx usually 4-lobed, or
reduced to a single body forming a deciduous lid to the flower
(Chytraculia); petals usually 4 (_0 in Chytraculia_); fruit a
berry; leaves simple, opposite, pellucid-punctate, without
stipules, persistent.
XLIX. Melastomaceæ (p. 776). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla 4 or
5-lobed; stamens as many or twice as many as the lobes of the
corolla; fruit capsular or baccate, inclosed in the tube of
the calyx; leaves opposite, rarely verticillate, 3—9-nerved,
without stipules.
L. Araliaceæ (p. 777). Flowers perfect or polygamous; sepals and
petals usually 5; fruit a drupe; leaves twice pinnate,
alternate, with stipules, deciduous.
LI. Nyssaceæ (p. 779). Flowers diœcious, polygamous, diœcious or
perfect; calyx 5-toothed or lobed; petals 5 or more, imbricate
in the bud, or 0; stamens as many or twice as many as the
petals; fruit drupaceous (Nyssa), usually 1-celled and
1-seeded; leaves alternate, deciduous, without stipules.
LII. Cornaceæ (p. 784). Flowers perfect or polygamo-diœcious; calyx 4
or 5-toothed; petals 4 or 5; fruit a fleshy drupe; leaves
simple, opposite (_alternate in one species of Cornus_),
without stipules, deciduous.
Section 2. Gamopetalæ. Corolla of united petals (_divided in Elliottia
in Ericaceæ, 0 in some species of Fraxinus in Oleaceæ_).
A. Ovary superior (_inferior in Vaccinium in Ericaceæ, partly inferior
in Symplocaceæ and Styracaceæ_).
LIII. Ericaceæ (p. 790). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla 5-lobed
(_in Elliottia corolla of 4 petals_); (_ovary inferior in
Vaccinium_); fruit capsular, drupaceous or baccate; leaves
simple, alternate, without stipules, persistent (_deciduous in
Elliottia and Oxydendrum_).
LIV. Theophrastaceæ (p. 804). Flowers perfect, with staminodia; sepals
and petals 5; stamens 5; fruit a berry; leaves simple,
opposite or alternate, entire, without stipules.
LV. Myrsinaceæ (p. 805). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla 5-lobed;
stamens 5; fruit a drupe; leaves simple, alternate, entire,
without stipules, persistent.
LVI. Sapotaceæ (p. 808). Flowers perfect; calyx 5-lobed; corolla
5-lobed (_6-lobed in Mimusops_), often with as many or twice
as many internal appendages borne on its throat; fruit a
berry; leaves simple, alternate, without stipules, persistent
(_deciduous in some species of Bumelia_).
LVII. Ebenaceæ (p. 820). Flowers perfect, diœcious, or polygamous;
calyx and corolla 4-lobed; fruit a 1 or several-seeded berry;
leaves simple, alternate, entire, without stipules, deciduous.
LVIII. Styraceæ (p. 824). Flowers perfect; calyx 4 or 5-toothed;
corolla 4 or 5-lobed or divided nearly to the base, or rarely
6 or 7-lobed; ovary superior or partly superior; fruit a
drupe; leaves simple, alternate, without stipules, deciduous;
pubescence mostly scurfy or stellate.
LIX. Symplocaceæ (p. 830). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla 5-lobed;
ovary inferior or partly inferior; fruit a drupe; leaves
simple, alternate, without stipules, deciduous; pubescence
simple.
LX. Oleaceæ (p. 832). Flowers perfect or polygamo-diœcious; calyx
4-lobed (_0 in some species of Fraxinus_); corolla 2—6-parted
(_0 in some species of Fraxinus_); fruit a winged samara
(Fraxinus) or a fleshy drupe (Forestiera, Chionanthus and
Osmanthus); leaves pinnate (Fraxinus) or simple, opposite,
without stipules, deciduous (_persistent in Osmanthus_).
LXI. Borraginaceæ (p. 858). Flowers perfect or polygamous; calyx and
corolla 5-lobed; fruit a drupe; leaves simple, alternate,
scabrous-pubescent, without stipules, persistent or tardily
deciduous.
LXII. Verbenaceæ (p. 864). Flowers perfect; calyx 5-lobed; corolla 4
or 5-lobed; fruit a drupe or a 1-seeded capsule; leaves
simple, opposite, without stipules, persistent.
LXIII. Solanaceæ (p. 867). Flowers perfect; calyx campanulate, usually
5-lobed; corolla usually 5-lobed; fruit baccate, surrounded at
base by the enlarged calyx; leaves alternate, rarely opposite,
without stipules.
LXIV. Bignoniaceæ (p. 868). Flowers perfect; calyx bilabiate; corolla
bilabiate, 5-lobed; fruit a woody capsule (Catalpa and
Chilopsis) or a berry (Enallagma); leaves simple, opposite
(_sometimes alternate in Chilopsis_), without stipules,
deciduous (_persistent in Enallagma_).
B. Ovary inferior (_partly superior in Sambucus in Caprifoliaceæ_).
LXV. Rubiaceæ (p. 875). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla 4 or
5-lobed; fruit a capsule (Exostema and Pinckneya), a drupe
(Guettarda), or nut-like (Cephalanthus); leaves simple
opposite, or in verticils of 3 (Cephalanthus), with stipules,
persistent (_deciduous in Pinckneya and Cephalanthus_).
LXVI. Caprifoliaceæ (p. 882). Flowers perfect; calyx and corolla
5-lobed; fruit a drupe; leaves unequally pinnate (Sambucus) or
simple (Viburnum), opposite, without stipules, deciduous in
North American species.
ANALYTICAL KEY
TO THE GENERA OF PLANTS INCLUDED IN THIS BOOK, BASED CHIEFLY ON THE
CHARACTER OF THE LEAVES
I. Leaves parallel-veined, alternate, persistent, clustered at the end
of the stem or branches. Monocotyledons.
Stem simple; leaves stalked.
Leaves fan-shaped.
Leaf stalks unarmed.
Rachis short; leaves usually silvery white below.
Leaves 2°—4° in diameter (_green below in No. 2_), their
segments undivided at apex.
Thrinax (p. 96).
Leaves 18′—24′ in diameter, their segments divided at apex.
Coccothrinax (p. 100).
Rachis elongated; leaves green below, their segments divided at
apex.
Sabal (p. 101).
Leaf stalks armed with marginal teeth or spines.
Leaf stalks furnished irregularly with broad thin large and
small, straight or hooked spines confluent into a thin
bright orange-colored cartilaginous margin; leaves longer
than wide, divided nearly to the middle into segments
parted at apex and separating on the margins into thin
fibres.
Washingtonia (p. 104).
Leaf stalks furnished with stout or slender flattened teeth;
leaves suborbicular, divided to the middle or nearly to
the base into segments parted at apex; segments of the
blade not separating on the margin into thin fibres.
Acœlorraphe (p. 105).
Leaves pinnate.
Leaves 10°—12° in length, their pinnæ 2½°—3° long and often 1½°
wide, deep green.
Roystonea (p. 107).
Leaves 5°—6° long, their pinnæ 18′ long and 1′ wide, dark
yellow-green above, pale and glaucous below.
Pseudophœnix (p. 109).
Stem simple or branched; leaves sessile, lanceolate, long- and usually
sharp-pointed at apex.
Yucca (p. 110).
II. Leaves 1-nerved, needle-shaped, linear or scale-like, persistent
(deciduous in Larix and Taxodium). Gymnospermæ.
1. Leaves Persistent.
_a_ Leaves fascicled, needle-shaped, in 1—5-leafed clusters enclosed
at base in a membranaceous sheath.
Pinus (p. 2).
_aa_ Leaves scattered, usually linear.
_b_ Leaves linear, often obtuse or emarginate.
Base of the leaves persistent on the branches.
Leaves sessile, 4-sided, or flattened and stomatiferous above.
Picea (p. 34).
Leaves stalked, flattened and stomatiferous below, or angular,
often appearing 2-ranked.
Tsuga (p. 42).
Base of the leaves not persistent on the branches; leaves often
appearing 2-ranked.
Leaves stalked, flattened, stomatiferous below; winter-buds
pointed, not resinous.
Pseudotsuga (p. 47).
Leaves sessile, flattened and often grooved on the upper side,
or quadrangular, rarely stomatiferous above, on upper
fertile branches often crowded; winter-buds obtuse,
resinous (_except in No. 9_).
Abies (p. 50).
_bb_ Leaves linear-lanceolate, rigid, acuminate, spirally disposed,
appearing 2-ranked by a twist in the petiole.
Leaves abruptly contracted at base, long-pointed, with pale bands
of stomata on the lower surface on each side of the
midveins; fruit drupe-like.
Torreya (p. 91).
Leaves gradually narrowed at base, short-pointed, paler, and
without distinct bands of stomata on the lower surface;
fruit berry-like.
Taxus (p. 93).
_bbb_ Leaves ovate-lanceolate and scale-like, spreading in 2 ranks
or linear on the same tree, acute, compressed, keeled on the
back and closely appressed or spreading at apex.
Sequoia (p. 61).
_aaa_ Leaves opposite or whorled, usually scale-like.
Internodes distinctly longer than broad; branchlets flattened, of
nearly equal color on both sides; leaves eglandular.
Libocedrus (p. 65).
Internodes about as long as broad, often pale below, usually
glandular.
Branchlets flattened.
Branchlets in one plane, much flattened, 1/12′—⅙′ broad.
Thuya (p. 67).
Branchlets slightly flattened, 1/24′—1/16′ broad.
Chamæcyparis (p. 75).
Branchlets terete or 4-angled.
Branchlets more or less in one plane; fruit a cone.
Cupressus (p. 69).
Branchlets not in one plane; fruit a berry (_leaves
needle-shaped, in whorls of 3 in No. 1_).
Juniperus (p. 78).
2. Leaves Deciduous.
Leaves in many-leafed clusters on short lateral spurs.
Larix (p. 31).
Leaves spreading in 2 ranks.
Taxodium (p. 63).
III. Leaves netted-veined, rarely scale-like or wanting. Dicotyledons.
A. LEAVES OPPOSITE. (B, see p. xix).
1. Leaves Simple. (2, see p. xviii).
Leaves persistent.
_a_ Leaves with stipules.
_b_ Leaves entire or occasionally slightly crenate or serrate.
_c_ Leaves emarginate at apex, very short-stalked, 1½′—2′ long.
Leaves obovate, gradually narrowed into the petiole.
Gyminda (p. 678).
Leaves oval to oblong, rounded or broad-cuneate (_rarely
alternate_).
Branchlets densely velutinous.
Krugiodendron (p. 721).
Branchlets slightly puberulous at first, soon glabrous.
Reynosia (p. 720).
_cc_ Leaves not emarginate at apex.
Leaves obtuse, rarely acutish or abruptly short-pointed.
Leaves elliptic, 3½′—5′ long.
Rhizophora (p. 763).
Leaves obovate, usually rounded at apex, ¾′—2′ long.
Byrsonima (p. 632).
Leaves acute to acuminate.
Leaves oblong-ovate to lanceolate; branchlets glabrous.
Exostema (p. 877).
Leaves broad-elliptic to oblong-elliptic; branchlets villose.
Guettarda (p. 879).
_bb_ Leaves serrate (_often pinnate_).
Lyonothamnus (p. 378).
_aa_ Leaves without stipules.
Petioles biglandular; leaves obtuse or emarginate, 1½′—2½′ long.
Laguncularia (p. 767).
Petioles without glands.
Leaves furnished below with small dark glands, slightly aromatic;
petioles short.
Leaves oblong to oblong-ovate and acuminate or elliptic and
bluntly short-pointed.
Calyptranthes (p. 769).
Leaves ovate, obovate or elliptic.
Eugenia (p. 770).
Leaves without glands.
Leaves green and glabrous below.
Leaves obtuse or emarginate at apex (_rarely alternate_),
1′—1½′ long.
Torrubia (p. 341).
Leaves acute, acuminate, or sometimes rounded or emarginate,
3′—5′ long.
Leaves distinctly veined.
Citharexylon (p. 864).
Leaves obscurely veined.
Osmanthus (p. 856).
Leaves hoary tomentulose or scurfy below.
Leaves strongly 3-nerved, acuminate, densely scurfy below.
Tetrazygia (p. 776).
Leaves penniveined, rounded or acute at apex, hoary
tomentulose below.
Avicennia (p. 865).
** Leaves deciduous.
_a_ Leaves without lobes.
_b_ Leaves serrate.
Winter-buds with several opposite outer scales.
Leaves puberulous below, closely and finely serrate; axillary
buds solitary.
Evonymus (p. 675).
Leaves glabrous below, remotely crenate-serrulate; axillary buds
several, superposed.
Forestiera (p. 853).
Winter-buds enclosed in 2 large opposite scales.
Viburnum (p. 886).
_bb_ Leaves entire.
_c_ Leaves without stipules.
Leaves suborbicular or elliptic to oblong.
Leaves rounded or acutish at apex, 1′—2′ long, occasionally
3-foliolate, glabrous; branchlets quadrangular.
Fraxinus anomala (p. 837).
Leaves acuminate or acute at apex, 3′—4′ long.
Leaf-scars connected by a transverse line, with 3
bundle-traces; branchlets slender,
appressed-pubescent.
Cornus (p. 785).
Leaf-scars not connected, with 1 bundle-trace; branchlets
stout, villose, puberulous or glabrous.
Chionanthus (p. 855).
Leaves broad-ovate, cordate, acuminate, 5′—12′ long, on long
petioles.
Catalpa (p. 870).
Leaves linear to linear-lanceolate, short-stalked or sessile
(_sometimes alternate_).
Chilopsis (p. 869).
_cc_ Leaves with persistent stipules, entire.
Leaves oval or ovate; winter-buds resinous, the terminal up to
½′ in length.
Pinckneya (p. 876).
Leaves ovate to lanceolate; winter-buds minute.
Cephalanthus (p. 878).
_aa_ Leaves palmately lobed.
Acer (p. 681).
2. Leaves Compound.
_a_ Leaves persistent, with stipules.
Leaves equally pinnate; leaflets entire.
Guaiacum (p. 630).
Leaves unequally pinnately parted into 3—8 linear-lanceolate
segments (_sometimes entire_).
Lyonothamnus (p. 378).
Leaves trifoliate.
Leaflets stalked.
Amyris (p. 640).
Leaflets sessile.
Helietta (p. 637).
_aa_ Leaves deciduous.
Leaves unequally pinnate or trifoliate.
Leaflets crenate-serrate or entire, the veins arching within the
margins; stipules wanting; winter-buds with several opposite
scales.
Fraxinus (p. 833).
Leaflets sharply or incisely serrate, the primary veins extending
to the teeth.
Leaflets 3—7, incisely serrate; stipules present; winter-buds
with 1 pair of obtuse outer scales.
Acer Negundo (p. 699).
Leaflets 5—9, sharply serrate; stipules present; winter-buds
with many opposite acute scales; pith thick.
Sambucus (p. 882).
Leaves digitate, with 5—7, sharply serrate leaflets; terminal buds
large.
Æsculus (p. 702).
B. LEAVES ALTERNATE.
1. Leaves Simple. (2, see p. xxiv).
* Leaves persistent. (** see p. xxii).
_a_ Leaves deeply 3—5-lobed, ⅓′—½′ long, with linear lobes, hoary
tomentose below.
Cowania (p. 549).
_aa_ Leaves palmately lobed.
Leaves stellate-pubescent, about 1½′ in diameter, with stipules.
Fremontia (p. 749).
Leaves glabrous, 1°—2° in diameter, without stipules.
Carica (p. 755).
_aaa_ Leaves not lobed or pinnately lobed.
_b_ Branches spinescent.
Leaves clustered at the end of the branches, at least 2′—3′ long.
Bucida (p. 765).
Leaves fascicled on lateral branchlets, obtuse or emarginate, pale
and glabrous beneath.
Bumelia angustifolia (p. 816).
Leaves scattered.
Leaves generally obovate, mucronate, not more than ½′—1′ long,
glabrous and green or brownish tomentulose beneath.
Condalia (p. 719).
Leaves elliptic-ovate to oblong, obtuse or emarginate, glabrous,
1—2 cm. long.
Ximenia (p. 337).
_bb_ Branches not spinescent.
_c_ Leaves serrate, or lobed (_in some species of Quercus_).
(_cc_, see p. xxii).
_d_ Juice watery. (_dd_, see p. xxii).
_e_ Stipules present. (_ee_, see p. xxii).
_f_ Primary veins extending straight to the teeth.
Leaves and branchlets glabrous or pubescent to tomentose
with fascicled hairs.
Leaves fulvous-tomentose beneath, repand-dentate, 3′—5′
long.
Lithocarpus (p. 236).
Leaves glabrous or grayish to whitish tomentose beneath,
entire, lobed or dentate.
Quercus sp. 21—34 (p. 268).
Leaves and branchlets coated with simpled silky or woolly
hairs at least while young, not more than 2½′ long.
Cercocarpus (p. 550).
_ff_ Primary veins arching and united within the margin.
Leaves 3-nerved from the base.
Ceanothus (p. 726).
Leaves not 3-nerved.
Leaves acute.
Leaves sinuately dentate, with few spiny teeth
(_rarely entire_), glabrous.
Ilex opaca (p. 669).
Leaves serrate.
Leaves tomentose below; branchlets tomentose.
Leaves narrow-lanceolate, glabrous and smooth
above.
Vauquelinia (p. 377).
Leaves ovate, cordate, scabrate above.
Trema (p. 327).
Leaves glabrous below.
Heteromeles (p. 392).
Leaves entire, very rarely toothed.
Leaves elliptic, glabrous.
Prunus caroliniana (p. 579).
Leaves oblanceolate, pubescent beneath when young.
Ilex Cassine (p. 670).
Leaves obtuse, sometimes mucronate.
Leaves spinose-serrate, glabrous.
Leaves broad-ovate to suborbicular or elliptic;
branchlets dark red-brown, spinescent.
Rhamnus crocea (p. 723).
Leaves ovate to ovate-lanceolate; branchlets yellow
or orange-colored, not spinescent.
Prunus ilicifolia (p. 581).
Leaves crenate (_often entire_), oval to oblong.
Ilex vomitoria (p. 671).
_ee_ Stipules wanting.
Leaves resinous-dotted, aromatic, 1½′—4′ long.
Myrica (p. 163).
Leaves not resinous-dotted, crenately serrate, 4′—6′ long.
Leaves dark green, glabrous below.
Gordonia Lasianthus (p. 751).
Leaves yellowish green, pubescent below, sometimes nearly
entire.
Symplocos (p. 831).
_dd_ Juice milky.
Petioles 2½′—4′ long; leaves broad-ovate.
Hippomane (p. 652).
Petioles about ¼′ long; leaves elliptic to oblong-lanceolate.
Gymnanthes (p. 654).
_cc_ Leaves entire (_rarely sparingly toothed on vigorous
branchlets_).
_d_ Stipules present.
_e_ Stipules connate, at least at first.
Stipules persistent, forming a sheath surrounding the branch
above the node; leaves obtuse.
Coccolobis (p. 338).
Stipules deciduous, enveloping the unfolded leaf.
Leaves ferrugineous-tomentose beneath.
Magnolia grandiflora (p. 345).
Leaves glabrous beneath, with milky juice.
Ficus (p. 333).
_ee_ Stipules free.
_f_ Juice milky; leaves oval to oblong, 3′—5′ long.
Drypetes (p. 650).
_ff_ Juice watery.
_g_ Leaves obtuse or emarginate at apex.
Leaves with ferrugineous scales beneath, their petioles
slender.
Capparis (p. 365).
Leaves without ferrugineous scales.
Leaves soft-pubescent on both sides.
Colubrina cubensis (p. 730).
Leaves glabrous at least at maturity.
Leaves rarely 2′—3′ long, standing on the branch at
acute angles.
Chrysobalanus (p. 583).
Leaves rarely more than 1′ long, spreading
(sometimes 3-nerved).
Ceanothus spinosos (p. 728).
_gg_ Leaves acute or acutish.
Petioles with 2 glands.
Conocarpus (p. 766).
Petioles without glands.
Leaves and branchlets more or less pubescent, at least
while young.
Leaves fascicled except on vigorous branchlets.
Cercocarpus (p. 550).
Leaves not fascicled.
Winter-buds minute, with few pointed scales.
Leaves rounded or nearly rounded at base.
Colubrina sp. 1, 3 (p. 729).
Leaves broad-cuneate at base.
Ilex Cassine (p. 670).
Winter-buds conspicuous, with numerous scales.
Leaves usually lanceolate, entire, covered below
with yellow scales.
Castanopsis (p. 234).
Leaves oblong or oblong-obovate, repand-dentate,
fibrous tomentose below.
Lithocarpus (p. 236).
Leaves and branchlets glabrous.
Leaf-scar with 1 bundle-trace.
Ilex Krugiana (p. 672).
Leaf-scar with 3 bundle-traces. Cherry Laurels.
Prunus sp. 19—22 (p. 579).
_dd_ Stipules wanting.
_e_ Leaves aromatic when bruised.
Leaves resinous-dotted.
Myrica (p. 163).
Leaves not resinous-dotted.
Leaves obtuse, obovate, glabrous.
Canella (p. 753).
Leaves acute.
Leaves mostly rounded at the narrowed base, ovate to
oblong, acute, glabrous.
Anona (p. 354).
Leaves more or less cuneate at base, elliptic to
lanceolate, usually acuminate.
Leaves abruptly long-acuminate, glabrous, the margin
undulate; branchlets red-brown.
Misanteca (p. 364).
Leaves gradually acuminate or nearly acute.
Leaves strongly reticulate beneath.
Branchlets glabrous, light grayish brown; leaves
glabrous, light green beneath.
Ocotea (p. 359).
Branchlets pubescent while young, greenish or
yellowish; leaves pale beneath, pubescent
while young.
Umbellularia (p. 360).
Leaves not or slightly reticulate, glaucous,
glabrous or pubescent beneath.
Persea (p. 356).
_ee_ Leaves not aromatic.
_f_ Leaves acute or acutish.
Leaves obovate, gradually narrowed into short petioles.
Leaves 2′—2½′ long.
Schæfferia (p. 679).
Leaves at least 6′—8′ long.
Enallagma (p. 873).
Leaves elliptic to oblong or ovate.
Leaves rough or pubescent above, pubescent below,
subcordate to cuneate at base.
Leaves stellate-pubescent.
Solanum (p. 867).
Leaves scabrous above.
Petiole ⅛′—¼′ long; leaves oval or oblong, 1¼′—4′
long.
Ehretia (p. 862).
Petiole 1′—1½′ long; leaves ovate to oblong-ovate,
3′—7′ long.
Cordia (p. 858).
Leaves smooth above.
Winter-buds scaly.
Leaves covered below with ferrugineous or pale
scales, 1′—3′ long.
Lyonia (p. 797).
Leaves glabrous or nearly so below.
Leaves ovate-lanceolate or obovate-lanceolate,
4′—12′ long, usually clustered at end of
branchlet, veinlets below obscure.
Rhododendron (p. 792).
Leaves elliptic or oval to oblong or lanceolate.
Leaves light yellowish green below and without
distinctly visible veins or veinlets,
entire, 3′—4′ long.
Kalmia (p. 794).
Leaves pale below and more or less distinctly
reticulate, occasionally serrate or
denticulate, 1′—5′ long; bark of branches
red.
Arbutus (p. 799).
Winter-buds naked.
Leaves pubescent below when unfolding.
Mature leaves nearly glabrous below.
Leaves oblong-lanceolate to narrow-obovate.
Dipholis (p. 810).
Leaves oval.
Sideroxylum (p. 809).
Mature leaves covered below with brilliant
copper-colored pubescence.
Leaves glabrous below.
Chrysophyllum (p. 817).
Leaves marked by minute black dots, ovate to
oblong-lanceolate.
Ardisia (p. 806).
Leaves lepidote, oblong-obovate.
Rapanea (p. 807).
_ff_ Leaves obtuse or emarginate at apex.
_g_ Leaves rounded or cordate at base, emarginate, their
petioles slender.
Leaves reniform to broad-ovate, cordate; juice watery.
Cercis (p. 603).
Leaves elliptic to oblong, rounded at base; juice milky
or viscid.
Leaves emarginate; petioles slender,
rufous-tomentulose.
Mimusops (p. 819).
Leaves obtuse at apex; petioles stout,
grayish-tomentulose or glabrous.
Rhus integrifolia (p. 664).
_gg_ Leaves cuneate at base.
Petioles slender, ½′ long.
Beureria (p. 861).
Petioles short and stout.
Leaves coriaceous, with thick revolute margins
(_sometimes opposite_).
Jacquinia (p. 804).
Leaves subcoriaceous, slightly revolute.
Leaves reticulate-veined beneath.
Leaves oval to obovate or oblong-oval, more or
less pubescent while young.
Vaccinium (p. 802).
Leaves oblong to oblong-obovate, glabrous.
Cyrilla (p. 666).
Leaves obscurely veined beneath, glabrous.
Leaves oblong-lanceolate, narrowed toward the
emarginate apex, decurrent nearly to base of
petiole.
Cliftonia (p. 667).
Leaves rounded at apex, distinctly petioled.
Maytenus (p. 676).
** Leaves deciduous.
† Leaves conspicuous. (††, see p. xxiv.)
_a_ Leaves entire, sometimes 3 or 4-lobed. (_aa_, see p. xxiii).
_b_ Stipules present.
Juice milky.
Maclura (p. 331).
Juice watery.
Stipules connate, enveloping the young leaves, their scars
encircling the branchlet.
Leaves acute or acuminate, entire; winter-buds pointed, nearly
terete.
Magnolia (p. 342).
Leaves truncate, sinuately 4-lobed; winter-buds obtuse,
compressed.
Liriodendron (p. 351).
Stipules distinct.
Branches spinescent; leaves glandular, caducous (_crenately
serrate on vigorous shoots_).
Dalea (p. 621).
Branches not spinescent; leaves without glands.
Winter-buds with a single pair of connate scales.
Salix (p. 138).
Winter-buds with several pairs of imbricate scales.
Branchlets without a terminal bud; leaves 3-nerved.
Celtis (p. 318).
Branchlets with a terminal bud, leaves penniveined.
Quercus sp. 17—20 (p. 262).
_bb_ Stipules wanting.
_c_ Branchlets bright green and lustrous for the first 2 or 3
years; leaves sometimes 3-lobed, aromatic.
Sassafras (p. 362).
_cc_ Branchlets brown or gray.
_d_ Leaves acute or acuminate.
Leaves 10′—12′ long, obovate-oblong, acuminate, glabrous,
emitting a disagreeable odor.
Asimina (p. 353).
Leaves smaller.
Petioles very slender, 1′—2′ long; leaves elliptic,
acuminate.
Cornus alternifolia (p. 789).
Petioles short.
Branchlets with a terminal bud.
Leaf-scars about as long as broad; branchlets without
lenticels, light reddish brown.
Elliottia (p. 791).
Leaf-scars crescent-shaped, broader than long, with 3
distinct bundle-traces.
Leaves pubescent on both sides, rugulose above;
petioles 1′—2′ long, like the young branchlet
densely pubescent.
Leitneria (p. 167).
Leaves glabrous and smooth above, glabrous or
pubescent below; petioles and branchlets usually
glabrous or nearly so at maturity.
Nyssa (p. 779).
Branchlets without a terminal bud.
Pubescence consisting of simple hairs or wanting.
Leaves 4′—6′ long, pubescent beneath while young;
branchlet light brown or gray.
Diospyros virginiana (p. 821).
Leaves 1½′—3′ long, glabrous; branches light yellowish
gray.
Schœpfia (p. 336).
Pubescence stellate; leaves obovate or elliptic, 2½′—5′
long, pubescent below.
Styrax (p. 829).
_dd_ Leaves obtuse or acute.
Branchlets not spinescent.
Leaves glabrous at maturity, their petioles slender.
Cotinus (p. 657).
Leaves pubescent below at maturity; their petioles short and
thick.
Diospyros texana (p. 823).
Branchlets spinescent; leaves often fascicled on lateral
branchlets.
Bumelia (p. 812).
_aa_ Leaves serrate or pinnately lobed.
_b_ Stipules present. (_bb_, see p. xxvi.)
_c_ Winter-buds naked.
Leaves oblique at base, the upper side rounded or subcordate,
obovate, coarsely toothed.
Hamamelis (p. 368).
Leaves equal at base, cuneate, finely serrate or crenate.
Rhamnus sp. 2, 3 (p. 724, 725).
_cc_ Winter-buds with a single pair of connate scales.
Primary veins arching and uniting within the margins; leaves
simply serrate or crenate, sometimes entire.
Salix (p. 138).
Primary veins extending to the teeth, leaves doubly serrate,
often slightly lobed.
Alnus (p. 220).
_ccc_ Winter-buds with several pairs of imbricate scales.
_d_ Terminal buds wanting; branchlets prolonged by an upper
axillary bud.
Juice milky; leaves usually ovate, often lobed.
Morus (p. 328).
Juice watery; leaves not lobed.
Leaves distinctly oblique at base.
Leaves with numerous prominent lateral veins.
Leaves generally broad-ovate, simply serrate,
stellate-pubescent at least while young, rarely
glabrous.
Tilia (p. 732).
Leaves never broad-ovate, usually doubly serrate, more
or less pubescent with simple hairs, at least
while young.
Winter-buds ovoid, usually acute, ⅓ to nearly as long
as petioles; leaves 1′—7′ long, doubly serrate.
Ulmus (p. 309).
Winter-buds subglobose, minute; leaves 2′—2½′ long,
crenate-serrate.
Planera (p. 316).
Leaves 3 or 4-nerved from the base.
Celtis (p. 318).
Leaves slightly or not at all oblique at base.
Leaves 3-nerved from the base, glandular-crenate or
glandular-serrate.
Ceanothus (p. 726).
Leaves not or obscurely 3-nerved at base, usually doubly
serrate.
Leaves blue-green; petioles ¼′—½′ long; bark smooth,
gray-brown.
Carpinus (p. 201).
Leaves yellow-green.
Bark rough, furrowed; petioles ⅛′—¼′ long; leaves not
resinous-glandular.
Ostrya (p. 202).
Bark flaky or cherry-tree like; petioles ¼′—1′ long;
leaves often resinous-glandular while young.
Betula (p. 205).
_dd_ Terminal buds present.
Primary veins arching and uniting within the margin
(_extending to the margin in the lobed leaves of
Malus_).
Winter-buds resinous; leaves crenate, usually truncate at
base; petioles slender.
Populus (p. 119).
Winter-buds not resinous.
Leaf-scars with 3 bundle-traces.
Leaves involute in bud, often lobed on vigorous shoots;
winter-buds obtuse, short, pubescent.
Malus (p. 379).
Leaves conduplicate (_or in some species of Prunus
convolute_), never lobed; winter-buds acute.
Winter-buds elongated; branches never spinescent.
Amelanchier (p. 393).
Winter-buds not elongated, ovoid; branches sometimes
spinescent.
Prunus (p. 555).
Leaf-scars with 1 bundle-trace; leaves simply serrate.
Ilex sp. 5—6 (p. 673).
Primary veins extending to the teeth or to the lobes.
Leaves lobed.
Quercus sp. 1—16, 35—50 (p. 241, 283).
Leaves serrate-toothed.
Winter-buds with numerous scales.
Leaves lustrous beneath, remotely serrate or
denticulate; winter-buds elongated, acuminate.
Fagus (p. 228).
Leaves pale beneath, coarsely dentate or serrate;
winter-buds acute. Chestnut Oaks.
Quercus sp. 51—54 (p. 303).
Winter-buds with 2 pairs of scales.
Castanea (p. 230).
Leaves doubly or simply serrate, or lobed, with serrate
lobes; branches often furnished with spines.
Leaves involute in the bud; branchlets often ending in
blunt spines.
Malus (p. 379).
Leaves conduplicate in the bud; branches usually armed
with sharp-pointed single or branched axillary
spines.
Cratægus (p. 397).
_bb_ Stipules wanting.
_c_ Leaves not lobed.
Leaves subcoriaceous, oblong, sometimes nearly entire, glabrous.
Symplocos (p. 831).
Leaves thin.
Leaves oblong-obovate, acute, pubescent beneath.
Gordonia alatamaha (p. 752).
Leaves oblong or lanceolate, acuminate, glabrous or puberulous
while young, turning scarlet in the autumn.
Oxydendrum (p. 796).
Leaves ovate to elliptic, stellate-pubescent or glabrous,
turning yellow in the autumn.
Halesia (p. 824).
_cc_ Leaves palmately lobed.
Stipules large, foliaceous, united; branchlets without a
terminal bud.
Platanus (p. 371).
Stipules small, free, caducous; branchlets with a terminal bud.
Liquidambar (p. 367).
†† Leaves inconspicuous or wanting; branches spiny or prickly.
Branches or stems succulent, armed with numerous prickles.
Branches and stems columnar, ribbed, continuous; leaves 0.
Cereus (p. 757).
Branches jointed, tuberculate; leaves scale-like.
Opuntia (p. 759).
Branches rigid, spinescent.
Leaves minute, narrow-obovate.
Branchlets bright green.
Kœberlinia (p. 754).
Branchlets red-brown.
Dalea (p. 621).
Leaves scale-like, caducous.
Canotia (p. 677).
2. Leaves compound.
* Leaves 3-foliolate, without stipules.
Leaves persistent; leaflets obovate, entire, sessile.
Hypelate (p. 716).
Leaves deciduous.
Leaflets deltoid to hastate, entire, rounded at apex; branches
prickly.
Erythrina (p. 627).
Leaflets ovate to oblong, acuminate, strongly scented and bitter;
branches unarmed.
Ptelea (p. 639).
** Leaves twice pinnate; stipules present.
_a_ Leaves unequally twice pinnate, 2°—4° long, deciduous; leaflets
serrate, 2′—3′ in length; branches and stem armed with scattered
prickles.
Aralia (p. 778).
_aa_ Leaves equally twice pinnate, usually smaller; branches unarmed
or armed with stipular or axillary spines (in _Parkinsonia_
often apparently simply pinnate).
_b_ Leaflets crenate; leaves simply or twice-pinnate on the same
plant, deciduous, usually armed with simple or branched
axillary spines.
Gleditsia (p. 607).
_bb_ Leaflets entire.
Leaflets 2—2½′ long; leaves deciduous; branchlets stout, unarmed.
Gymnocladus (p. 605).
Leaflets smaller; leaves usually persistent; branchlets slender.
Branches armed with prickles or spines.
Leaves with 2 or rarely 4 pinnæ.
Branches armed with axillary spines or spiny rachises.
Pinnæ with 4—8 leaflets; branches with short axillary
spines.
Cercidium (p. 613).
Pinnæ with 8—60 leaflets; branches armed with spiny
rachises or rigid branchlets terminating in stout
spines.
Parkinsonia (p. 611).
Branches armed with stipular prickles; leaves persistent.
Pinnæ with many oblong to linear leaflets.
Prosopis (p. 599).
Pinnæ with 1 pair of orbicular to broad-oblong leaflets.
Pithecolobium unguis-cati (p. 586).
Leaves with 6, or more, rarely 4, pinnæ.
Prickles usually spreading, often recurved.
Acacia (p. 591).
Prickles usually more or less ascending, straight.
Pithecolobium (p. 586).
Branches unarmed.
Branchlets and petioles glabrous; leaves with 2—5 pair of
pinnæ, each with 40—80 leaflets.
Lysiloma (p. 589).
Branchlets and petioles pubescent while young; leaves with
5—17 pair of many-foliolate pinnæ, or pinnæ 2—4 and each
with 8—16 leaflets.
Leucæna (p. 596).
*** Leaves simply pinnate.
_a_ Leaves equally pinnate.
Stipules wanting.
Leaflets 2—4, generally oblong-obovate.
Exothea (p. 714).
Leaflets 6—12.
Leaflets obtuse, usually oblong-obovate.
Leaflets 8—12, 2′—3′ long, pale below; leaves occasionally
opposite.
Simarouba (p. 642).
Leaflets 6—8, 1′—1½′ long, green below.
Xanthoxylum coriaceum (p. 637).
Leaflets 6—8, acuminate.
Swietenia (p. 648).
Stipules present.
Branches armed with infra-stipular spines in pairs; leaflets
10—15, usually oblong-obovate, ½′—¾′ long, persistent.
Olneya (p. 626).
Branches unarmed; leaflets 20—46, ovals ½′—⅔′ long.
Eysenhardtia (p. 620).
_aa_ Leaves unequally pinnate.
_b_ Stipules present.
Leaflets sharply serrate; leaves deciduous; winter-buds resinous.
Sorbus (p. 390).
Leaflets entire or crenately serrate.
Leaves deciduous.
Leaflets 7—11, 3′—4½′ long; branches unarmed.
Leaflets usually alternate, thin and glabrous at maturity.
Cladrastis (p. 618).
Leaflets opposite, coriaceous, pubescent beneath at least
along the veins.
Ichthyomethia (p. 628).
Leaflets 9—21, 1—2 cm. long.
Branches usually with stipular prickles, sometimes viscid.
Robinia (p. 622).
Branches unarmed, not viscid; leaflets 13—19, elliptic.
Sophora affinis (p. 617).
Leaves persistent.
Leaflets 7—9, oblong-elliptic, 1′—2½′ long; branches unarmed.
Sophora secundiflora (p. 616).
Leaflets 10—15; branches prickly.
Olneya (p. 626).
_bb_ Stipules wanting.
_d_ Leaves persistent.
Leaflets long-stalked (_sometimes nearly sessile in Xanthoxylum
flavum_).
Leaflets oblong-ovate, cuneate at base.
Leaflets acuminate, glabrous.
Picramnia (p. 643).
Leaflets obtuse, tomentose when unfolding.
Xanthoxylum flavum (p. 636).
Leaflets broad-ovate, usually rounded or subcordate at base.
Metopium (p. 658).
Leaflets sessile or nearly so.
Petiole and rachis winged.
Leaflets crenate, obovate, about ½′ long; branches prickly.
Xanthoxylum Fagara (p. 634).
Leaflets entire.
Leaflets oblong, usually acute, 3′—4′ long.
Sapindus saponaria (p. 712).
Leaflets spathulate, rounded at apex, not more than ¾′
long.
Pistacia (p. 656).
Petiole and rachis not winged.
Leaflets 7—19, acuminate, 2′—5′ long.
Sapindus marginatus (p. 713).
Leaflets 21—41, obtuse, ½′—¾′ long.
Alvaradoa (p. 644).
_dd_ Leaves deciduous.
Leaflets long-stalked, 3—7, entire, acute.
Bursera (p. 645).
Leaflets sessile or nearly so.
Branches prickly; leaflets crenate.
Xanthoxylum clava-Herculis (p. 635).
Branches unarmed.
Juice milky or viscid; leaflets serrate or entire; rachis
sometimes winged.
Rhus species 1—3 (p. 660).
Juice watery.
Rachis without wings.
Leaflets entire, acuminate, 7—9.
Sapindus Drummondii (p. 714).
Leaflets serrate or crenate.
Winter-buds large; leaflets 5—23, aromatic.
Winter-buds naked.
Juglans (p. 169).
Winter-buds covered with scales.
Carya (p. 176).
Winter-buds minute, globose, scaly; leaflets 5—7,
ovate, not aromatic.
Ungnadia (p. 717).
Rachis winged; leaflets 10—20, entire, rounded at apex,
not more than ¼′ long.
Bursera microphylla (p. 647).
TREES OF NORTH AMERICA
(Exclusive of Mexico)
Class 1. GYMNOSPERMÆ.
Ovules and seeds borne on the face of a scale, not inclosed in an ovary;
resinous trees, with stems increasing in diameter by the annual addition
of a layer of wood inside the bark.
I. PINACEÆ.
Trees, with narrow or scale-like generally persistent clustered or
alternate leaves and usually scaly buds. Flowers appearing in early
spring, mostly surrounded at the base by an involucre of the more or
less enlarged scales of the buds, unisexual, monœcious (_diœcious in
Juniperus_), the male consisting of numerous 2-celled anthers, the
female of scales bearing on their inner face 2 or several ovules, and
becoming at maturity a woody cone or rarely a berry. Seeds with or
without wings; seed-coat of 2 layers; embryo axile in copious albumen;
cotyledons 2 or several. Of the twenty-nine genera scattered over the
surface of the globe, but most abundant in northern temperate regions,
thirteen occur in North America.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN GENERA.
Scales of the female flowers numerous; spirally arranged in the axils
of persistent bracts; ovules 2, inverted; seeds borne directly
on the scales, attached at the base in shallow depressions on
the inner side of the scales, falling from them at maturity and
usually carrying away a scarious terminal wing; leaves fascicled
or scattered (_deciduous in Larix_). Abietineæ.
Fruit maturing in two or rarely in three seasons; leaves fascicled,
needle-shaped in axillary 1—5-leaved clusters, inclosed at the
base in a membranaceous sheath; cone-scales thick and woody,
much longer than their bracts.
1. Pinus.
Fruit maturing in one season.
Leaves in many-leaved clusters on short spur-like branchlets,
deciduous; cone-scales thin, usually shorter than their
bracts.
2. Larix.
Leaves scattered, linear.
Cones pendulous, the scales persistent on the axis.
Branchlets roughened by the persistent leaf-bases; leaves
deciduous in drying; bracts shorter than the
cone-scales.
Leaves sessile, 4-sided, or flattened and stomatiferous
above.
3. Picea.
Leaves stalked, flattened and stomatiferous below, or
angular.
4. Tsuga.
Branchlets not roughened by leaf-bases; leaves stalked,
flattened; not deciduous in drying; bracts of the cone
2-lobed, aristate, longer than the scales.
5. Pseudotsuga.
Cones erect, their scales deciduous from the axis, longer or
shorter than the bracts; leaves sessile, flat or 4-sided.
6. Abies.
Scales of the female flowers without bracts; ovules and seeds borne on
the face of minute scales adnate to the base of the
flower-scales, enlarging and forming the scales of the cone.
Seeds with a narrow marginal wing (_wingless in Juniperas_).
Scales of the female flowers numerous, spirally arranged, forming a
woody cone; ovules erect, 2 or many under each scale; leaves
linear, alternate, often of 2 forms (_deciduous in Taxodium_).
Taxodiæ.
Ovules and seeds numerous under each scale.
7. Sequoia.
Ovules and seeds 2 under each scale; leaves mostly spreading in 2
ranks.
8. Taxodium.
Scales of the female flower few, decussate, forming a small cone, or
rarely a berry; ovules 2 or many under each scale; leaves
decussate or in 3 ranks, often of 2 forms, usually scale-like,
mostly adnate to the branch, the earliest free and subulate.
Cupressineæ.
Fruit a cone; leaves scale-like.
Cones oblong, their scales oblong, imbricated or valvate; seeds
2 under each scale, maturing the first year.
Scales of the cone 6, the middle ones only fertile; seeds
unequally 2-winged.
9. Libocedrus.
Scales of the cone 8—12; seeds equally 2-winged.
10. Thuja.
Cones subglobose, the scales peltate, maturing in one or two
years; seeds few or many under each scale.
Fruit maturing in two seasons; seeds many under each scale;
branchlets terete or 4-winged.
11. Cupressus.
Fruit maturing in one season; seeds 2 under each scale;
branchlets flattened.
12. Chamæcyparis.
Fruit a berry formed by the coalition of the scales of the flower;
ovules in pairs or solitary; flowers diœcious; leaves
decussate or in 3’s, subulate or scale-like, often of 2
forms.
13. Juniperus.
1. PINUS Duham. Pine.
Trees or rarely shrubs, with deeply furrowed and sometimes laminate or
with thin and scaly bark, hard or often soft heartwood often
conspicuously marked by dark bands of summer cells impregnated with
resin, pale nearly white sapwood, and large branch-buds formed during
summer and composed of minute buds in the axils of bud-scales, becoming
the bracts of the spring shoot. Leaves needle-shaped, clustered, the
clusters borne on deciduous spurs in the axils of scale-like primary
leaves, inclosed in the bud by numerous scales lengthening and forming a
more or less persistent sheath at the base of each cluster. Male flowers
clustered at the base of leafy growing shoots of the year, each flower
surrounded at the base by an involucre of 3—6 scale-like bracts,
composed of numerous sessile anthers, imbricated in many ranks and
surmounted by crest-like nearly orbicular connectives; the female
subterminal or lateral, their scales in the axils of non-accrescent
bracts. Fruit a woody cone maturing at the end of the second or rarely
of the third season, composed of the hardened and woody scales of the
flower more or less thickened on the exposed surface (the _apophysis_),
with the ends of the growth of the previous year appearing as terminal
or dorsal brown protuberances or scars (the _umbo_). Seeds usually
obovoid, shorter or longer than their wings or rarely wingless; outer
seed-coat crustaceous or thick, hard, and bony, the inner membranaceous;
cotyledons 3—18, usually much shorter than the inferior radicle.
Pinus is widely distributed through the northern hemisphere from the
Arctic Circle to the West Indies, the mountains of Central America, the
Canary Islands, northern Africa, the Philippine Islands, and Sumatra.
About sixty-six species are recognized. Of exotic species the so-called
Scotch Pine, _Pinus sylvestris_ L., of Europe and Asia, the Swiss Stone
Pine, _Pinus cembra_ L., and the Austrian Pine and other forms of _Pinus
nigra_ Arnold, from central and southern Europe, are often planted in
the northeastern states, and _Pinus Pinaster_ Ait., of the coast region
of western France and the Mediterranean Basin is successfully cultivated
in central and southern California. _Pinus_ is the classical name of the
Pine-tree.
The North American species can be conveniently grouped in two sections,
Soft Pines and Pitch Pines.
SOFT PINES.
Wood soft, close-grained, light-colored, the sapwood thin and nearly
white; sheaths of the leaf-clusters deciduous; leaves with one
fibro-vascular bundle.
Leaves in 5-leaved clusters.
Cones long-stalked, elongated, cylindric bright green at maturity,
becoming light yellow brown, their scales thin, with terminal
unarmed umbos; seeds shorter than their wings. White Pines.
Leaves without conspicuous white lines on the back.
Leaves slender, flexible; cones 4′—8′ long.
1. P. Strobus (A).
Leaves stout, more rigid; cones 5′—11′ long.
2. P. monticola (B, G).
Leaves with conspicuous white lines on the back; cones 12′—18′
long.
3. P. Lambertiana (G).
Cones short-stalked, green or purple at maturity, their scales
thick.
Cones cylindric or subglobose, their scales with terminal umbos;
leaves 2′ long or less. Stone Pines.
Cones 3′—10′ long, their scales opening at maturity; seeds with
wings.
4. P. flexilis (F, H).
Cones ½′—3′ long, their scales remaining closed at maturity;
seeds wingless.
5. P. albicaulis (B, F, G).
Cones ovoid-oblong, their scales with dorsal umbos armed with
slender prickles; seeds shorter than their wings; leaves in
crowded clusters, incurved, less than 2′ long. Foxtail
Pines.
Cones armed with minute incurved prickles.
6. P. Balfouriana (G).
Cones armed with long slender prickles.
7. P. aristata (F, G).
Leaves in 1—4-leaved clusters; cones globose, green at maturity,
becoming light brown, their scales few, concave, much thickened,
only the middle scales seed-bearing; seeds large and edible,
their wings rudimentary; leaves 2′ or less, often incurved. Nut
Pines.
8. P. cembroides (C, F, G, H).
1. Pinus Strobus L. White Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 1]
Leaves soft bluish green, whitened on the ventral side by 3—5 bands of
stomata, 3′—5′ long, mostly turning yellow and falling in September in
their second season, or persistent until the following June. Flowers:
male yellow; female bright pink, with purple scale margins. Fruit fully
grown in July of the second season, 4′—8′ long, opening and discharging
its seeds in September; seeds narrowed at the ends, ¼′ long, red-brown
mottled with black, about one fourth as long as their wings.
A tree, while young with slender horizontal or slightly ascending
branches in regular whorls usually of 5 branches; at maturity often
100°, occasionally 220° high, with a tall straight stem 3°—4° or rarely
6° in diameter, when crowded in the forest with short branches forming a
narrow head, or rising above its forest companions with long lateral
branches sweeping upward in graceful curves, the upper branches
ascending and forming a broad open irregular head, and slender
branchlets coated at first with rusty tomentum, soon glabrous, and
orange-brown in their first winter. Bark on young stems and branches
thin, smooth, green tinged with red, lustrous during the summer,
becoming 1′—2′ thick on old trunks and deeply divided by shallow
fissures into broad connected ridges covered with small closely
appressed purplish scales. Wood light, not strong, straight-grained,
easily worked, light brown often slightly tinged with red; largely
manufactured into lumber, shingles, and laths, used in construction, for
cabinet-making, the interior finish of buildings, wooden ware, matches,
and the masts of vessels.
Distribution. Newfoundland to Manitoba, southward through the northern
states to Pennsylvania, northern and eastern (Belmont County) Ohio,
northern Indiana, valley of the Rocky River near Oregon, Ogle County,
Illinois, and central and southeastern Iowa, and along the Appalachian
Mountains to eastern Kentucky and Tennessee and northern Georgia;
forming nearly pure forests on sandy drift soils, or more often in small
groves scattered in forests of deciduous-leaved trees on fertile
well-drained soil, also on the banks of streams, or on river flats, or
rarely in swamps.
Largely planted as an ornament of parks and gardens in the eastern
states, and in many European countries, where it grows with vigor and
rapidity; occasionally used in forest planting in the United States.
2. Pinus monticola D. Don. White Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 2]
Leaves blue-green, glaucous, whitened by 2—6 rows of ventral and often
by dorsal stomata, mostly persistent 3 or 4 years. Flowers: male yellow;
female pale purple. Fruit 5′—11′ long, shedding its seeds late in the
summer or in early autumn; seeds narrowed at the ends, ⅓′ long, pale
red-brown mottled with black, about one third as long as their wings.
A tree, often 100° or occasionally 150° high, with a trunk frequently
4°—5° or rarely 7°—8° in diameter, slender spreading slightly pendulous
branches clothing young stems to the ground and in old age forming a
narrow open often unsymmetrical pyramidal head, and stout tough
branchlets clothed at first with rusty pubescence, dark orange-brown and
puberulous in their first and dark red-purple and glabrous in their
second season. Bark of young stems and branches thin, smooth, light
gray, becoming on old trees ¾′—1½′ thick and divided into small nearly
square plates by deep longitudinal and cross fissures, and covered by
small closely appressed purple scales. Wood light, soft, not strong,
close, straight-grained, light brown or red; sometimes manufactured into
lumber, used in construction and the interior finish of buildings.
Distribution. Scattered through mountain forests from the basin of the
Columbia River in British Columbia to Vancouver Island; on the mountains
of northern Washington to the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains of
northern Montana; on the coast ranges of Washington and Oregon; and on
the Cascade and Sierra Nevada ranges southward to the Kern River valley,
California; most abundant and of its greatest value in northern Idaho on
the bottom-lands of streams tributary to Lake Pend Oreille; reaching the
sea-level on the southern shores of the Straits of Fuca and elevations
of 10,000° on the California Sierras.
Often planted as an ornamental tree in Europe, and occasionally in the
eastern United States where it grows more vigorously than any other
Pine-tree of western America.
3. Pinus Lambertiana Dougl. Sugar Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 3]
Leaves stout, rigid, 3½′—4′ long, marked on the two faces by 2—6 rows of
stomata; deciduous during their second and third years. Flowers: male
light yellow; female pale green. Fruit fully grown in August and opening
in October, 11′—18′ or rarely 21′ long; seeds ½′—⅝′ long, dark
chestnut-brown or nearly black, and half the length of their firm dark
brown obtuse wings broadest below the middle and ½′ wide.
A tree, in early life with remote regular whorls of slender branches
often clothing the stem to the ground and forming an open narrow
pyramid; at maturity 200°-220° high, with a trunk 6°—8° or occasionally
12° in diameter, a flat-topped crown frequently 60° or 70° across of
comparatively slender branches sweeping outward and downward in graceful
curves, and stout branchlets coated at first with pale or rufous
pubescence, dark orange-brown during their first winter, becoming dark
purple-brown. Bark on young stems and branches thin, smooth, dark green,
becoming on old trunks 2′—3′ thick and deeply and irregularly divided
into long thick plate-like ridges covered with large loose rich
purple-brown or cinnamon-red scales. Wood light, soft, straight-grained,
light red-brown; largely manufactured into lumber and used for the
interior finish of buildings, woodwork, and shingles. A sweet sugar-like
substance exudes from wounds made in the heartwood.
Distribution. Mountain slopes and the sides of ravines and cañons;
western Oregon from the valley of the north branch of the Santiam River
southward on the Cascade and coast ranges; California along the northern
and coast ranges to Sonoma County; along the western slopes of the
Sierra Nevada, where it grows to its greatest size at elevations between
3000° and 7000°; reappearing on the Santa Lucia Mountains of the coast
ranges; and on the high mountains in the southwestern part of the state
from Santa Barbara County southward usually at elevations of 5000°—7000°
above the sea; and on the San Pedro Mártir Mountains in Lower
California.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in western Europe and in the
eastern states, the Sugar Pine has grown slowly in cultivation and shows
little promise of attaining the large size and great beauty which
distinguish it in its native forests.
4. Pinus flexilis James. Rocky Mountain White Pine.
_Pinus strobiformis_ Sarg., not Engelm.
[Illustration: Fig. 4]
Leaves stout, rigid, dark green, marked on all sides by 1—4 rows of
stomata, 1½′—3′ long, deciduous in their fifth and sixth years. Flowers:
male reddish; female clustered, bright red-purple. Fruit subcylindric,
horizontal or slightly declining, green or rarely purple at maturity,
3′—10′ long, with narrow and more or less reflexed scales opening at
maturity; seeds compressed, ⅓′—½′ long, dark red-brown mottled with
black, with a thick shell produced into a narrow margin, their wings
about 1/12′ wide, generally persistent on the scale after the seed
falls.
A tree, usually 40°—50°, occasionally 80° high, with a short trunk 2°—5°
in diameter, stout long-persistent branches ultimately forming a low
wide round-topped head, and stout branchlets orange-green and covered at
first with soft fine pubescence, usually soon glabrous and darker
colored; at high elevations often a low spreading shrub. Bark of young
stems and branches thin, smooth, light gray or silvery white, becoming
on old trunks 1′—2′ thick, dark brown or nearly black, and divided by
deep fissures into broad ridges broken into nearly square plates covered
by small closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft, close-grained, pale
clear yellow, turning red with exposure; occasionally manufactured into
lumber.
Distribution. Eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains from Alberta to
western Texas and westward on mountain ranges at elevations of 5000° to
12,000° to Montana, and southern California, reaching the western slopes
of the Sierra Nevada at the head of King’s River near the summit of San
Gorgonio Mountain and in Snow Cañon, San Bernardino Range; usually
scattered singly or in small groves; forming open forests on the eastern
foothills of the Rocky Mountains of Montana and on the ranges of central
Nevada; attaining its largest size on those of northern New Mexico and
Arizona.
5. Pinus albicaulis Engelm. White Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 5]
Leaves stout, rigid, slightly incurved, dark green, marked by 1—3 rows
of dorsal stomata, clustered at the ends of the branches, 1½′—2½′ long,
persistent for from five to eight years. Flowers opening in July,
scarlet. Fruit ripening in August, oval or subglobose, horizontal,
sessile, dark purple, 1½′—3′ long, with scales thickened, acute, often
armed with stout pointed umbos, remaining closed at maturity; seeds
wingless, acute, subcylindric or flattened on one side, ⅓′—½′ long, ⅓′
thick, with a thick dark chestnut-brown hard shell.
A tree, usually 20°—30° or rarely 60° high, generally with a short trunk
2°—4° in diameter, stout very flexible branches, finally often standing
nearly erect and forming an open very irregular broad head, and stout
dark red-brown or orange-colored branchlets puberulous for two years or
sometimes glabrous; at high elevations often a low shrub, with
wide-spreading nearly prostrate stems. Bark thin, except near the base
of old trunks and broken by narrow fissures into thin narrow brown or
creamy white plate-like scales. Wood light, soft, close-grained,
brittle, light brown. The large sweet seeds are gathered and eaten by
Indians.
Distribution. Alpine slopes and exposed ridges between 5000° and 12,000°
elevation, forming the timber-line on many mountain ranges from latitude
53° north in the Rocky Mountains and British Columbia, southward to the
Wind River and Salt River Ranges, Wyoming, the mountains of eastern
Washington and Oregon, the Cascade Range, the mountains of northern
California and the Sierra Nevada to Mt. Whitney.
6. Pinus Balfouriana Balf. Foxtail Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 6]
Leaves stout, rigid, dark green and lustrous on the back, pale and
marked on the ventral faces by numerous rows of stomata, 1′—1½′ long,
persistent for ten or twelve years. Flowers: male dark orange-red;
female dark purple. Fruit 3½′—5′ long, with scales armed with minute
incurved prickles, dark purple, turning after opening dark red or
mahogany color; seeds full and rounded at the apex, compressed at the
base, pale, conspicuously mottled with dark purple, ⅓′ long, their wings
narrowed and oblique at the apex, about 1′ long and ¼′ wide.
A tree, usually 30°—40° or rarely 90° high, with a trunk generally 1°—2°
or rarely 5° in diameter, short stout branches forming an open irregular
pyramidal picturesque head, and long rigid more or less spreading
puberulous, soon glabrous, dark orange-brown ultimately dark gray-brown
or nearly black branchlets, clothed only at the extremities with the
long dense brush-like masses of foliage. Bark thin, smooth, and milky
white on the stems and branches of young trees, becoming on old trees
sometimes ¾′ thick, dark red-brown, deeply divided into broad flat
ridges. broken into nearly square plates separating on the surface into
small closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft and brittle, pale
reddish brown.
Distribution. California, on rocky slopes and ridges, forming scattered
groves on Scott Mountain, Siskiyou County, at elevations of 5000°—6000°;
on the mountains at the head of the Sacramento River; on Mt. Yolo Bally
in the northern Coast Range, and on the southern Sierra Nevada up to
elevations of 11,500°, growing here to its largest size and forming an
extensive open forest on the Whitney Plateau east of the cañon of Kern
River, and at the highest elevations often a low shrub, with
wide-spreading prostrate stems.
7. Pinus aristata Engelm. Foxtail Pine. Hickory Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 7]
Leaves stout or slender, dark green, lustrous on the back, marked by
numerous rows of stomata on the ventral faces, 1′—1½′ long, often
deciduous at the end of ten or twelve years or persistent four or five
years longer. Flowers male dark orange-red; female dark purple. Fruit
3′—3½′ long, with scales armed with slender incurved brittle prickles
nearly ¼′ long, dark purple-brown on the exposed parts, the remainder
dull red, opening and scattering their seeds about the 1st of October;
seeds nearly oval, compressed, light brown mottled with black, ¼′ long,
their wings broadest at the middle, about ⅓′ long and ¼′ wide.
A bushy tree, occasionally 40°—50° high, with a short trunk 2°—3° in
diameter, short stout branches in regular whorls while young, in old age
growing very irregularly, the upper erect and much longer than the
usually pendulous lower branches, and stout light orange-colored,
glabrous, or at first puberulous, ultimately dark gray-brown or nearly
black branchlets clothed at the ends with long compact brush-like tufts
of foliage. Bark thin, smooth, milky white on the stems and branches of
young trees, becoming on old trees ½′—¾′ thick, red-brown, and
irregularly divided into flat connected ridges separating on the surface
into small closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, light
red; occasionally used for the timbers of mines and for fuel.
Distribution. Rocky or gravelly slopes at the upper limit of tree growth
and rarely below 8,000° above the sea from the outer range of the Rocky
Mountains of Colorado to those of southern Utah, central and southern
Nevada, southeastern California, and the San Francisco peaks of northern
Arizona.
8. Pinus cembroides Zucc. Nut Pine. Piñon.
[Illustration: Fig. 8]
Leaves in 2 or 3-leaved clusters, slender, much incurved, dark green,
sometimes marked by rows of stomata on the 3 faces, 1′—2′ long,
deciduous irregularly during their third and fourth years. Flowers: male
in short crowded clusters, yellow; female dark red. Fruit subglobose,
1′—2′ broad; seeds subcylindric or obscurely triangular, more or less
compressed at the pointed apex, full and rounded at base, nearly black
on the lower side and dark chestnut-brown on the upper, ½′—¾′ long, the
margin of their outer coat adnate to the cone-scale.
A bushy tree, with a short trunk rarely more than a foot in diameter and
a broad round-topped head, usually 15°—20° high, stout spreading
branches, and slender dark orange-colored branchlets covered at first
with matted pale deciduous hairs, dark brown and sometimes nearly black
at the end of five or six years; in sheltered cañons on the mountains of
Arizona and in Lower California occasionally 50° or 60° tall. Bark about
½′ thick, irregularly divided by remote shallow fissures and separated
on the surface into numerous large thin light red-brown scales. Wood
light, soft, close-grained, pale clear yellow. The large oily seeds are
an important article of food in northern Mexico, and are sold in large
quantities in Mexican towns.
Distribution. Mountain ranges of central and southern Arizona, usually
only above elevations of 6500°, often covering their upper slopes with
open forests; in an isolated station on the Edwards Plateau on uplands
and in cañons at the headwaters of the Frio and Nueces Rivers, Edwards
and Kerr Counties, Texas; on the Sierra de Laguna, Lower California, and
on many of the mountain ranges of northern Mexico; passing into the
following varieties differing only in the number of the leaves in the
leaf-clusters, and in their thickness.
Pinus cembroides var. Parryana Voss. Nut Pine. Piñon.
_Pinus quadrifolia_ Sudw.
[Illustration: Fig. 9]
Leaves in 1—5 usually 4-leaved clusters, stout, incurved, pale glaucous
green, marked on the three surfaces by numerous rows of stomata, 1¼′—1½′
long, irregularly deciduous, mostly falling in their third year.
A tree, 30°—40° high, with a short trunk occasionally 18′ in diameter,
and thick spreading branches forming a compact regularpyramidal or in
old age a low round-topped irregular head, and stout branchlets coated
at first with soft pubescence, and light orange-brown. Bark ½′—¾′ thick,
dark brown tinged with red, and divided by shallow fissures into broad
flat connected ridges covered by thick closely appressed plate-like
scales. Wood light, soft, close-grained, pale brown or yellow. The seeds
form an important article of food for the Indians of Lower California.
Distribution. Arid mesas and low mountain slopes of Lower California
southward to the foothills of the San Pedro Mártir Mountains, extending
northward across the boundary of California to the desert slopes of the
Santa Rosa Mountains, Riverside County, where it is common at elevations
of 5000° above the sea-level.
Pinus cembroides var. edulis Voss. Nut Pine. Piñon.
_Pinus edulis_ Engelm.
[Illustration: Fig. 10]
Leaves in 2 or rarely in 3-leaved clusters, stout, semiterete or
triangular, rigid, incurved, dark-green, marked by numerous rows of
stomata, ¾′—1½′ long, deciduous during the third or not until the fourth
or fifth year, dropping irregularly and sometimes persistent for eight
or nine years.
A tree often 40°—50° high with a tall trunk occasionally 2° in diameter
and short erect branches forming a narrow head, or frequently with a
short divided trunk and a low round-topped head of spreading branches,
and thick branchlets orange color during their first and second years,
finally becoming light gray or dark brown sometimes tinged with red.
Bark ½′—¾′ thick and irregularly divided into connected ridges covered
by small closely appressed light brown scales tinged with red or orange
color. Wood light, soft, not strong, brittle, pale brown; largely
employed for fuel and fencing, and as charcoal used in smelting; in
western Texas occasionally sawed into lumber. The seeds form an
important article of food among Indians and Mexicans, and are sold in
the markets of Colorado and New Mexico.
Distribution. Eastern foothills of the outer ranges of the Rocky
Mountains, from northern Colorado (Owl Cañon, Larimer County); to the
extreme western part of Oklahoma (near Kenton, Cimarron County, _G. W.
Stevens_) and to western Texas, westward to eastern Utah, southwestern
Wyoming, and to northern and central Arizona; over the mountains of
northern Mexico, and on the San Pedro Mártir Mountains, Lower
California; often forming extensive open forests at the eastern base of
the Rocky Mountains, on the Colorado plateau, and on many mountain
ranges of northern and central Arizona up to elevations of 7000° above
the sea.
Pinus cembroides var. monophylla Voss. Nut Pine. Piñon.
_Pinus monophylla_ Torr.
[Illustration: Fig. 11]
Leaves in 1 or 2-leaved clusters, rigid, incurved, pale glaucous green,
marked by 18—20 rows of stomata, usually about 1½′ long, sometimes
deciduous during their fourth and fifth seasons, but frequently
persistent until their twelfth year.
A tree usually 15°—20°, occasionally 40°—50° high, with a short trunk
rarely more than a foot in diameter and often divided near the ground
into several spreading stems, short thick branches forming while the
tree is young a broad rather compact pyramid, and in old age often
pendulous and forming a low round-topped often picturesque head, and
stout light orange-colored ultimately dark brown branchlets. Bark about
¾′ thick and divided by deep irregular fissures into narrow connected
flat ridges broken on the surface into thin closely appressed light or
dark brown scales tinged with red or orange color. Wood light, soft,
weak, and brittle; largely used for fuel, and charcoal used in smelting.
The seeds supply an important article of food to the Indians of Nevada
and California.
Distribution. Dry gravelly slopes and mesas from the western base of the
Wasatch Mountains of Utah, westward over the mountain ranges of Nevada
to the eastern slopes of the southern Sierra Nevada, and to their
western slope at the headwaters of the Tuolumne, Kings and Kern Rivers,
and southward to northern Arizona and to the mountains of southern
California where it is common on the San Bernardino and San Jacinto
Mountains between altitudes of 3500° and 7000°, and on the Sierra del
Pinal, Lower California; often forming extensive open forests at
elevations between 5000° and 7000°.
PITCH PINES.
Wood usually heavy, coarse-grained, generally dark-colored, with pale
often thick sapwood; cones green at maturity (_sometimes purple in_ 10
_and_ 21) becoming various shades of brown; cone-scales more or less
thickened, mostly armed; seeds shorter than their wings (_except in_ 17
_and_ 28); leaves with 2 fibro-vascular bundles.
Sheaths of the leaf-clusters deciduous; cones ½′—2′ long, maturing in
the third year, leaves in 3-leaved clusters, slender, 2½′—4′
long.
9. P. leiophylla (H).
Sheaths of the leaf-clusters persistent.
Leaves in 3-leaved clusters (3 and 5-leaved in 10, 3—2 leaved in
12).
Cones subterminal, usually deciduous above the basal scales
persistent on the branch.
Buds brown; leaves in 2—5-leaved clusters.
10. P. ponderosa (B, F, G, H).
Buds white.
11. P. palustris (C).
Cones lateral.
Cones symmetrical, their outer scales not excessively developed.
Leaves in 2 and 3-leaved clusters, 8′—12′ long; cones
short-stalked.
12. P. caribæa (C).
Leaves in 3-leaved clusters; cones sessile.
Cones oblong-conic, prickles stout; leaves 6′—9′ long.
13. P. taeda (A, C).
Cones ovoid, prickles slender; leaves 3′—5′ long.
14. P. rigida (A, C).
Cones unsymmetrical by the excessive development of the scales
on the outer side.
Cones 5′—6′ long, their scales not prolonged into stout,
straight or curved spines.
Prickles of the cone-scales minute.
15. P. radiata (G).
Prickles of the cone-scales stout.
16. P. attenuata (G).
Cones 6′—14′ long, their scales prolonged into stout, straight
or curved spines; leaves long and stout.
Cones oblong-ovoid; seeds longer than their wings.
17. P. Sabiniana (G).
Cones oblong-conic; seeds shorter than their wings.
18. P. Coulteri (G).
Leaves in 2-leaved clusters (2 and 3-leaved in 23).
Cones subterminal.
Cones symmetrical, 2′—2½′ long, their scales unarmed; leaves
5′—6′ long.
19. P. resinosa (A).
Cones unsymmetrical by the greater development of the scales on
the outer side, armed with slender prickles; leaves 1′—4′
long.
20. P. contorta (B, F, G).
Cones lateral.
Cones about 2′ long.
Cone-scales very unevenly developed and mostly unarmed; cones
incurved; leaves less than 2′ long.
21. P. Banksiana (A).
Cone-scales evenly developed, armed with weak or deciduous
prickles; leaves up to 4′ in length.
Bark of the branches and upper trunk smooth.
22. P. glabra (C).
Bark of the branches and upper trunk roughened.
23. P. echinata (A, C).
Cones about 3′ long, armed with persistent spines.
Cone-scales armed with slender or stout prickles.
Cone-scales evenly developed, their prickles slender,
acuminate, from a broad base; leaves 3′ long or less.
Cones opening at maturity.
24. P. virginiana (A, C).
Cones often remaining closed for many years.
25. P. clausa (C).
Cone-scales unevenly developed and armed with stout
prickles; cones 2′—3½′ long, remaining closed; leaves
4′—6′ long.
26. P. muricata.
Cone-scales armed with very stout hooked spines; cones 2½′—3′
long; opening in the autumn or remaining closed for two
or three years; leaves 2′ long or less.
27. P. pungens.
Leaves in 5-leaved clusters; cones 4′—6′ long, unsymmetrical, their
scales thick; seeds longer than their wings; leaves stout,
9′—13′ long.
28. P. Torreyana (G).
9. Pinus leiophylla Schlecht. and Cham. Yellow Pine.
_Pinus chihuahuana_, Engelm.
[Illustration: Fig. 12]
Leaves slender, pale glaucous green, marked by 6—8 rows of conspicuous
stomata on each of the 3 sides, 2½′—4′ long, irregularly deciduous from
their fourth season, their sheaths deciduous. Flowers: male yellow;
female yellow-green. Fruit ovoid, horizontal or slightly declining,
long-stalked, 1½′—2′ long, becoming light chestnut-brown and lustrous,
maturing at the end of the third season, with scales only slightly
thickened, their ultimately pale umbos armed with recurved deciduous
prickles; seeds oval, rounded above and pointed below, about ⅛′ long,
with a thin dark brown shell, their wings ⅓′ long and broadest near the
middle.
A tree, rarely more than 40°—50° high, with a tall trunk sometimes 2° in
diameter, stout slightly ascending branches forming a narrow open
pyramidal or round-topped head of thin pale foliage, and slender bright
orange-brown branchlets, soon becoming dull red-brown. Bark of old
trunks ¾′—1½′ thick, dark reddish brown or sometimes nearly black, and
deeply divided into broad flat ridges covered with thin closely
appressed scales. Wood light, soft, not strong but durable, light orange
color, with thick much lighter colored sapwood. Often forming coppice by
the growth of shoots from the stump of cut trees.
Distribution. Mountain ranges of southern New Mexico and Arizona,
usually at elevations between 6000° and 7000°; not common; more abundant
on the Sierra Madre of northern Mexico and on several of the short
ranges of Chihuahua and Sonora, and of a larger size in Mexico than in
the United States.
10. Pinus ponderosa Laws. Yellow Pine. Bull Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 13]
Leaves tufted at the ends of naked branches, in 2 or in 2 and 3-leaved
clusters, stout, dark yellow-green, marked by numerous rows of stomata
on the 3 faces, 5′—11′ long, mostly deciduous during their third season.
Flowers: male yellow; female clustered or in pairs, dark red. Fruit
ellipsoidal, horizontal or slightly declining, nearly sessile or
short-stalked, 3′—6′ long, often clustered, bright green or purple when
fully grown, becoming light reddish brown, with narrow scales much
thickened at the apex and armed with slender prickles, mostly falling
soon after opening and discharging their seeds, generally leaving the
lower scales attached to the peduncle; seeds ovoid, acute, compressed at
the apex, full and rounded below, ¼′ long, with a thin dark purple often
mottled shell, their wings usually broadest below the middle, gradually
narrowed at the oblique apex, 1′—1¼′ long, about 1′ wide.
A tree, sometimes 150°—230° high, with a massive stem 5°—8° in diameter,
short thick many-forked often pendulous branches generally turned upward
at the ends and forming a regular spire-like head, or in arid regions a
broader often round-topped head surmounting a short trunk, and stout
orange-colored branchlets frequently becoming nearly black at the end of
two or three years. Bark for 80—100 years broken into rounded ridges
covered with small closely appressed scales, dark brown, nearly black or
light cinnamon-red, on older trees becoming 2′—4′ thick and deeply and
irregularly divided into plates sometimes 4°—5° long and 12′—18′ wide,
and separating into thick bright cinnamon-red scales. Wood hard, strong,
comparatively fine-grained, light red, with nearly white sapwood
sometimes composed of more than 200 layers of annual growth; largely
manufactured into lumber used for all sorts of construction, for
railway-ties, fencing, and fuel.
Distribution. Mountain slopes, dry valleys, and high mesas from
northwestern Nebraska and western Texas to the shores of the Pacific
Ocean, and from southern British Columbia to Lower California and
northern Mexico; extremely variable in different parts of the country in
size, in the length and thickness of the leaves, size of the cones, and
in the color of the bark. The form of the Rocky Mountains (var.
_scopulorum_, Engelm.), ranging from Nebraska to Texas, and over the
mountain ranges of Wyoming, eastern Montana and Colorado, and to
northern New Mexico and Arizona, where it forms on the Colorado plateau
with the species the most extensive Pine forests of the continent, has
nearly black furrowed bark, rigid leaves in clusters of 2 or 3 and 3′—6′
long, and smaller cones, with thin scales armed with slender prickles
hooked backward. More distinct is
Pinus ponderosa var. Jeffreyi Vasey.
[Illustration: Fig. 14]
This tree forms great forests about the sources of the Pitt River in
northern California, along the eastern slopes of the central and
southern Sierra Nevada, growing often on the most exposed and driest
ridges, and in southern California on the San Bernardino and San Jacinto
ranges up to elevations of 7000° above the sea, on the Cuyamaca
Mountains, and in Lower California on the Sierra del Pinal and the San
Pedro Mártir Mountains.
A tree, 100° to nearly 200° high, with a tall massive trunk 4°—6° in
diameter, covered with bright cinnamon-red bark deeply divided into
large irregular plates, stiffer and more elastic leaves 4′—9′ long and
persistent on the glaucous stouter branchlets for six to nine years,
yellow-green staminate flowers, short-stalked usually purple cones
5′—15′ long, their scales armed with stouter or slender prickles usually
hooked backward, and seeds often nearly ½′ long with larger wings.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in eastern Europe, especially
the variety _Jeffreyi_, which is occasionally successfully cultivated in
the eastern states.
Pinus ponderosa var. arizonica Shaw. Yellow Pine.
_Pinus arizonica_ Engelm.
[Illustration: Fig. 15]
Leaves tufted at the ends of the branches, in 3—5-leaved clusters,
stout, rigid, dark green, stomatiferous on their 3 faces, 5′—7′ long,
deciduous during their third season. Fruit ovoid, horizontal, 2′—2½′
long, becoming light red-brown, with thin scales much thickened at the
apex and armed with slender recurved spines; seeds full and rounded
below, slightly compressed towards the apex, ⅛′ long, with a thick
shell, their wings broadest above the middle, about ⅓′ long and ¼′ wide.
A tree, 80°—100° high, with a tall straight massive trunk 3°—4° in
diameter, thick spreading branches forming a regular open round-topped
or narrow pyramidal head, and stout branchlets orange-brown and pruinose
when they first appear, becoming dark gray-brown. Bark on young trunks
dark brown or almost black and deeply furrowed, becoming on old trees
1½′—2′ thick and divided into large unequally shaped plates separating
on the surface into thin closely appressed light cinnamon-red scales.
Wood light, soft, not strong, rather brittle, light red or often yellow,
with thick lighter yellow or white sapwood; in Arizona occasionally
manufactured into coarse lumber.
Distribution. High cool slopes on the sides of cañons of the mountain
ranges of southern Arizona at elevations between 6000° and 8000°,
sometimes forming nearly pure forests; more abundant and of its largest
size on the mountains of Sonora and Chihuahua.
11. Pinus palustris Mill. Long-leaved Pine. Southern Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 16]
Leaves in crowded clusters, forming dense tufts at the ends of the
branches, slender, flexible, pendulous, dark green, 8′—18′ long,
deciduous at the end of their second year. Flowers in very early spring
before the appearance of the new leaves, male in short dense clusters,
dark rose-purple; female just below the apex of the lengthening shoot in
pairs or in clusters of 3 or 4, dark purple. Fruit cylindric-ovoid,
slightly curved, nearly sessile, horizontal or pendant, 6′—10′ long,
with thin flat scales rounded at apex and armed with small reflexed
prickles, becoming dull brown; in falling leaving a few of the basal
scales attached to the stem; seeds almost triangular, full and rounded
on the sides, prominently ridged, about ½′ long, with a thin pale shell
marked with dark blotches on the upper side, and wings widest near the
middle, gradually narrowed to a very oblique apex, about 1¾′ long and
7/16′ wide.
A tree, 100°—120° high, with a tall straight slightly tapering trunk
usually 2°—2½° or occasionally 3° in diameter, stout slightly branched
gnarled and twisted limbs covered with thin dark scaly bark and forming
an open elongated and usually very irregular head one third to one half
the length of the tree, thick orange-brown branchlets, and acute
winter-buds covered by elongated silvery white lustrous scales divided
into long spreading filaments forming a cobweb-like network over the
bud. Bark of the trunk 1/16′—½′ thick, light orange-brown, separating on
the surface into large closely appressed papery scales. Wood heavy,
exceedingly hard, strong, tough, coarse-grained, durable, light red to
orange color, with very thin nearly white sapwood; largely used as
“southern pine” or “Georgia pine” for masts and spars, bridges,
viaducts, railway-ties, fencing, flooring, the interior finish of
buildings, the construction of railway-cars, and for fuel and charcoal.
A large part of the naval stores of the world is produced from this
tree, which is exceedingly rich in resinous secretions.
Distribution. Generally confined to a belt of late tertiary sands and
gravels stretching along the coast of the Atlantic and Gulf states and
rarely more than 125 miles wide, from southeastern Virginia to the
shores of Indian River and the valley of the Caloosahatchee River,
Florida, and along the Gulf coast to the uplands east of the Mississippi
River, extending northward in Alabama to the southern foothills of the
Appalachian Mountains and to central and western Mississippi (Hinds and
Adams Counties); west of the Mississippi River to the valley of the
Trinity River, Texas, and through eastern Texas and western Louisiana
nearly to the northern borders of this state.
12. Pinus caribæa Morelet. Slash Pine. Swamp Pine.
_Pinus heterophylla_ Sudw.
[Illustration: Fig. 17]
Leaves stout, in crowded 2 and 3-leaved clusters, dark green and
lustrous, marked by numerous bands of stomata on each face, 8′—12′ long,
deciduous at the end of their second season. Flowers in January and
February before the appearance of the new leaves, male in short crowded
clusters, dark purple; female lateral on long peduncles, pink. Fruit
ovoid or ovoid-conic, reflexed during its first year, pendant, 2′—6′
long, with thin flexible flat scales armed with minute incurved or
recurved prickles, becoming dark rich lustrous brown; seeds almost
triangular, full and rounded on the sides, 1⅙′—1¼′ long, with a thin
brittle dark gray shell mottled with black, and dark brown wings ¾′—1′
long, ¼′ wide, their thickened bases encircling the seeds and often
covering a large part of their lower surface.
A tree, often 100° high, with a tall tapering trunk 2½°—3° in diameter,
heavy horizontal branches forming a handsome round-topped head, and
stout orange-colored ultimately dark branchlets. Bark ¾′—½′ thick, and
separating freely on the surface into large thin scales. Wood heavy,
exceedingly hard, very strong, durable, coarse-grained, rich dark orange
color, with thick nearly white sapwood; manufactured into lumber and
used for construction and railway-ties. Naval stores are largely
produced from this tree.
Distribution. Coast region of South Carolina southward over the coast
plain to the keys of southern Florida and along the Gulf coast to
eastern Louisiana (Saint Tammany, Washington, southern Tangipahoa and
eastern Livingston Parishes); common on the Bahamas, on the Isle of
Pines, and on the lowlands of Honduras and eastern Guatemala; in the
coast region of the southern states gradually replacing the Long-leaved
Pine, _Pinus palustris_, Mill.
13. Pinus tæda L. Loblolly Pine. Old Field Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 18]
Leaves slender, stiff, slightly twisted, pale green and somewhat
glaucous, 6′—9′ long, marked by 10—12 rows of large stomata on each
face, deciduous during their third year. Flowers opening from the middle
of March to the first of May; male crowded in short spikes, yellow;
female lateral below the apex of the growing shoot, solitary or
clustered, short-stalked, yellow. Fruit oblong-conic to ovoid-cylindric,
nearly sessile, 2′—6′ long, becoming light reddish brown, with thin
scales rounded at the apex and armed with short stout straight or
reflexed prickles, opening irregularly and discharging their seeds
during the autumn and winter, and usually persistent on the branches for
another year; seeds rhomboidal, full and rounded, ¼′ long, with a thin
dark brown rough shell blotched with black, and produced into broad thin
lateral margins, encircled to the base by the narrow border of their
thin pale brown lustrous wing broadest above the middle, 1′ long, about
¼′ wide.
A tree, generally 80°—100° high, with a tall straight trunk usually
about 2° but occasionally 5° in diameter, short thick much divided
branches, the lower spreading, the upper ascending and forming a compact
round-topped head, and comparatively slender glabrous branchlets brown
tinged with yellow during their first season and gradually growing
darker in their second year. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1½′ thick, bright
red-brown, and irregularly divided by shallow fissures into broad flat
ridges covered with large thin closely appressed scales. Wood weak,
brittle, coarse-grained, not durable, light brown, with orange-colored
or often nearly white sapwood, often composing nearly half the trunk;
largely manufactured into lumber, used for construction and the interior
finish of buildings.
Distribution. Cape May, New Jersey, through southern Delaware and
eastern Maryland and southward to the shores of Indian River and Tampa
Bay, Florida, westward to middle North Carolina and through South
Carolina and Georgia and the eastern Gulf states to the Mississippi
River, extending into southern Tennessee and northeastern Mississippi;
west of the Mississippi River from southern Arkansas and the
southwestern part of Oklahoma through western Louisiana to the shores of
the Gulf of Mexico, and through eastern Texas to the valley of the
Colorado River; on the Atlantic coast often springing up on lands
exhausted by agriculture; west of the Mississippi River one of the most
important timber-trees, frequently growing in nearly pure forests on
rolling uplands.
14. Pinus rigida Mill. Pitch Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 19]
Leaves stout, rigid, dark yellow-green, marked on the 3 faces by many
rows of stomata, 3′—5′ long, standing stiffly and at right angles with
the branch, deciduous during their second year. Flowers: male in short
crowded spikes, yellow or rarely purple; female often clustered and
raised on short stout stems, light green more or less tinged with rose
color. Fruit ovoid, acute at apex, nearly sessile, often clustered,
1′—3½′ long, becoming light brown, with thin flat scales armed with
recurved rigid prickles, often remaining on the branches for ten or
twelve years; seeds nearly triangular, full and rounded on the sides, ¼′
long, with a thin dark brown mottled roughened shell and wings broadest
below the middle, gradually narrowed to the very oblique apex, ¾′ long,
⅓′ wide.
A tree, 50°—60° or rarely 100° high, with a short trunk occasionally 3°
in diameter, thick contorted often pendulous branches covered with thick
much roughened bark, forming a round-topped thick head, often irregular
and picturesque, and stout bright green branchlets becoming dull orange
color during their first winter and dark gray-brown at the end of four
or five years; often fruitful when only a few feet high. Bark of young
stems thin and broken into plate-like dark red-brown scales, becoming on
old trunks ¾′—1½′ thick, deeply and irregularly fissured, and divided
into broad flat connected ridges separating on the surface into thick
dark red-brown scales often tinged with purple. Wood light, soft, not
strong, brittle, coarse-grained, very durable, light brown or red, with
thick yellow or often white sapwood; largely used for fuel and in the
manufacture of charcoal; occasionally sawed into lumber.
Distribution. Sandy plains and dry gravelly uplands, or less frequently
in cold deep swamps; island of Mt. Desert, Maine, to the northern shores
of Lake Ontario, and southward to southern Delaware and southern Ohio
(Scioto County) and along the Appalachian Mountains to northern Georgia
and to their western foothills in West Virginia, Kentucky, and
Tennessee; very abundant in the coast region south of Massachusetts;
sometimes forming pure forests in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Pinus rigida var. serotina Loud. Pond Pine. Marsh Pine.
_Pinus serotina_ Michx.
[Illustration: Fig. 20]
Leaves in clusters of 3 or occasionally of 4, slender, flexuose, dark
yellow-green, 6′—8′ long, marked by numerous rows of stomata on the 3
faces, deciduous during their third and fourth years. Flowers: male in
crowded spikes, dark orange color; female clustered or in pairs on stout
stems. Fruit subglobose to ovoid, full and rounded or pointed at apex,
subsessile or short-stalked, horizontal or slightly declining, 2′—2½′
long, with thin nearly flat scales armed with slender incurved mostly
deciduous prickles, becoming light yellow-brown at maturity, often
remaining closed for one or two years and after opening long-persistent
on the branches; seeds nearly triangular, often ridged below, full and
rounded at the sides, ⅛′ long, with a thin nearly black roughened shell
produced into a wide border, the wings broadest at the middle, gradually
narrowed at the ends, ¾′ long, ¼′ wide.
A tree, usually 40°—50° or occasionally 70°—80° high, with a short trunk
sometimes 3° but generally not more than 2° in diameter, stout often
contorted branches more or less pendulous at the extremities, forming an
open round-topped head, and slender branchlets dark green when they
first appear, becoming dark orange color during their first winter and
dark brown or often nearly black at the end of four or five years. Bark
of the trunk ½′—¾′ thick, dark red-brown and irregularly divided by
narrow shallow fissures into small plates separating on the surface into
thin closely appressed scales. Wood very resinous, heavy, soft, brittle,
coarse-grained, dark orange color, with thick pale yellow sapwood;
occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. Low wet flats or sandy or peaty swamps; near Cape May, New
Jersey, and southeastern Virginia southward near the coast to northern
Florida and central Alabama.
15. Pinus radiata D. Don. Monterey Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 21]
Leaves in 3, rarely in 2-leaved clusters, slender, bright rich green,
4′—6′ long, mostly deciduous during their third season. Flowers: male in
dense spikes, yellow; female clustered, dark purple. Fruit ovoid,
pointed at apex, very oblique at base, short-stalked, reflexed, 3′—7′
long, becoming deep chestnut-brown and lustrous, with scales much
thickened and mammillate toward the base on the outer side of the cone,
thinner on the inner side and at its apex, and armed with minute
thickened incurved or straight prickles, long-persistent and often
remaining closed on the branches for many years; seeds ellipsoidal,
compressed, ¼′ long, with a thin brittle rough nearly black shell, their
wings light brown, longitudinally striped, broadest above the middle,
gradually narrowed and oblique at apex, 1′ long, ¼′ wide.
A tree, usually 40°—60° rarely 100°—115° high, with a tall trunk usually
1°—2° but occasionally 4½° in diameter, spreading branches forming a
regular narrow open round-topped head, and slender branchlets light or
dark orange color, at first often covered with a glaucous bloom,
ultimately dark red-brown. Bark of the trunk 1½′—2′ thick, dark
red-brown, and deeply divided into broad flat ridges broken on the
surface into thick appressed plate-like scales. Wood light, soft, not
strong, brittle, close-grained; occasionally used as fuel.
Distribution. In a narrow belt a few miles wide on the California coast
from Pescadero to the shores of San Simeon Bay; in San Luis Obispo
County near the village of Cambria; on the islands of Santa Rosa and
Santa Cruz of the Santa Barbara group; and on Guadaloupe Island off the
coast of Lower California; most abundant and of its largest size on
Point Pinos south of the Bay of Monterey, California.
Largely planted for the decoration of parks in western and southern
Europe, occasionally planted in the southeastern states and in Mexico,
Australia, New Zealand, and other regions with temperate climates, and
more generally in the coast region of the Pacific states from Vancouver
Island southward than any other Pine-tree.
16. Pinus attenuata Lemm. Knob-cone Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 22]
Leaves slender, firm and rigid, pale yellow or bluish green, marked by
numerous rows of stomata on their 3 faces, 3′—7′, usually 4′—5′ long.
Flowers: male orange-brown; female fascicled, often with several
fascicles on the shoot of the year. Fruit elongated, conic, pointed,
very oblique at base by the greater development of the scales on the
outer side, whorled, short-stalked, strongly reflexed and incurved,
3′—6′ long, becoming light yellow-brown, with thin flat scales rounded
at apex, those on the outer side being enlarged into prominent
transversely flattened knobs armed with thick flattened incurved spines,
those on the inner side of the cone slightly thickened and armed with
minute recurved prickles, persistent on the stems and branches for
thirty or forty years, sometimes becoming completely imbedded in the
bark of old trunks, and usually not opening until the death of the tree;
seeds ellipsoidal, compressed, acute at apex, ¼′ long, with a thin
oblique shell, their wings broadest at the middle, gradually narrowed to
the ends, 1¼′ long, ⅓′ wide.
A tree, usually about 20° high, with a trunk a foot in diameter, and
often fruitful when only 4° or 5° tall; occasionally growing to the
height of 80°—100°, with a trunk 2½° thick, and frequently divided above
the middle into two ascending stems, slender branches arrangedin regular
whorls while the tree is young, and in old age forming a narrow
round-topped straggling head of sparse thin foliage, and slender dark
orange-brown branchlets growing darker during their second season. Bark
of young stems and branches thin, smooth, pale brown, becoming at the
base of old trunks ¼′—½′ thick and dark brown often tinged with purple,
slightly and irregularly divided by shallow fissures and broken into
large loose scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, brittle,
coarse-grained, light brown, with thick sapwood sometimes slightly
tinged with red.
Distribution. Dry mountain slopes from the valley of the Mackenzie River
in Oregon over the mountains of southwestern Oregon, where it is most
abundant and grows to its largest size, often forming pure forests over
large areas, southward along the western slopes of the Cascade
Mountains; in California on the northern cross ranges, the coast ranges
from Trinity to Sonoma Counties, the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada
to Mariposa County, and over the southern coast ranges from Santa Cruz
to the dry arid southern slopes of the San Bernardino Mountains, where
it forms a belt between City and East Twin Creeks at an altitude of
3500° above the sea.
17. Pinus Sabiniana Dougl. Digger Pine. Bull Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 23]
Leaves stout, flexible, pendant, pale blue-green, marked on each face
with numerous rows of pale stomata, 8′—12′ long, deciduous usually in
their third and fourth years. Flowers: male yellow; female on stout
peduncles, dark purple. Fruit oblong-ovoid, full and rounded at base,
pointed, becoming light reddish brown, 6′—10′ long, long-stalked,
pendulous, the scales narrowed into a stout incurved sharp hook,
strongly reflexed toward the base of the cone and armed with spur-like
incurved spines; seeds full and rounded below, somewhat compressed
toward the apex, ¾′ long, ⅓′ wide, dark brown or nearly black, with a
thick hard shell, encircled by their wings much thickened on the inner
rim, obliquely rounded at the broad apex and about ½ length of nuts.
A tree, usually 40°—50° but occasionally 80° high, with a trunk 3°—4° in
diameter, divided generally 15°—20° above the ground into 3 or 4 thick
secondary stems, clothed with short crooked branches pendant below and
ascending toward the summit of the tree, and forming an open
round-topped head remarkable for the sparseness of its foliage, and
stout pale glaucous branchlets, becoming dark brown or nearly black
during their second season. Bark of the trunk 1½′—2′ thick, dark brown
slightly tinged with red or nearly black and deeply and irregularly
divided into thick connected ridges covered with small closely appressed
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, close-grained, brittle, light
brown or red with thick nearly white sapwood. Abietine, a nearly
colorless aromatic liquid with the odor of oil of oranges, is obtained
by distilling the resinous juices. The large sweet slightly resinous
seeds formed an important article of food for the Indians of California.
Distribution. Scattered singly or in small groups over the dry foothills
of western California, ranging from 500° up to 4000° above the sea-level
and from the southern slopes of the northern cross ranges to the
Tehachapi Mountains and the Sierra de la Liebre; most abundant and
attaining its largest size on the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada
near the centre of the state at elevations of about 2000°; here often
the most conspicuous feature of the vegetation.
18. Pinus Coulteri D. Don. Pitch Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 24]
Leaves tufted at the ends of the branches, stout, rigid, dark
blue-green, marked by numerous bands of stomata on the 3 faces, 6′—12′
long, deciduous during their third and fourth seasons. Flowers: male
yellow; female dark reddish brown. Fruit oblong-conic, short-stalked and
pendant, 10′—14′ long, becoming light yellow-brown, with thick broad
scales terminating in a broad, flat, incurved, hooked claw ½′—1½′ long,
gradually opening in the autumn and often persistent on the branches for
several years; seeds ellipsoidal, compressed, ½′ long, ¼′—⅓′ wide, dark
chestnut-brown, with a thick shell, inclosed by their wings, broadest
above the middle, oblique at apex, nearly 1′ longer than the seed, about
⅝′ wide.
A tree, 40°—90° high, with a trunk 1°—2½° in diameter, thick branches
covered with dark scaly bark, long and mostly pendulous below, short and
ascending above, and forming a loose unsymmetrical often picturesque
head, and very stout branchlets dark orange-brown at first, becoming
sometimes nearly black at the end of three or four years. Bark of the
trunk 1½′—2′ thick, dark brown or nearly black and deeply divided into
broad rounded connected ridges covered with thin closely appressed
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, brittle, coarse-grained, light
red, with thick nearly white sapwood; occasionally used for fuel. The
seeds were formerly gathered in large quantities and eaten by the
Indians of southern California.
Distribution. Scattered singly or in small groves through coniferous
forests on the dry slopes and ridges of the coast ranges of California
at elevations of 3000°—6000° above the sea, from Mount Diablo and the
Santa Lucia Mountains to the San Bernardino and Cuyamaca Mountains; and
on the Sierra del Pinal, Lower California; most abundant on the San
Bernardino and San Jacinto ranges at elevations of about 5000°.
19. Pinus resinosa Ait. Red Pine. Norway Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 25]
Leaves slender, soft and flexible, dark green and lustrous, 5′—6′ long,
obscurely marked on the ventral faces by bands of minute stomata,
deciduous during their fourth and fifth seasons. Flowers: male in dense
spikes, dark purple; female terminal, short-stalked, scarlet. Fruit
ovoid-conic, subsessile, 2′—2¼′ long, with thin slightly concave scales,
unarmed, becoming light chestnut-brown and lustrous at maturity;
shedding their seeds early in the autumn and mostly persistent on the
branches until the following summer; seeds oval, compressed, ⅛′ long,
with a thin dark chestnut-brown more or less mottled shell and wings
broadest below the middle, oblique at apex, ¾′ long, ¼′—⅓′ broad.
A tree, usually 70°—80° or occasionally 120° high, with a tall straight
trunk 2°—3° or rarely 5° in diameter, thick spreading more or less
pendulous branches clothing the young stems to the ground and forming a
broad irregular pyramid, and in old age an open round-topped picturesque
head, and stout branchlets at first orange color, finally becoming light
reddish brown. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1¼′ thick and slightly divided by
shallow fissures into broad flat ridges covered by thin loose light
red-brown scales. Wood light, hard, very close-grained, pale red, with
thin yellow often nearly white sapwood; largely used in the construction
of bridges and buildings, for piles, masts, and spars. The bark is
occasionally used for tanning leather.
Distribution. Light sandy loam or dry rocky ridges, usually forming
groves rarely more than a few hundred acres in extent and scattered
through forests of other Pines and deciduous-leaved trees; occasionally
on sandy flats forming pure forests; Nova Scotia to Lake St. John,
westward through Quebec and central Ontario to the valley of the
Winnipeg River, and southward to eastern Massachusetts, the mountains of
northern Pennsylvania, and to central and southwestern (Port Huron)
Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, most abundant, and growing to its
largest size in the northern parts of these states; rare and local in
eastern Massachusetts and southward.
Often planted for the decoration of parks, and the most desirable as an
ornamental tree of the Pitch Pines which flourish in the northern
states.
20. Pinus contorta Loud. Scrub Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 26]
Leaves dark green, slender, 1′—1½′ long, marked by 6—10 rows of stomata
on each face, mostly persistent 4—6 years. Flowers orange-red: male in
short crowded spikes; female clustered or in pairs on stout stalks.
Fruit ovoid to subcylindric, usually very oblique at base, horizontal or
declining, often clustered, ¾′—2′ long, with thin slightly concave
scales armed with long slender more or less recurved often deciduous
prickles, and toward the base of the cone especially on the upper side
developed into thick mammillate knobs, becoming light yellow-brown and
lustrous, sometimes opening and losing their seeds as soon as ripe, or
remaining closed on the branches and preserving the vitality of their
seeds for many years; seeds oblique at apex, acute below, about ⅙′ long,
with a thin brittle dark red-brown shell mottled with black and wings
widest above the base, gradually tapering toward the oblique apex, ½′
long.
A tree, sometimes fertile when only a few inches high, usually 15°—20°
or occasionally 30° tall, with a short trunk rarely more than 18′ in
diameter, comparatively thick branches forming a round-topped compact
and symmetrical or an open picturesque head, and stout branchlets light
orange color when they first appear, finally becoming dark red-brown or
occasionally almost black. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1′ thick, deeply and
irregularly divided by vertical and cross fissures into small oblong
plates covered with closely appressed dark red-brown scales tinged with
purple or orange color. Wood light, hard, strong although brittle,
coarse-grained, light brown tinged with red, with thick nearly white
sapwood; occasionally used for fuel.
Distribution. Coast of Alaska, usually in sphagnum-covered bogs
southward in the immediate neighborhood of the coast to the valley of
the Albion River, Mendocino County, California; south of the northern
boundary of the United States generally inhabiting sand dunes and
barrens or occasionally near the shores of Puget Sound the margins of
tide pools and deep wet swamps; spreading inland and ascending the coast
ranges and western slopes of the Cascade Mountains, where it is not
common and where it gradually changes its habit and appearance, the
thick deeply furrowed bark of the coast form being found only near the
ground, while the bark higher on the stems is thin, light-colored, and
inclined to separate into scales, and the leaves are often longer and
broader. This is
Pinus contorta var. latifolia S. Wats. Lodge-pole Pine.
_Pinus contorta_ var. _Murrayana_ Engelm.
[Illustration: Fig. 27]
Leaves yellow-green, usually about 2′ long, although varying from 1′—3′
in length and from 1/16′ to nearly ⅛′ in width. Fruit occasionally
opening as soon as ripe but usually remaining closed and preserving the
vitality of the seeds sometimes for twenty years.
A tree, usually 70°—80° but often 150° high, with a trunk generally
2°—3° but occasionally 5°—6° in diameter, slender much-forked branches
frequently persistent nearly to the base of the stem, light
orange-colored during their early years, somewhat pendulous below,
ascending near the top of the tree, and forming a narrow pyramidal
spire-topped head. Bark of the trunk rarely more than ¼′ thick, close
and firm, light orange-brown and covered by small thin loosely appressed
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, close, straight-grained and easily
worked, not durable, light yellow or nearly white, with thin lighter
colored sapwood; occasionally manufactured into lumber; also used for
railway-ties, mine-timbers, and for fuel.
Distribution. Common on the Yukon hills in the valley of the Yukon
River; on the interior plateau of northern British Columbia and eastward
to the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains, covering with dense
forests great areas in the basin of the Columbia River; forming forests
on both slopes of the Rocky Mountains of Montana; on the Yellowstone
plateau at elevations of 7000°-8000°; common on the mountains of
Wyoming, and extending southward to southern Colorado; the most abundant
coniferous tree of the northern Rocky Mountain region; common on the
ranges of eastern Washington and Oregon, on the mountains of northern
California, and southward along the Sierra Nevada, where it attains its
greatest size and beauty in alpine forests at elevations between 8000°
and 9500°; in southern California the principal tree at elevations
between 7000° and 10,000° on the high peaks of the San Bernardino and
San Jacinto Mountains; on the upper slopes of the San Pedro Mártir
Mountains, Lower California.
21. Pinus Banksiana Lamb. Gray Pine. Jack Pine.
_Pinus divaricata_ Du Mont de Cours.
[Illustration: Fig. 28]
Leaves in remote clusters, stout, flat or slightly concave on the inner
face, at first light yellow-green, soon becoming dark green, ¾′—1¼′
long, gradually and irregularly deciduous in their second or third year.
Flowers: male in short crowded clusters, yellow; female clustered, dark
purple, often with 2 clusters produced on the same shoot. Fruit
oblong-conic, acute, oblique at base, sessile, usually erect and
strongly incurved, 1½′—2′ long, dull purple or green when fully grown,
becoming light yellow and lustrous, with thin stiff scales often
irregularly developed, and armed with minute incurved often deciduous
prickles; seeds nearly triangular, full and rounded on the sides, 1/12′
long, with an almost black roughened shell and wings broadest at the
middle, full and rounded at apex, ⅓′ long, ⅛′ wide.
A tree, frequently 70° high, with a straight trunk sometimes free of
branches for 20°—30° and rarely exceeding 2° in diameter, long spreading
branches forming an open symmetrical head, and slender tough flexible
pale yellow-green branchlets turning dark purple during their first
winter and darker the following year; often not more than 20°—30° tall,
with a stem 10′—12′ in diameter; generally fruiting when only a few
years old; sometimes shrubby with several low slender stems. Bark of the
trunk thin, dark brown slightly tinged with red, very irregularly
divided into narrow rounded connected ridges separating on the surface
into small thick closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft, not strong,
close-grained, clear pale brown or rarely orange color, with thick
nearly white sapwood; used for fuel and occasionally for railway-ties
and posts; occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. From Nova Scotia to the valley of the Athabasca River and
down the Mackenzie to about latitude 65° north, ranging southward to the
coast of Maine, northern New Hampshire and Vermont, the Island of
Nantucket (Wauwinet, _J. W. Harshburger_), northern New York, the shores
of Saginaw Bay, Michigan, the southern shores of Lake Michigan in
Illinois, the valley of the Wisconsin River, Wisconsin, and central and
southeastern Minnesota (with isolated groves in Root River valley, near
Rushford, Fillmore County); abundant in central Michigan, covering
tracts of barren lands; common and of large size in the region north of
Lake Superior; most abundant and of its greatest size west of Lake
Winnipeg and north of the Saskatchewan, here often spreading over great
areas of sandy sterile soil.
22. Pinus glabra Walt. Spruce Pine. Cedar Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 29]
Leaves soft, slender, dark green, 1½′—3′ long, marked by numerous rows
of stomata, deciduous at the end of their second and in the spring of
their third year. Flowers: male in short crowded clusters, yellow;
female raised on slender slightly ascending peduncles. Fruit single or
in clusters of 2 or 3, reflexed on short stout stalks, subglobose to
oblong-ovoid, ½′—2′ long, becoming reddish brown and rather lustrous,
with thin slightly concave scales armed with minute straight or incurved
usually deciduous prickles; seeds nearly triangular, full and rounded on
the sides, ⅛′ long, with a thin dark gray shell mottled with black and
wings broadest below the middle, ⅝′ long, ¼′ wide.
A tree, usually 80°—100° or occasionally 120° high, with a trunk 2°—2½°
or rarely 3½° in diameter, comparatively small horizontal branches, and
slender flexible branchlets at first light red more or less tinged with
purple, ultimately dark reddish brown. Bark of young trees and upper
trunks smooth pale gray becoming on old stems ½′—¾′ thick, slightly and
irregularly divided by shallow fissures into flat connected ridges. Wood
light, soft, not strong, brittle, close-grained, light brown, with thick
nearly white sapwood; occasionally used for fuel and rarely manufactured
into lumber.
Distribution. Valley of the lower Santee River, South Carolina to middle
and northwestern Florida; banks of the Alabama River, Dallas County,
Alabama; eastern and southwestern Mississippi, and sandy banks of
streams in northeastern Louisiana; usually growing singly or in small
groves; attaining its largest size and often occupying areas of
considerable extent in northwestern Florida.
23. Pinus echinata Mill. Yellow Pine. Short-leaved Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 30]
Leaves in clusters of 2 and of 3, slender, flexible, dark blue-green,
3′—5′ long, beginning to fall at the end of their second season and
dropping irregularly until their fifth year. Flowers: male in short
crowded clusters, pale purple; female in clusters of 2 or 3 on stout
ascending stems, pale rose color. Fruit ovoid to oblong-conic,
subsessile and nearly horizontal or short-stalked and pendant, generally
clustered, 1½′—2½′ long, becoming dull brown, with thin scales nearly
flat below and rounded at the apex, armed with short straight or
somewhat recurved frequently deciduous prickles; seeds nearly
triangular, full and rounded on the sides, about 3/16′ long, with a thin
pale brown hard shell conspicuously mottled with black, their wings
broadest near the middle, ½′ long, ⅛′ wide.
A tree, usually 80°—100° occasionally 120° high, with a tall slightly
tapering trunk 3°—4° in diameter, a short pyramidal truncate head of
comparatively slender branches, and stout brittle pale green or
violet-colored branchlets covered at first with a glaucous bloom,
becoming dark red-brown tinged with purple before the end of the first
season, their bark beginning in the third year to separate into large
scales. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1′ thick and broken into large irregularly
shaped plates covered with small closely appressed light cinnamon-red
scales. Wood very variable in quality, and in the thickness of the
nearly white sapwood, heavy, hard, strong and usually coarse-grained,
orange-colored or yellow-brown; largely manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. Long Island (near Northport), and Staten Island, New York,
and southern Pennsylvania to northern Florida, and westward through the
Gulf states to eastern Texas, through Arkansas to southwestern Oklahoma
(near Page, Leflore County, _G. W. Stevens_) and to southern Missouri
and southwestern Illinois and to eastern Tennessee and western West
Virginia; most abundant and of its largest size west of the Mississippi
River.
24. Pinus virginiana Mill. Jersey Pine. Scrub Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 31]
Leaves in remote clusters, stout, gray-green, 1½′—3′ long, marked by
many rows of minute stomata, gradually and irregularly deciduous during
their third and fourth years. Flowers: male in crowded clusters,
orange-brown; female on opposite spreading peduncles near the middle of
the shoots of the year, generally a little below and alternate with 1 or
2 lateral branchlets, pale green, 2′—3′ long, the scale-tips tinged with
rose color. Fruit ovoid-conic, often reflexed, dark red-brown and
lustrous, with thin nearly flat scales, and stout or slender persistent
prickles, opening in the autumn and slowly shedding their seeds, turning
dark reddish brown and remaining on the branches for three or four
years; seeds nearly oval, full and rounded, ¼′ long, with a thin pale
brown rough shell, their wings broadest at the middle, ⅓′ long, about ⅛′
wide.
A tree, usually 30°—40° high, with a short trunk rarely more than 18′ in
diameter, long horizontal or pendulous branches in remote whorls forming
a broad open often flat-topped pyramid, and slender tough flexible
branchlets at first pale green or green tinged with purple and covered
with a glaucous bloom, becoming purple and later light gray-brown;
toward the western limits of its range a tree frequently 100° tall, with
a trunk 2½°—3° in diameter. Bark of the trunk ¼′—½′ thick, broken by
shallow fissures into flat plate-like scales separating on the surface
into thin closely appressed dark brown scales tinged with red. Wood
light, soft, not strong, brittle, coarse-grained, durable in contact
with the soil, light orange color, with thick nearly white sapwood;
often used for fuel and occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. Middle and southern New Jersey; Plymouth, Luzerne County,
and central, southern and western Pennsylvania to Columbia County,
Georgia, Dallas County, Alabama (near Selma, _T. G. Harbison_), and to
the hills of northeastern Mississippi (Bear Creek near its junction with
the Tennessee River, _E. N. Lowe_), through eastern and middle Tennessee
to western Kentucky and to southeastern and southern (Scioto County)
Ohio, and southern Indiana; usually small in the Atlantic states and
only on light sandy soil, spreading rapidly over exhausted fields; of
its largest size west of the Alleghany Mountains on the low hills of
southern Indiana.
25. Pinus clausa Sarg. Sand Pine. Spruce Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 32]
Leaves slender, flexible, dark green, 2′—3½′ long, marked by 10—20 rows
of stomata, deciduous during their third and fourth years. Flowers: male
in short crowded spikes, dark orange color; female lateral on stout
peduncles. Fruit elongated ovoid-conic, often oblique at base, usually
clustered and reflexed, 2′—3½′ long, nearly sessile or short-stalked,
with convex scales armed with short stout straight or recurved prickles,
becoming dark yellow-brown in autumn; some of the cones opening at once,
others remaining closed for three or four years before liberating their
seeds, ultimately turning to an ashy gray color; others still unopened
becoming enveloped in the growing tissues of the stem and branches and
finally entirely covered by them; seeds nearly triangular, compressed,
¼′ long, with a black slightly roughened shell, their wings widest near
or below the middle, ¾′ long, about ¼′ wide.
A tree, usually 15°—20° high, with a stem rarely a foot in diameter,
generally clothed to the ground with wide-spreading branches forming a
bushy flat-topped head, and slender tough flexible branchlets, pale
yellow-green when they first appear, becoming light orange-brown and
ultimately ashy gray; occasionally growing to the height of 70°—80° with
a trunk 2° in diameter. Bark on the lower part of the trunk ⅓′—½′ thick,
deeply divided by narrow fissures into irregularly shaped generally
oblong plates separating on the surface into thin closely appressed
bright red-brown scales; on the upper part of the trunk and on the
branches thin, smooth, ashy gray. Wood light, soft, not strong, brittle,
light orange color or yellow, with thick nearly white sapwood;
occasionally used for the masts of small vessels.
Distribution. Coast of the Gulf of Mexico from southern Alabama to Peace
Creek, western Florida; eastern Florida from the neighborhood of St.
Augustine to New River, Dade County, covering sandy wind-swept plains
near the coast; growing to its largest size and most abundant in the
interior of the peninsula (Lake and Orange Counties).
26. Pinus muricata D. Don. Prickle-cone Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 33]
Leaves in crowded clusters, thick, rigid, dark yellow-green, 4′—6′ long,
beginning to fall in their second year. Flowers: male in elongated
spikes, orange-colored; female short-stalked, whorled, 2 whorls often
being produced on the shoot of the year. Fruit ovoid, oblique at base,
sessile, in clusters of 3—5 or sometimes of 7, 2′—3½′ but usually about
3′ long, becoming light chestnut-brown and lustrous, with scales much
thickened on the outside of the cone, those toward its base produced
into stout incurved knobs sometimes armed with stout flattened spur-like
often incurved spines, and on the inside of the cone slightly flattened
and armed with stout or slender straight prickles; often remaining
closed for several years and usually persistent on the stem and branches
during the entire life of the tree without becoming imbedded in the
wood; seeds nearly triangular, ¼′ long, with a thin nearly black
roughened shell, their wings broadest above the middle, oblique at apex,
nearly 1′ long, ⅛′ wide.
A tree, usually 40°—50° but occasionally 90° high, with a trunk 2°—3° in
diameter, thick spreading branches covered with dark scaly bark, in
youth forming a regular pyramid, and at maturity a handsome compact
round-topped head of dense tufted foliage, and stout branchlets dark
orange-green at first, turning orange-brown more or less tinged with
purple. Bark of the lower part of the trunk often 4′—6′ thick and deeply
divided into long narrow rounded ridges roughened by closely appressed
dark purplish brown scales. Wood light, very strong, hard, rather
coarse-grained, light brown, with thick nearly white sapwood;
occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. California coast region from Mendocino County southward,
usually in widely separated localities to Point Reyes Peninsula, north
of the Bay of San Francisco, and from Monterey to Coon Creek, San Luis
Obispo County; in Lower California on Cedros Island and on the west
coast between Ensenada and San Quentin; of its largest size and the
common Pine-tree on the coast of Mendocino County.
27. Pinus pungens Lamb. Table Mountain Pine. Hickory Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 34]
Leaves in crowded clusters, rigid, usually twisted, dark blue-green,
1¼′—2½′ long, deciduous during their second and third years. Flowers:
male in elongated loose spikes, yellow; female clustered, long-stalked.
Fruit ovoid-conic, oblique at base by the greater development of the
scales on the outer than on the inner side, sessile, reflexed, in
clusters usually of 3 or 4, or rarely of 7 or 8, 2′—3½′ long, becoming
light brown and lustrous, with thin tough scales armed with stout hooked
curved spines produced from much thickened mammillate knobs, opening as
soon as ripe and gradually shedding their seeds, or often remaining
closed for two or three years longer, and frequently persistent on the
branches for eighteen or twenty years; seeds almost triangular, full and
rounded on the sides, nearly ¼′ long, with a thin conspicuously
roughened light brown shell, their wings widest below the middle,
gradually narrowed to the ends, 1′ long, ¼′ wide.
A tree, when crowded in the forest occasionally 60° high, with a trunk
2°—3° in diameter, and a few short branches near the summit forming a
narrow round-topped head; in open ground usually 20°—30° tall, and often
fertile when only a few feet high, with a short thick trunk frequently
clothed to the ground, and long horizontal branches, the lower pendulous
toward the extremities, the upper sweeping in graceful upward curves and
forming a flat-topped often irregular head, and stout branchlets, light
orange color when they first appear, soon growing darker and ultimately
dark brown. Bark on the lower part of the trunk ¾′—1′ thick and broken
into irregularly shaped plates separating on the surface into thin loose
dark brown scales tinged with red, higher on the stem, and on the
branches dark brown and broken into thin loose scales. Wood light, soft,
not strong, brittle, very coarse-grained, pale brown, with thick nearly
white sapwood; somewhat used for fuel, and in Pennsylvania manufactured
into charcoal.
Distribution. Dry gravelly slopes and ridges of the Appalachian
Mountains from southern Pennsylvania to North Carolina, eastern
Tennessee and northern Georgia, sometimes ascending to elevations of
3000°, with isolated outlying stations in eastern Pennsylvania, western
New Jersey, Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia; often
forming toward the southern limits of its range pure forests of
considerable extent.
28. Pinus Torreyana Carr. Torrey Pine.
[Illustration: Fig. 35]
Leaves forming great tufts at the ends of the branches, stout, dark
green, conspicuously marked on the 3 faces by numerous rows of stomata,
8′—13′ long. Flowers from January to March; male yellow, in short dense
heads; female subterminal on long stout peduncles. Fruit broad-ovoid,
spreading or reflexed on long stalks, 4′—6′ in length, becoming deep
chestnut-brown, with thick scales armed with minute spines; mostly
deciduous in their fourth year and in falling leaving a few of the
barren scales on the stalk attached to the branch; seeds oval, more or
less angled, ¾′—1′ long, dull brown and mottled on the lower side, light
yellow-brown on the upper side, with a thick hard shell, nearly
surrounded by their dark brown wings often nearly ½′ long.
A tree, usually 30°—40° high, with a short trunk about 1° in diameter,
or occasionally 50°—60° tall, with a long straight slightly tapering
stem 2½° in diameter, stout spreading and often ascending branches, and
very stout branchlets bright green in their first season, becoming light
purple and covered with a metallic bloom the following year, ultimately
nearly black. Bark ¾′—1′ thick, deeply and irregularly divided into
broad flat ridges covered by large thin closely appressed light
red-brown scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, coarse-grained, light
yellow, with thick yellow or nearly white sapwood; occasionally used for
fuel. The large edible seeds are gathered in large quantities and are
eaten raw or roasted.
Distribution. Only in a narrow belt a few miles long on the coast near
the mouth of the Soledad River just north of San Diego and on the island
of Santa Rosa, California; the least widely distributed Pine-tree of the
United States.
Now planted in the parks of San Diego, California, and in New Zealand,
growing rapidly in cultivation, and promising to attain a much larger
size than on its native cliffs.
2. LARIX Adans. Larch.
Tall pyramidal trees, with thick sometimes furrowed scaly bark, heavy
heartwood, thin pale sapwood, slender remote horizontal often pendulous
branches, elongated leading branchlets, short thick spur-like lateral
branchlets, and small subglobose buds, their inner scales accrescent and
marking the lateral branchlets with prominent ring-like scars. Leaves
awl-shaped, triangular and rounded above, or rarely 4-angled, spirally
disposed and remote on leading shoots, on lateral branchlets in crowded
fascicles, each leaf in the axil of a deciduous bud-scale, deciduous.
Flowers solitary, terminal, the staminate globose, oval or oblong,
sessile or stalked, on leafless branches, yellow, composed of numerous
spirally arranged anthers with connectives produced above them into
short points, the pistillate appearing with the leaves, short-oblong to
oblong, composed of few or many green nearly orbicular stalked scales in
the axes of much longer mucronate usually scarlet bracts. Fruit a woody
ovoid-oblong conic or subglobose short-stalked cone composed of slightly
thickened suborbicular or oblong-obovate concave scales, shorter or
longer than their bracts, gradually decreasing from the centre to the
ends of the cone, the small scales usually sterile. Seeds nearly
triangular, rounded on the sides, shorter than their wings; the outer
seed-coat crustaceous, light brown, the inner membranaceous, pale
chestnut-brown and lustrous; cotyledons usually 6, much shorter than the
inferior radicle.
Larix is widely distributed over the northern and mountainous region of
the northern hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to the mountains of West
Virginia and Oregon in the New World, and to central Europe, the
Himalayas, Siberia, Korea, western China, and Japan in the Old World.
Ten species are recognized. Of the exotic species the European _Larix
decidua_, Mill., has been much planted for timber and ornament in the
northeastern states, where the Japanese _Larix Kœmpferi_, Sarg., also
flourishes.
_Larix_ is the classical name of the Larch-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Cones small, subglobose; their scales few, longer than the bracts,
leaves triangular.
1. L. laricina (A, B, F).
Cones elongated; their scales numerous, shorter than the bracts.
Young branchlets pubescent, soon becoming glabrous; leaves
triangular.
2. L. occidentalis (B, G).
Young branchlets tomentose; leaves 4-angled.
3. L. Lyallii (B, F).
1. Larix laricina K. Koch. Tamarack. Larch.
_Larix americana_ Michx.
[Illustration: Fig. 36]
Leaves linear, triangular, rounded above, prominently keeled on the
lower surface, ¾′—1¼′ long, bright green, conspicuously stomatiferous
when they first appear; turning yellow and falling in September or
October. Flowers: male subglobose and sessile; female oblong, with
light-colored bracts produced into elongated green tips, and nearly
orbicular rose-red scales. Fruit on stout incurved stems, subglobose,
rather obtuse, ½′—¾′ long, composed of about 20 scales slightly erose on
their nearly entire margins, rather longer than broad and twice as long
as their bracts, bright chestnut-brown at maturity; usually falling
during their second year; seeds ⅛′ long, about one third as long as
their light chestnut-brown wings broadest near the middle and obliquely
rounded at apex.
A tree, 50°—60° high, with a trunk 18′—20′ in diameter, small horizontal
branches forming during the early life of the tree a narrow regular
pyramidal head always characteristic of this tree when crowded in the
forest, or with abundant space sweeping out in graceful curves, often
becoming contorted and pendulous and forming a broad open frequently
picturesque head, and slender leading branchlets often covered at first
with a glaucous bloom, becoming light orange-brown during their first
winter and conspicuous from the small globose dark red lustrous buds.
Bark ½′—¾′ thick, separating into thin closely appressed rather bright
reddish brown scales. Wood heavy, hard, very strong, rather
coarse-grained, very durable, light brown; largely used for the upper
knees of small vessels, fence-posts, telegraph-poles, and railway-ties.
Distribution. At the north often on well-drained uplands, southward in
cold deep swamps which it often clothes with forests of closely crowded
trees, from Labrador to the Arctic Circle, ranging west of the Rocky
Mountains to latitude 65° 35′ north, and southward through Canada and
the northern states to northern and eastern Pennsylvania, Garrett
County, Maryland (Oakland to Thayerville), and Preston County, West
Virginia (Cranesville Swamp), northern Indiana and Illinois, and
northeastern Minnesota; along the eastern foothills of the Rocky
Mountains to about latitude 53° and between the Yukon River and Cook
Inlet, Alaska (_Larix alaskensis_ Wight.); very abundant in the interior
of Labrador, where it is the largest tree; common along the margins of
the barren lands stretching beyond the sub-Arctic forest to the shores
of the Arctic Sea; attaining its largest size north of Lake Winnipeg on
low benches which it occasionally covers with open forests; on the
eastern slopes of the northern Rocky Mountains usually at elevation from
600°—1700° above the sea; rare and local toward the southern limits of
its range.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in the northeastern states,
growing rapidly and attaining in cultivation a large size and
picturesque habit.
2. Larix occidentalis Nutt. Tamarack.
[Illustration: Fig. 37]
Leaves triangular, rounded on the back, conspicuously keeled below,
rigid, sharp-pointed, 1′—1¾′ long, about 1/32′ wide, light pale green,
turning pale yellow early in the autumn. Flowers: male short-oblong;
female oblong, nearly sessile, with orbicular scales and bracts produced
into elongated tips. Fruit oblong, short-stalked, 1′—1½′ long, with
numerous thin stiff scales nearly entire and sometimes a little reflexed
on their margins, much shorter than their bracts, more or less thickly
coated on the lower surface below the middle with hoary tomentum, and
standing after the escape of the seeds at right angles to the axis of
the cone, or often becoming reflexed; seeds nearly ¼′ long, with a pale
brown shell, one half to two thirds as long as the thin fragile pale
wings broadest near the middle and obliquely rounded at apex.
A tree, sometimes 180° high, with a tall tapering naked trunk 6°—8° in
diameter, or on dry soil and exposed mountain slopes usually not more
than 100° tall, with a short narrow pyramidal head of small branches
clothed with scanty foliage, or occasionally with a larger crown of
elongated drooping branches, stout branchlets covered when they first
appear with soft pale pubescence, usually soon glabrous, bright
orange-brown in their first year, ultimately becoming dark gray-brown,
and dark chestnut-brown winter-buds about ⅛′ in diameter. Bark of young
stems thin, dark-colored and scaly, becoming near the base of old trunks
5′ or 6′ thick and broken into irregularly shaped oblong plates often 2°
long and covered with thin closely appressed light cinnamon-red scales.
Wood very heavy, exceedingly hard and strong, close-grained, very
durable in contact with the soil, bright light red, with thin nearly
white sapwood; largely used for railway-ties and fence-posts, and
manufactured into lumber used in cabinet-making and the interior finish
of buildings.
Distribution. Moist bottom-lands and on high benches and dry mountain
sides generally at elevations between 2000° and 7000° above sea-level,
usually singly or in small groves, through the basin of the upper
Columbia River from southern British Columbia to the western slopes of
the continental divide of northern Montana, and to the eastern slopes of
the Cascade Mountains of Washington and northern Oregon; most abundant
and of its largest size on the bottom-lands of streams flowing into Flat
Head Lake in northern Montana, and in northern Idaho.
Occasionally planted in the eastern states and in Europe, but in
cultivation showing little promise of attaining a large size or becoming
a valuable ornamental or timber-tree.
3. Larix Lyallii Parl. Tamarack.
[Illustration: Fig. 38]
Leaves 4-angled, rigid, short-pointed, pale blue-green, 1′—1½′ long.
Flowers: male short-oblong; female ovoid-oblong, with dark red or
occasionally pale yellow-green scales and dark purple bracts abruptly
contracted into elongated slender tips. Fruit ovoid, rather acute,
1½′—2′ long, subsessile or raised on a slender stalk coated with hoary
tomentum, with dark reddish purple or rarely green erose scales, fringed
and covered on their lower surface with matted hairs at maturity
spreading nearly at right angles and finally much reflexed, much shorter
than their dark purple very conspicuous long-tipped bracts; seeds full
and rounded on the sides, ⅛′ long and about half as long as their light
red lustrous wings broadest near the base with nearly parallel sides.
A tree, usually 25°—50° high, with a trunk generally 18′—20′ but rarely
3°—4° in diameter, and remote elongated exceedingly tough persistent
branches sometimes pendulous, developing very irregularly and often
abruptly ascending at the extremities, stout branchlets coated with
hoary tomentum usually persistent until after their second winter,
ultimately becoming nearly black, and prominent winter-buds with
conspicuous long white matted hairs fringing the margins of their scales
and often almost entirely covering the bud. Bark of young trees and of
the branches thin, rather lustrous, smooth, and pale gray tinged with
yellow, becoming loose and scaly on larger stems and on the large
branches of old trees, and on fully grown trunks ½′—¾′ thick and
slightly divided by shallow fissures into irregularly shaped plates
covered by thin dark-red brown loosely attached scales. Wood heavy,
hard, coarse-grained, light reddish brown.
Distribution. Near the timber-line on mountain slopes at elevations of
4000°—8000°, from southern Alberta on the eastern slope of the Rocky
Mountains and from the interior of southern British Columbia, southward
along the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains of northern Washington
to Mt. Stewart at the head of the north fork of the Yakima River, and
along the continental divide to the middle fork of Sun River, Montana,
forming here a forest of considerable size at elevations of 7000°—8000°,
and on the Bitter Root Mountains to the headwaters of the south fork of
the Clearwater River, Idaho.
3. PICEA Dietr. Spruce.
Pyramidal trees, with tall tapering trunks often stoutly buttressed at
the base, thin scaly bark, soft pale wood containing numerous
resin-canals, slender whorled twice or thrice ramified branches, their
ultimate divisions stout, glabrous or pubescent, and leaf-buds usually
in 3’s, the 2 lateral in the axils of upper leaves. Leaves linear,
spirally disposed, extending out from the branch on all sides or
occasionally appearing 2-ranked by the twisting of those on its lower
side, mostly pointing to the end of the branch, entire, articulate on
prominent persistent rhomboid ultimately woody bases, keeled above and
below, 4-sided and stomatiferous on the 4 sides, or flattened and
stomatiferous on the upper and occasionally on the lower side,
persistent from seven to ten years, deciduous in drying. Flowers
terminal or in the axils of upper leaves, the male usually long-stalked,
composed of numerous spirally arranged anthers with connectives produced
into broad nearly circular toothed crests, the female oblong, oval or
cylindric, with rounded or pointed scales, each in the axis of an
accrescent bract shorter than the scale at maturity. Fruit an ovoid or
oblong, cylindric pendant cone, crowded on the upper branches or in some
species scattered over the upper half of the tree. Seeds ovoid or
oblong, usually acute at base, much shorter than their wings; outer
seed-coat crustaceous, light or dark brown, the inner membranaceous,
pale chestnut-brown; cotyledons 4—15.
Picea is widely distributed through the colder and temperate regions of
the northern hemisphere, some species forming great forests on plains
and high mountain slopes. Thirty-seven species are now recognized,
ranging from the Arctic Circle to the slopes of the southern Appalachian
Mountains and to those of northern New Mexico and Arizona in the New
World, and to central and southeastern Europe, the Caucasus, the
Himalayas, western China, Formosa and Japan. Of exotic species the
so-called Norway Spruce, _Picea Abies_ Karst., one of the most valuable
timber-trees of Europe, has been largely planted for ornament and
shelter in the eastern states, where the Caucasian _Picea orientalis_
Carr., and some of the Japanese species also flourish.
_Picea_ was probably the classical name of the Spruce-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Leaves 4-sided, with stomata on the 4 sides.
Cone-scales rounded at apex.
Cone-scales stiff and rigid at maturity; branchlets pubescent.
Cones ovoid on strongly incurved stalks, persistent for many
years, their scales erose or dentate; leaves blue-green.
1. P. mariana (A, B, F).
Cones ovoid-oblong, early deciduous, their scales entire or
denticulate; leaves dark yellow-green.
2. P. rubra (A).
Cone-scales soft and flexible at maturity; branchlets glabrous;
cones oblong-cylindric, slender, their scales entire; leaves
blue-green.
3. P. glauca (A, B, F).
Cone-scales truncate or acute at apex, oblong or rhombic; leaves
blue-green.
Cones oblong-cylindric or ellipsoidal; branchlets pubescent;
leaves soft and flexible.
4. P. Engelmannii (F, B, G).
Cones oblong-cylindric; branchlets glabrous; leaves rigid,
spinescent.
5. P. pungens (F).
Leaves flattened, usually with stomata only on the upper surface;
cone-scales rounded.
Cone-scales ovate, entire; branchlets pubescent; cones ellipsoidal,
leaves obtuse.
6. P. Breweriana (G).
Cone-scales elliptic, denticulate above the middle; branchlets
glabrous; cones oblong-cylindric, leaves acute or acuminate,
with stomata occasionally on the lower surface.
7. P. sitchensis (B, G).
1. Picea mariana B. S. P. Black Spruce.
[Illustration: Fig. 39]
Leaves slightly incurved above the middle, abruptly contracted at apex
into short callous tips, pale blue-green and glaucous at maturity, ¼′—¾′
long, hoary on the upper surface from the broad bands of stomata, and
lustrous and slightly stomatiferous on the lower surface. Flowers: male
subglobose, with dark red anthers; female oblong-cylindric, with obovate
purple scales rounded above, and oblong purple glaucous bracts rounded
and denticulate at apex. Fruit ovoid, pointed, gradually narrowed at the
base into short strongly incurved stalks, ½′—1½′ long, with rigid
puberulous scales rounded or rarely somewhat pointed at apex and more or
less erose on the notched pale margins, turning as they ripen dull
gray-brown and becoming as the scales gradually open and slowly
discharge their seeds almost globose; sometimes remaining on the
branches for twenty or thirty years, the oldest close to the base of the
branches near the trunk; seeds oblong, narrowed to the acute base, about
⅛′ long, very dark brown, with delicate pale brown wings broadest above
the middle, very oblique at the apex, about ½′ long, ⅛′ wide.
A tree, usually 20°—30° and occasionally 100° high, with a trunk 6′—12′
and rarely 3° in diameter, and comparatively short branches generally
pendulous with upward curves, forming an open irregular crown, light
green branchlets coated with pale pubescence, soon beginning to grow
darker, and during their first winter light cinnamon-brown and covered
with short rusty pubescence, their thin brown bark gradually becoming
glabrous and beginning to break into small thin scales during their
second year; at the extreme north sometimes cone-bearing when only 2°—3°
high. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, light reddish brown, puberulous, about
⅛′ long. Bark ¼′—½′ thick and broken on the surface into thin rather
closely appressed gray-brown scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, pale
yellow-white, with thin sapwood; probably rarely used outside of
Manitoba and Saskatchewan, except in the manufacture of paper pulp.
Spruce-gum, the resinous exudations of the Spruce-trees of northeastern
America, is gathered in considerable quantities principally in northern
New England and Canada, and is used as a masticatory. Spruce-beer is
made by boiling the branches of the Black and Red Spruces.
Distribution. At the north on well-drained bottom-lands and the slopes
of barren stony hills, and southward in sphagnum-covered bogs, swamps,
and on their borders, from Labrador to the valley of the Mackenzie River
in about latitude 65° north, and, crossing the Rocky Mountains, through
the interior of Alaska to the valley of White River; southward through
Newfoundland, the maritime provinces, eastern Canada and the
northeastern United States to central Pennsylvania, and along the
Alleghany Mountains to northern Virginia; and from the eastern foothills
of the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, through northern Saskatchewan and
northern Manitoba, and south to northeastern and northern Minnesota, and
central Wisconsin and Michigan; very abundant at the far north and the
largest coniferous tree of Saskatchewan and northern Manitoba, covering
here large areas and growing to its largest size; common in Newfoundland
and all the provinces of eastern Canada except southern Ontario; in the
United States less abundant, of small size, and usually only in cold
sphagnum swamps (var. _brevifolia_ Rehd.)
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree, the Black Spruce is
short-lived in cultivation and one of the least desirable of all
Spruce-trees for the decoration of parks and gardens.
2. Picea rubra Link. Red Spruce.
_Picea rubens_ Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 40]
Leaves more or less incurved above the middle, acute or rounded and
furnished at the apex with short callous points, dark green often
slightly tinged with yellow, very lustrous, marked on the upper surface
by 4 rows and on the lower less conspicuously by 2 rows of stomata on
each side of the prominent midrib, ½′—⅝′ long, nearly 1/16′ wide.
Flowers: male oval, almost sessile, bright red; female oblong-cylindric,
with thin rounded scales reflexed and slightly erose on their margins,
and obovate bracts rounded and laciniate above. Fruit on very short
straight or incurved stalks, ovoid-oblong, gradually narrowed from near
the middle to the acute apex, 1¼′—2′ long, with rigid puberulous scales
entire or slightly toothed at the apex; bright green or green somewhat
tinged with purple when fully grown, becoming light reddish brown and
lustrous at maturity, beginning to fall as soon as the scales open in
the autumn or early winter, and generally disappearing from the branches
the following summer; seeds dark brown, about ⅛′ long, with short broad
wings full and rounded above the middle.
A tree, usually 70°—80° and occasionally 100° high, with a trunk 2°—3°
in diameter, branches long-persistent on the stem and clothing it to the
ground, forming a narrow rather conical head, or soon disappearing below
from trees crowded in the forest, stout pubescent light green
branchlets, becoming bright reddish brown or orange-brown during their
first winter, glabrous the following year, and covered in their third or
fourth year with scaly bark. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, ¼′—⅓′ long, with
light reddish brown scales. Bark ¼′—½′ thick, and broken into thin
closely appressed irregularly shaped red-brown scales. Wood light, soft,
close-grained, not strong, pale slightly tinged with red, with paler
sapwood usually about 2′ thick; largely manufactured into lumber in the
northeastern states, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, and used for the
flooring and construction of houses, for the sounding-boards of musical
instruments, and in the manufacture of paper-pulp.
Distribution. Well-drained uplands and mountain slopes, often forming a
large part of extensive forests, from Prince Edward Island and the
valley of the St. Lawrence southward to the coast of Massachusetts,
along the interior hilly part of New England, New York, and northern
Pennsylvania and on the slopes of the Alleghany Mountains at elevations
above 2500 feet from West Virginia to North Carolina and Tennessee.
Occasionally planted in the eastern states and in Europe as an
ornamental tree, but growing in cultivation more slowly than any other
Spruce-tree.
3. Picea glauca Voss. White Spruce.
_Picea canadensis_ B. S. P.
[Illustration: Fig. 41]
Leaves crowded on the upper side of the branches by the twisting of
those on the lower side, incurved, acute or acuminate with rigid callous
tips, pale blue and hoary when they first appear, becoming dark
blue-green or pale blue, marked on each of the 4 sides by 3 or 4 rows of
stomata, ⅓′—¾′ long. Flowers: male pale red, soon appearing yellow from
the thick covering of pollen; female oblong-cylindric, with round nearly
entire pale red or yellow-green scales, broader than long, and nearly
orbicular denticulate bracts. Fruit nearly sessile or borne on short
thin straight stems, oblong-cylindric, slender, slightly narrowed to the
ends, rather obtuse at apex, usually about 2′ long, pale green sometimes
tinged with red when fully grown, becoming at maturity pale brown and
lustrous, with nearly orbicular scales, rounded, truncate, and slightly
emarginate, or rarely narrowed at apex, and very thin, flexible and
elastic at maturity, usually deciduous in the autumn or during the
following winter; seeds about ⅛′ long, pale brown, with narrow wings
gradually widened from the base to above the middle and very oblique at
the apex.
A tree, with disagreeable smelling foliage, rarely more than 60°—70°
tall, with a trunk not more than 2° in diameter, long comparatively
thick branches densely clothed with stout rigid laterals sweeping out in
graceful upward curves, and forming a broad-based rather open pyramid
often obtuse at the apex, stout glabrous branchlets orange-brown during
their first autumn and winter, gradually growing darker grayish brown.
Winter-buds broadly ovoid, obtuse, covered by light chestnut-brown
scales with thin often reflexed ciliate margins. Bark ¼′—½′ thick,
separating irregularly into thin plate-like light gray scales more or
less tinged with brown. Wood light, soft, not strong, straight-grained
light yellow, with hardly distinguishable sapwood; manufactured into
lumber in the eastern provinces of Canada and in Alaska, and used in
construction, for the interior finish of buildings, and for paper-pulp.
Distribution. Banks and borders of streams and lakes, ocean cliffs, and
in the north the rocky slopes of low hills, from Labrador along the
northern frontier of the forest nearly to the shores of the Arctic Sea,
reaching Behring Strait in 66° 44′ north latitude, and southward down
the Atlantic coast to southern Maine, northern New Hampshire, Vermont,
and New York, shores of Saginaw Bay, Michigan, northern Wisconsin and
Minnesota, and through the interior of Alaska.
The variety (var. _albertiana_ Sarg.) of the Gaspé Peninsula and the
valleys of the Black Hills of South Dakota and of the Rocky Mountains of
northern Wyoming, Montana, Alberta and northward, is a tree with a
narrow pyramidal head, sometimes 150° high, with a trunk 3° to 4° in
diameter, and shorter and rather broader cones than those of the typical
White Spruce of the east, although not shorter or as short as the cones
of that tree in the extreme north.
Often planted in Canada, northern New England, and northern Europe as an
ornamental tree; in southern New England and southward suffering from
heat and dryness.
4. Picea Engelmannii Engelm. White Spruce. Engelmann Spruce.
[Illustration: Fig. 42]
Leaves soft and flexible, with acute callous tips, slender, nearly
straight or slightly incurved on vigorous sterile branches, stouter,
shorter, and more incurved on fertile branches, 1′—1⅛′ long, marked on
each face by 3—5 rows of stomata, covered at first with a glaucous
bloom, soon becoming dark blue-green or pale steel-blue. Flowers: male
dark purple; female bright scarlet, with pointed or rounded and more or
less divided scales, and oblong bracts rounded or acute or acuminate and
denticulate at apex or obovate-oblong and abruptly acuminate. Fruit
oblong-cylindric to ellipsoidal, gradually narrowed to the ends, usually
about 2′ long, sessile or very short-stalked, produced in great numbers
on the upper branches, horizontal and ultimately pendulous, light green
somewhat tinged with scarlet when fully grown, becoming light
chestnut-brown and lustrous, with thin flexible slightly concave scales,
generally erose-dentate or rarely almost entire on the margins, usually
broadest at the middle, wedge-shaped below, and gradually contracted
above into a truncate or acute apex, or occasionally obovate and rounded
above; mostly deciduous in the autumn or early in their first winter
soon after the escape of the seeds; seeds obtuse at the base, nearly
black, about ⅛′ long and much shorter than their broad very oblique
wings.
A tree, with disagreeable smelling foliage sometimes 120° high, with a
trunk 3° in diameter, spreading branches produced in regular whorls and
forming a narrow compact pyramidal head, gracefully hanging short
lateral branches, and comparatively slender branchlets pubescent for
three or four years, light or dark orange-brown or gray tinged with
brown during their first winter, their bark beginning to separate into
small flaky scales in their fourth or fifth year; at its highest
altitudes low and stunted with elongated branches pressed close to the
ground. Winter-buds conic or slightly obtuse, with pale chestnut-brown
scales scarious and often free and slightly reflexed on the margins.
Bark ¼′—½′ thick, light cinnamon-red, and broken into large thin loose
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, close-grained, pale yellow tinged
with red, with thick hardly distinguishable sapwood; largely
manufactured into lumber used in the construction of buildings; also
employed for fuel and charcoal. The bark is sometimes employed in
tanning leather.
Distribution. High mountain slopes, often forming great forests from the
mountains of Alberta, British Columbia and Alaska, southward over the
interior mountain systems of the continent to southern New Mexico (the
Sacramento Mountains) and northern Arizona, from elevations of 5000° at
the north up to 11,500° and occasionally to 12,000° at the south, and
westward through Montana and Idaho to the eastern slopes of the Cascade
Mountains of Washington and Oregon; attaining its greatest size and
beauty north of the northern boundary of the United States.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in the New England states and
northern Europe, where it grows vigorously and promises to attain a
large size; usually injured in western Europe by spring frosts.
5. Picea pungens Englm. Blue Spruce. Colorado Spruce.
_Picea Parryana_ Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 43]
Leaves strongly incurved, especially those on the upper side of the
branches, stout, rigid, acuminate and tipped with long callous sharp
points, 1′—1⅛′ long on sterile branches, often not more than half as
long on the fertile branches of old trees, marked on each side by 4—7
rows of stomata, dull bluish green on some individuals and light or dark
steel-blue or silvery white on others, the blue colors gradually
changing to dull blue-green at the end of three or four years. Flowers:
male yellow tinged with red; female with broad oblong or slightly
obovate pale green scales truncate or slightly emarginate at the
denticulate apex, and acute bracts. Fruit produced on the upper third of
the tree, sessile or short-stalked, oblong-cylindric, slightly narrowed
at the ends, usually about 3′ long, green more or less tinged with red
when fully grown at midsummer, becoming pale chestnut-brown and
lustrous, with flat tough rhombic scales flexuose on the margins, and
acute, rounded or truncate at the elongated erose apex; seeds ⅛′ long or
about half the length of their wings, gradually widening to above the
middle and full and rounded at apex.
A tree, usually 80°—100° or occasionally 150° high, with a trunk rarely
3° in diameter and occasionally divided into 3 or 4 stout secondary
stems, rigid horizontal branches disposed on young trees in remote
whorls and decreasing regularly in length from below upward, the short
stout stiff branchlets pointing forward and making flat-topped masses of
foliage; branches on old trees short and remote, with stout lateral
branches forming a thin ragged pyramidal crown; branchlets stout, rigid,
glabrous, pale glaucous green, becoming bright orange-brown during the
first winter and ultimately light grayish brown. Winter-buds stout,
obtuse or rarely acute, ¼′—½′ long, with thin pale chestnut-brown scales
usually reflexed on the margins. Bark of young trees gray or gray tinged
with cinnamon-red and broken into small oblong plate-like scales,
becoming on the lower part of old trunks ¾′—1½′ thick and deeply divided
into broad rounded ridges covered with small closely appressed pale gray
or occasionally bright cinnamon-red scales. Wood light, soft,
close-grained, weak, pale brown or often nearly white, with hardly
distinguishable sapwood.
Distribution. Banks of streams or on the first benches above them singly
or in small groves at elevations between 6500° and 11,000° above the
sea; Colorado and eastern Utah northward to the northern end of the
Medicine Bow Mountains and on the Laramie Range in southern and on the
Shoshone and Teton Mountains in northwestern Wyoming, and southward into
northern New Mexico (Sierra Bianca, alt. 8000°—11,000°, Sacramento
Mountains, Pecos River National Forest).
Often planted as an ornamental tree in the eastern and northern states
and in western and northern Europe, especially individuals with blue
foliage; very beautiful in early life but in cultivation soon becoming
unsightly from the loss of the lower branches.
6. Picea Breweriana S. Wats. Weeping Spruce.
[Illustration: Fig. 44]
Leaves abruptly narrowed and obtuse at apex, straight or slightly
incurved, rounded and obscurely ridged and dark green and lustrous on
the lower surface, flattened and conspicuously marked on the upper
surface by 4 or 5 rows of stomata on each side of the prominent midrib,
¾′—1⅛′ long, 1/16′—1/10′ wide. Flowers: male dark purple; female
oblong-cylindric, with obovate scales rounded above and reflexed on the
entire margins, and oblong bracts laciniately divided at their rounded
or acute apex. Fruit ellipsoidal, gradually narrowed from the middle to
the ends, acute at apex, rather oblique at base, suspended on straight
slender stalks, deep rich purple or green more or less tinged with
purple when fully grown, becoming light orange-brown, 2′—4′ long, with
thin broadly ovate flat scales longer than broad, rounded at apex,
opening late in the autumn after the escape of the seeds, often becoming
strongly reflexed and very flexible; usually remaining on the branches
until their second winter; seeds acute at base, full and rounded on the
sides, ⅛′ long, dark brown, and about one quarter the length of their
wings broadest toward the full and rounded apex.
A tree, usually 80°—100° high, with a trunk 2°—3° in diameter above the
swelling of its enlarged and gradually tapering base, and furnished to
the ground with crowded branches, those at the top of the tree short and
slightly ascending, with comparatively short pendulous lateral branches,
those lower on the tree horizontal or pendulous and clothed with slender
flexible whip-like laterals often 7°—8° long and not more than ¼′ thick
and furnished with numerous long thin lateral branchlets, their ultimate
divisions slender, coated with fine pubescence persistent until their
third season, bright red-brown during their first winter, gradually
growing dark gray-brown. Winter-buds conic, light chestnut-brown, ¼′
long and ⅛′ thick. Bark ½′—¾′ thick, broken into long thin closely
appressed scales dull red-brown on the surface. Wood heavy, soft,
close-grained, light brown or nearly white, with thick hardly
distinguishable sapwood.
Distribution. Dry mountain ridges and peaks near the timber-line on both
slopes of the Siskiyou Mountains on the boundary between California and
Oregon, forming small groves at elevations of about 7000° above the sea;
on a high peak west of Marble Mountain in Siskiyou County, California;
on the coast ranges of southwestern Oregon at elevations of 4000°—5000°.
7. Picea sitchensis Carr. Tideland Spruce. Sitka Spruce.
[Illustration: Fig. 45]
Leaves standing out from all sides of the branches and often nearly at
right angles to them, frequently bringing their white upper surface to
view by a twist at their base, straight or slightly incurved, acute or
acuminate with long callous tips, slightly rounded, green, lustrous, and
occasionally marked on the lower surface with 2 or 3 rows of small
conspicuous stomata on each side of the prominent midrib, flattened,
obscurely ridged and almost covered with broad silvery white bands of
numerous rows of stomata on the upper surface, ½′—1⅛′ long and
1/16′—1/12′ wide, mostly persistent 9—11 years. Flowers: male at the
ends of the pendant lateral branchlets, dark red; female on rigid
terminal shoots of the branches of the upper half of the tree, with
nearly orbicular denticulate scales, often slightly truncate above and
completely hidden by their elongated acuminate bracts. Fruit
oblong-cylindric, short-stalked, yellow-green often tinged with dark red
when fully grown, becoming lustrous and pale yellow or reddish brown,
2½′—4′ long, with thin stiff elliptic scales rounded toward the apex,
denticulate above the middle, and nearly twice as long as their
lanceolate denticulate bracts; deciduous mostly during their first
autumn and winter; seeds full and rounded, acute at the base, pale
reddish brown, about ⅛′ long, with narrow oblong slightly oblique wings
⅓′—½′ in length.
A tree, usually about 100° high, with a conspicuously tapering trunk
often 3°—4° in diameter above its strongly buttressed and much-enlarged
base, occasionally 200° tall, with a trunk 15°—16° in diameter,
horizontal branches forming an open loose pyramid and on older trees
clothed with slender pendant lateral branches frequently 2°—3° long, and
stout rigid glabrous branchlets pale green at first, becoming dark or
light orange-brown during their first autumn and winter and finally dark
gray-brown; at the extreme northwestern limits of its range occasionally
reduced to a low shrub. Winter-buds ovoid, acute or conical, ¼′—½′ long,
with pale chestnut-brown acute scales, often tipped with short points
and more or less reflexed above the middle. Bark ¼′—½′ thick and broken
on the surface into large thin loosely attached dark red-brown or on
young trees sometimes bright cinnamon-red scales. Wood light, soft, not
strong, straight-grained, light brown tinged with red, with thick nearly
white sapwood; largely manufactured into lumber used in the interior
finish of buildings, for fencing, boat-building, aeroplanes, cooperage,
wooden-ware, and packing-cases.
Distribution. Moist sandy, often swampy soil, or less frequently at the
far north on wet rocky slopes, from the eastern end of Kadiak Island,
southward through the coast region of Alaska, British Columbia,
Washington, and Oregon to Mendocino County, California; in Washington,
occasionally ranging inland to the upper valley of the Nesqually River.
Often planted in western and central Europe and occasionally in the
middle Atlantic states as an ornamental tree.
4. TSUGA Carr. Hemlock.
Tall pyramidal trees, with deeply furrowed astringent bark bright
cinnamon-red except on the surface, soft pale wood, nodding leading
shoots, slender scattered horizontal often pendulous branches, the
secondary branches three or four times irregularly pinnately ramified,
with slender round glabrous or pubescent ultimate divisions, the whole
forming graceful pendant masses of foliage, and minute winter-buds.
Leaves flat or angular, obtuse and often emarginate or acute at apex,
spirally disposed, usually appearing almost 2-ranked by the twisting of
their petioles, those on the upper side of the branch then much shorter
than the others, abruptly narrowed into short petioles jointed on
ultimately woody persistent bases, with stomata on the lower surface; on
one species not 2-ranked, and of nearly equal length, with stomata on
both surfaces. Flowers solitary, the male in the axils of leaves of the
previous year, globose, composed of numerous subglobose anthers, with
connectives produced into short gland-like tips, the female terminal,
erect, with nearly circular scales slightly longer or shorter than their
membranaceous bracts. Fruit an ovoid-oblong, oval, or oblong-cylindric
obtuse usually pendulous nearly sessile green or rarely purple cone
becoming light or dark reddish brown, with concave suborbicular or
ovate-oblong scales thin and entire on the margins, much longer than
their minute bracts, persistent on the axis of the cone after the escape
of the seeds. Seeds furnished with resin-vesicles, ovoid-oblong,
compressed, nearly surrounded by their much longer obovate-oblong wings;
outer seed-coat crustaceous, light brown, the inner membranaceous, pale
chestnut-brown, and lustrous; cotyledons 3—6, much shorter than the
inferior radicle.
Tsuga is confined to temperate North America, Japan, central and
southwestern China, Formosa, and the Himalayas; nine species have been
distinguished.
_Tsuga_ is the Japanese name of the Hemlock-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Leaves flat, obtuse or emarginate at apex, with stomata only on the
lower surface; cones ovoid, oblong or oblong-ovoid.
Cones stalked.
Cone-scales broad-obovate, about as wide as long, their bracts
broad and truncate.
1. T. canadensis (A).
Cone-scales narrow-oval, much longer than wide, their bracts
obtusely pointed.
2. T. caroliniana (A).
Cones sessile; cone-scales oval, often abruptly contracted near the
middle, their bracts gradually narrowed to an obtuse point.
3. T. heterophylla (B, F, G).
Leaves convex or keeled above, bluntly pointed, with stomata on both
surfaces; cones oblong-cylindric, their scales oblong-obovate,
longer than broad, much longer than their acuminate
short-pointed bracts.
4. T. Mertensiana (B, F, G).
1. Tsuga canadensis Carr. Hemlock.
[Illustration: Fig. 46]
Leaves, rounded and rarely emarginate at apex, dark yellow-green,
lustrous and obscurely grooved especially toward the base on the upper
surface, marked on the lower surface by 5 or 6 rows of stomata on each
side of the low broad midrib, ⅓′—⅔′ long, about 1/16′ wide, deciduous in
their third season from dark orange-colored persistent bases. Flowers:
male light yellow; female pale green, with broad bracts coarsely
laciniate on the margins and shorter than their scales. Fruit on slender
puberulous stalks often ¼′ long, ovoid, acute, ½′—¾′ long, with
broad-obovate scales almost as wide as long, and broad truncate bracts
slightly laciniate on the margins, opening and gradually losing their
seeds during the winter and mostly persistent on the branches until the
following spring; seeds 1/16′ long, usually with 2 or 3 large
oil-vesicles, nearly half as long as their wings broad at the base and
gradually tapering to the rounded apex.
A tree, usually 60°—70°, and occasionally 100° high, with a trunk 2°—4°
in diameter, gradually and conspicuously tapering toward the apex, long
slender horizontal or pendulous branches, persistent until overshadowed
by other trees, and forming a broad-based rather obtuse pyramid, and
slender light yellow-brown pubescent branchlets, growing darker during
their first winter and glabrous and dark red-brown tinged with purple in
their third season. Winter-buds obtuse, light chestnut-brown, slightly
puberulous, about 1/16′ long. Bark ½′—¾′ thick, deeply divided into
narrow rounded ridges covered with thick closely appressed scales
varying from cinnamon-red to gray more or less tinged with purple. Wood
light, soft, not strong, brittle, coarse-grained, difficult to work,
liable to wind-shake and splinter, not durable when exposed to the air,
light brown tinged with red, with thin somewhat darker sapwood; largely
manufactured into coarse lumber employed for the outside finish of
buildings. The astringent inner bark affords the largest part of the
material used in the northeastern states and Canada in tanning leather.
From the young branches oil of hemlock is distilled.
Distribution. Scattered through upland forests and often covering the
northern slopes of rocky ridges and the steep rocky banks of narrow
river-gorges from Nova Scotia to eastern Minnesota (Carleton County),
and southward through the northern states to Newcastle County, Delaware,
cliffs of Tuckahoe Creek, Queen Anne’s County, Maryland, southern
Michigan, southern Indiana (bank of Back Creek near Leesville, Laurence
County), southwestern Wisconsin, and along the Appalachian Mountains to
northern Georgia, and in northern Alabama; most abundant and frequently
an important element of the forest in New England, northern New York,
and western Pennsylvania; attaining its largest size near streams on the
slopes of the high mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee.
Largely cultivated with numerous seminal varieties as an ornamental tree
in the northern states, and in western and central Europe.
2. Tsuga caroliniana Engelm. Hemlock.
[Illustration: Fig. 47]
Leaves retuse or often emarginate at apex, dark green, lustrous and
conspicuously grooved on the upper surface, marked on the lower surface
by a band of 7 or 8 rows of stomata on each side of the midrib, ⅓′—¾′
long, about 1/12′ wide, deciduous from the orange-red bases during their
fifth year. Flowers: male tinged with purple; female purple, with
broadly ovate bracts, scarious and erose on the margins and about as
long as their scales. Fruit on short stout stalks, oblong, 1′—1½′ long,
with narrow-oval scales gradually narrowed and rounded at apex, rather
abruptly contracted at base into distinct stipes, thin, concave,
puberulous on the outer surface, twice as long as their broad pale
bracts, spreading nearly at right angles to the axis of the cone at
maturity, their bracts rather longer than wide, wedge-shaped, pale,
nearly truncate or slightly pointed at the broad apex; seeds ⅙′ long,
with numerous small oil-vesicles on the lower side, and one quarter as
long as the pale lustrous wings broad or narrow at the base and narrowed
to the rounded apex.
A tree, usually 40°—50°, or occasionally 70° high, with a trunk rarely
exceeding 2° in diameter, short stout often pendulous branches forming a
handsome compact pyramidal head, and slender light orange-brown
pubescent branchlets, usually becoming glabrous and dull brown more or
less tinged with orange during their third year. Winter-buds obtuse,
dark chestnut-brown, pubescent, nearly ⅛′ long. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1¼′
thick, red-brown, and deeply divided into broad flat connected ridges
covered with thin closely appressed plate-like scales. Wood light, soft,
not strong, brittle, coarse-grained, pale brown tinged with red, with
thin nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. Rocky banks of streams usually at elevations between 2500°
and 3000° on the Blue Ridge from southwestern Virginia to northern
Georgia, generally singly or in small scattered groves of a few
individuals.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in the northern states, and
in western Europe.
3. Tsuga heterophylla Sarg. Hemlock.
[Illustration: Fig. 48]
Leaves rounded at apex, conspicuously grooved, dark green and very
lustrous on the upper surface, marked below by broad white bands of 7—9
rows of stomata, abruptly contracted at the base into slender petioles,
¼′—¾′ long and 1/16′—1/12′ wide, mostly persistent 4—7 years. Flowers:
male yellow; female purple and puberulous, with broad bracts gradually
narrowed to an obtuse point and shorter than their broadly ovate
slightly scarious scales. Fruit oblong-ovoid, acute, sessile, ¾′—1′
long, with slightly puberulous oval scales, often abruptly narrowed near
the middle, and dark purple puberulous bracts rounded and abruptly
contracted at apex; seeds ⅛′ long, furnished with occasional
oil-vesicles, one third to one half as long as their narrow wings.
A tree, frequently 200° high, with a tall trunk 6°—10° in diameter, and
short slender usually pendulous branches forming a narrow pyramidal
head, and slender pale yellow-brown branchlets ultimately becoming dark
reddish brown, coated at first with long pale hairs, and pubescent or
puberulous for five or six years. Winter-buds ovoid, bright
chestnut-brown, about 1/16′ long. Bark on young trunks thin, dark
orange-brown, and separated by shallow fissures into narrow flat plates
broken into delicate scales, becoming on fully grown trees 1′—1½′ thick
and deeply divided into broad flat connected ridges covered with closely
appressed brown scales more or less tinged with cinnamon-red. Wood
light, hard and tough, pale brown tinged with yellow, with thin nearly
white sapwood; stronger and more durable than the wood of the other
American hemlocks; now largely manufactured into lumber used principally
in the construction of buildings. The bark is used in large quantities
in tanning leather; from the inner bark the Indians of Alaska obtain one
of their principal articles of vegetable food.
Distribution. Southeastern Alaska, southward near the coast to southern
Mendocino County, California, extending eastward over the mountains of
southern British Columbia, northern Washington, Idaho and Montana, to
the western slopes of the continental divide, and through Oregon to the
western slopes of the Cascade Mountains, sometimes ascending in the
interior to elevations of 6000° above the sea; most abundant and of its
largest size on the coast of Washington and Oregon; often forming a
large part of the forests of the northwest coast.
Frequently planted as an ornamental tree in temperate Europe.
4. Tsuga Mertensiana Sarg. Mountain Hemlock. Black Hemlock.
[Illustration: Fig. 49]
Leaves standing out from all sides of the branch, remote on leading
shoots and crowded on short lateral branchlets, rounded and occasionally
obscurely grooved or on young plants sometimes conspicuously grooved on
the upper surface, rounded and slightly ribbed on the lower surface,
bluntly pointed, often more or less curved, stomatiferous above and
below, with about 8 rows of stomata on each surface, light bluish green
or on some individuals pale blue, ½′—1′ long, about 1/16′ wide, abruptly
narrowed into nearly straight or slightly twisted petioles articulate on
bases as long or rather longer than the petioles; irregularly deciduous
during their third and fourth years. Flowers: male borne on slender
pubescent drooping stems, violet-purple; female erect, with delicate
lustrous dark purple or yellow-green bracts gradually narrowed above
into slender often slightly reflexed tips and much longer than their
scales. Fruit sessile, oblong-cylindric, narrowed toward the blunt apex
and somewhat toward the base, erect until more than half grown,
pendulous or rarely erect at maturity, ⅝′—3′ long, with thin delicate
oblong-obovate scales gradually contracted from above the middle to the
wedge-shaped base, rounded at the slightly thickened more or less erose
margins, puberulous on the outer surface, usually bright bluish purple
or occasionally pale yellow-green, four or five times as long as their
short-pointed dark purple or brown bracts; seeds light brown, ⅛′ long,
often marked on the surface next their scales with 1 or 2 large
resin-vesicles, with wings nearly ½′ long, broadest above the middle,
gradually narrowed below, slightly or not at all oblique at the rounded
apex.
A tree, usually 70°—100° but occasionally 150° high, with a slightly
tapering trunk 4°—5° in diameter, gracefully pendant slender branches
furnished with drooping frond-like lateral branches, their ultimate
divisions erect and forming an open pyramid surmounted by the long
drooping leading shoot, and thin flexible or sometimes stout rigid
branchlets light reddish brown and covered for two or three years with
short pale dense pubescence, becoming grayish brown and very scaly.
Winter-buds acute, about ⅛′ long, the scales of the outer ranks
furnished on the back with conspicuous midribs produced into slender
deciduous awl-like tips. Bark 1′—1½′ thick, deeply divided into
connected rounded ridges broken into thin closely appressed dark
cinnamon scales shaded with blue or purple. Wood light, soft, not
strong, close-grained, pale brown or red, with thin nearly white
sapwood; occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution. Exposed ridges and slopes at high altitudes along the
upper border of the forest from southeastern Alaska, southward over the
mountain ranges of British Columbia to the Olympic Mountains of
Washington, and eastward to the western slopes of the Selkirk Mountains
in the interior of southern British Columbia, and along the Bitter Root
Mountains to the headwaters of the Clearwater River, Idaho; along the
Cascade Mountains of Washington and Oregon, on the mountain ranges of
northern California, and along the high Sierra Nevada to the cañon of
the south fork of King’s River, California; in Alaska occasionally
descending to the sea-level, and toward the southern limits of its range
often ascending to elevations of 10,000°.
Often planted as an ornamental tree in western and central Europe, and
rarely in the eastern United States.
5. PSEUDOTSUGA Carr.
Pyramidal trees, with thick deeply furrowed bark, hard strong wood, with
spirally marked wood-cells, slender usually horizontal irregularly
whorled branches clothed with slender spreading lateral branches forming
broad flat-topped masses of foliage, ovoid acute leaf-buds, the lateral
buds in the axils of upper leaves, their inner scales accrescent and
marking the branchlets with ring-like scars. Leaves petiolate, linear,
flat, rounded and obtuse or acuminate at apex, straight or incurved,
grooved on the upper side, marked on the lower side by numerous rows of
stomata on each side of the prominent midrib, spreading nearly at right
angles with the branch. Flowers solitary, the male axillary, scattered
along the branches, oblong-cylindric, with numerous globose anthers,
their connectives terminating in short spurs, the female terminal or in
the axils of upper leaves, composed of spirally arranged ovate rounded
scales much shorter than their acutely 2-lobed bracts, with midribs
produced into elongated slender tips. Fruit an ovoid-oblong acute
pendulous cone maturing in one season, with rounded concave rigid scales
persistent on the axis of the cone after the escape of the seeds, and
becoming dark red-brown, much shorter than the 2-lobed bracts with
midribs ending in rigid woody linear awns, those at the base of the cone
without scales and becoming linear-lanceolate by the gradual suppression
of their lobes. Seeds nearly triangular, full, rounded and dark-colored
on the upper side and pale on the lower side, shorter than their oblong
wings infolding the upper side of the seeds in a dark covering; outer
seed-coat thick and crustaceous, the inner thin and membranaceous;
cotyledons 6—12, much shorter than the inferior radicle.
Pseudotsuga is confined to western North America, southern Japan,
southwestern China and Formosa. Four species are recognized.
_Pseudotsuga_, a barbarous combination of a Greek with a Japanese word,
indicates the relation of these trees with the Hemlocks.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Leaves usually rounded and obtuse at apex, dark yellow-green or rarely
blue-green; cones 2′—4½′ long, their bracts much exserted.
1. P. taxifolia (B, E, F, G, H).
Leaves acuminate at apex, bluish gray; cones 4′—6½′ long, their bracts
slightly exserted.
2. P. macrocarpa (G).
1. Pseudotsuga taxifolia Britt. Douglas Spruce. Red Fir.
_Pseudotsuga mucronata Sudw._
[Illustration: Fig. 50]
Leaves straight or rarely slightly incurved, rounded and obtuse at apex,
or acute on leading shoots, ¾′—1¼′ long, 1/16′—1/12′ wide, dark
yellow-green or rarely light or dark bluish green, occasionally
persistent until their sixteenth year. Flowers: male orange-red; female
with slender elongated bracts deeply tinged with red. Fruit pendant on
long stout stems, 4′—6½′ long, with thin slightly concave scales rounded
and occasionally somewhat elongated at apex, usually rather longer than
broad, when fully grown at midsummer slightly puberulous, dark
blue-green below, purplish toward the apex, bright red on the closely
appressed margins, and pale green bracts becoming slightly reflexed
above the middle, ⅕′—¼′ wide, often extending ½′ beyond the scales;
seeds light reddish brown and lustrous above, pale and marked below with
large irregular white spots, ¼′ long, nearly ⅛′ wide, almost as long as
their dark brown wings broadest just below the middle, oblique above and
rounded at the apex.
A tree, often 200° high, with a trunk 3°—4° in diameter, frequently
taller, with a trunk 10°—12° in diameter, but in the dry interior of the
continent rarely more than 80°—100° high, with a trunk hardly exceeding
2°—3° in diameter, slender crowded branches densely clothed with long
pendulous lateral branches, forming while the tree is young an open
pyramid, soon deciduous from trees crowded in the forest, often leaving
the trunk naked for two thirds of its length and surmounted by a
comparatively small narrow head sometimes becoming flap-topped by the
lengthening of the upper branches, and slender branchlets pubescent for
three or four years, pale orange color and lustrous during their first
season, becoming bright reddish brown and ultimately dark gray-brown.
Winter-buds ovoid, acute, the terminal bud often ¼′ long and nearly
twice as large as the lateral buds. Bark on young trees smooth, thin,
rather lustrous, dark gray-brown, usually becoming on old trunks 10′—12′
thick, and divided into oblong plates broken into great broad rounded
and irregularly connected ridges separating on the surface into small
thick closely appressed dark red-brown scales. Wood light, red or
yellow, with nearly white sapwood; very variable in density, quality,
and in the thickness of the sapwood; largely manufactured into lumber in
British Columbia, western Washington and Oregon, and used for all kinds
of construction, fuel, railway-ties, and piles; known commercially as
“Oregon pine.” The bark is sometimes used in tanning leather.
Distribution. From about latitude 55° north in the Rocky Mountains and
from the head of the Skeena River in the coast range, southward through
all the Rocky Mountain system to the mountains of western Texas,
southern New Mexico and Arizona, and of northern Mexico, and from the
Big Horn and Laramie Ranges in Wyoming and from eastern base of the
Rocky Mountains of Colorado to the Pacific coast, but absent from the
arid mountains in the great basin between the Wahsatch and the Sierra
Nevada ranges and from the mountains of southern California; most
abundant and of its largest size near the sea-level in the coast region
of southern British Columbia and of Washington and Oregon, and on the
western foothills of the Cascade Mountains; ascending on the California
Sierras to elevations of 5500°, and on the mountains of Colorado to
between 6000° and 11,000°, above the sea.
Often planted for timber and ornament in temperate Europe, and for
ornament in the eastern and northern states, where only the form from
the interior of the continent flourishes. (_P. glauca Mayr._)
2. Pseudotsuga macrocarpa Mayr. Hemlock.
[Illustration: Fig. 51]
Leaves acute or acuminate, terminating in slender rigid callous tips,
apparently 2-ranked by the conspicuous twist of their petioles, incurved
above the middle, ¾′—1¼′ long, about 1/16′ wide, dark bluish gray.
Flowers: male pale yellow, inclosed for half their length in conspicuous
involucres of the lustrous bud-scales; female with pale green bracts
tinged with red. Fruit produced on the upper branches and occasionally
on those down to the middle of the tree, short-stalked, with scales near
the middle of the cone 1½′—2′ across, stiff, thick, concave, rather
broader than long, rounded above, abruptly wedge-shaped at the base,
puberulous on the outer surface, often nearly as long as their
comparatively short and narrow bracts with broad midribs produced into
short flattened flexible tips; seeds full and rounded on both sides,
rugose, dark chestnut-brown or nearly black and lustrous above, pale
reddish brown below, ½′ long, ⅜′ wide, with a thick brittle outer coat,
and wings broadest near the middle, about ½′ long, nearly ¼′ wide, and
rounded at the apex.
A tree, usually 40°—50° and rarely 90° high, with a trunk 3°—4° in
diameter, remote elongated branches pendulous below, furnished with
short stout pendant or often erect laterals forming an open broad-based
symmetrical pyramidal head, slender branchlets dark reddish brown and
pubescent during their first year, becoming glabrous and dark or light
orange-brown and ultimately gray-brown. Winter buds ovoid, acute,
usually not more than ⅛′ long, often nearly as broad as long. Bark 3′—6′
thick, dark reddish brown, deeply divided into broad rounded ridges
covered with thick closely appressed scales. Wood heavy, hard, strong,
close-grained, not durable; occasionally manufactured into lumber;
largely used for fuel.
Distribution. Steep rocky mountain slopes in southern California at
elevations of 3000°—5000° above the sea, often forming open groves of
considerable extent, from the Santa Inez Mountains in Santa Barbara
County to the Cuyamaca Mountains.
6. ABIES Link. Fir.
Tall pyramidal trees, with bark containing numerous resin-vesicles,
smooth, pale, and thin on young trees, often thick and deeply furrowed
in old age, pale and usually brittle wood, slender horizontal
wide-spreading branches in regular remote 4 or 5-branched whorls,
clothed with twice or thrice forked lateral branches forming flat-topped
masses of foliage gradually narrowed from the base to the apex of the
branch, the ultimate divisions stout, glabrous or pubescent, and small
subglobose or ovoid winter branch-buds usually thickly covered with
resin, or in one species large and acute, with thin loosely imbricated
scales. Leaves linear, sessile, on young plants and on lower sterile
branches flattened and mostly grooved on the upper side, or in one
species 4-sided, rounded and usually emarginate at apex, appearing
2-ranked by a twist near their base or occasionally spreading from all
sides of the branch, only rarely stomatiferous above, on upper fertile
branches and leading shoots usually crowded, more or less erect, often
incurved or falcate, thick, convex on the upper side, or quadrangular in
some species and then obtuse, or acute at apex and frequently
stomatiferous on all sides; persistent usually for eight or ten years,
in falling leaving small circular scars. Flowers axillary, from buds
formed the previous season on branchlets of the year, surrounded at the
base by conspicuous involucres of enlarged bud-scales, the male very
abundant on the lower side of branches above the middle of the tree,
oval or oblong-cylindric with yellow or scarlet anthers surmounted by
short knob-like projections, the female usually on the upper side only
of the topmost branches, or in some species scattered also over the
upper half of the tree, erect, globose, ovoid or oblong, their scales
imbricated in many series, obovate, rounded above, cuneate below, much
shorter than their acute or dilated mucronate bracts. Fruit an erect
ovoid or oblong-cylindric cone, its scales closely imbricated, thin,
incurved at the broad apex and generally narrowed below into long
stipes, decreasing in size and sterile toward the ends of the cone,
falling at maturity with their bracts and seeds from the stout tapering
axis of the cone long-persistent on the branch. Seeds furnished with
large conspicuous resin-vesicles, ovoid or oblong, acute at base,
covered on the upper side and infolded below on the lower side by the
base of their thin wing abruptly enlarged at the oblique apex; seed-coat
thin, of 2 layers, the outer thick, coriaceous, the inner membranaceous;
cotyledons 4—10, much shorter than the inferior radicle.
Abies is widely distributed in the New World from Labrador and the
valley of the Athabasca River to the mountains of North Carolina, and
from Alaska through the Pacific and Rocky Mountain regions to the
highlands of Guatemala, and in the Old World from Siberia and the
mountains of central Europe to southern Japan, central China, Formosa,
the Himalayas, Asia Minor, and the highlands of northern Africa.
Thirty-three species are now recognized. Several exotic species are
cultivated in the northern and eastern states; of these the best known
and most successful as ornamental trees are _Abies Nordmanniana_, Spach,
of the Caucasus, _Abies cilicica_ Carr., of Asia Minor, _Abies
cephalonica_ Loud., a native of Cephalonia, _Abies Veitchii_ Lindl., and
_Abies homolepis_ S. & Z., of Japan, and _Abies pinsapo_, Boiss., of the
Spanish Sierra Nevada.
_Abies_ is the classical name of the Fir-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Winter-buds subglobose, with closely imbricated scales.
Leaves flat and grooved above, with stomata on the lower surface (in
Nos. 3 and 5, also on the upper surface), rounded and often
notched, or on fertile branches frequently acute at apex.
Leaves on sterile branches spreading, not crowded.
Cones purple.
Leaves dark green and lustrous above, pale below.
Bracts of the cone-scales much longer than their scales,
reflexed.
1. A. Fraseri (A).
Bracts of the cone-scales shorter or rarely slightly longer
than their scales.
2. A. balsamea (A).
Leaves pale blue-green, stomatose above.
3. A. lasiocarpa (B, F, G).
Cones green (green, yellow, and purple in No. 5).
Leaves dark green and lustrous above, pale below.
4. A. grandis (B, G).
Leaves pale blue or glaucous, often stomatose above on the
upper surface.
5. A. concolor (F, G, H).
Leaves on sterile branches pointing forward, densely crowded, dark
green and lustrous above, pale below.
6. A. amabilis (B, G).
Leaves often 4-sided, with stomata on all surfaces, blue-green,
usually glaucous, bluntly pointed or acute, incurved and
crowded on fertile branches; cones purple.
Leaves of sterile branches flattened and distinctly grooved above;
bracts of the cone-scales rounded and fimbriate above,
long-pointed, incurved, light green, much longer than and
covering their scales.
7. A. nobilis (G).
Leaves of sterile branches 4-sided; bracts of the cone-scales
acute or acuminate or rounded above, with slender tips
shorter or longer than their scales.
8. A. magnifica (G).
Winter-buds acuminate, with loosely imbricated scales; bracts of the
cone-scales produced into elongated ridged flat tips many times
longer than the obtusely pointed scales; leaves acuminate, dark
yellow-green above, white below, similar on sterile and fertile
branches.
9. A. venusta (G).
1. Abies Fraseri Poir. Balsam Fir. She Balsam.
[Illustration: Fig. 52]
Leaves obtusely short-pointed or occasionally slightly emarginate at
apex, dark green and lustrous on the upper surface, marked on the lower
surface by wide bands of 8—12 rows of stomata, ½′ to nearly 1′ long,
about 1/16′ wide. Flowers: male yellow tinged with red; female with
scales rounded above, much broader than long and shorter than their
oblong pale yellow-green bracts rounded at the broad apex terminating in
a slender elongated tip. Fruit oblong-ovoid or nearly oval, rounded at
the somewhat narrowed apex, dark purple, puberulous, about 2½′ long,
with scales twice as wide as long, at maturity nearly half covered by
their pale yellow-green reflexed bracts; seeds ⅛′ long, with dark
lustrous wings much expanded and very oblique at apex.
A tree, usually 30°—40° and rarely 70° high, with a trunk occasionally
2½° in diameter, and rather rigid branches forming an open symmetrical
pyramid and often disappearing early from the lower part of the trunk,
and stout branchlets pubescent for three or four years, pale
yellow-brown during their first season, becoming dark reddish brown
often tinged with purple, and obtuse orange-brown winter-buds. Bark
¼′—½′ thick, covered with thin closely appressed bright cinnamon-red
scales, generally becoming gray on old trees. Wood light, soft, not
strong, coarse-grained, pale brown, with nearly white sapwood;
occasionally manufactured into lumber.
Distribution: Appalachian Mountains; Cheat Mountain, near Cheat Bridge,
Randolph County, West Virginia, and from southwestern Virginia to
western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, often forming forests of
considerable extent at elevations between 4000° and 6000° above the
sea-level.
Occasionally planted in the parks and gardens of the northern states and
of Europe, but short-lived in cultivation and of little value as an
ornamental tree.
2. Abies balsamea Mill. Balsam Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 53]
Leaves dark green and lustrous on the upper surface, silvery white on
the lower surface, with bands of 4—8 rows of stomata, ½′ long on
cone-bearing branches to 1¼′ long on the sterile branches of young
trees, straight, acute or acuminate, with short or elongated rigid
callous tips, spreading at nearly right angles to the branch on young
trees and sterile branches, on the upper branches of older trees often
broadest above the middle, rounded or obtusely short-pointed at apex,
occasionally emarginate on branches at the top of the tree. Flowers:
male yellow, more or less deeply tinged with reddish purple; female with
nearly orbicular purple scales much shorter than their oblong-obovate
serrulate pale yellow-green bracts emarginate with a broad apex abruptly
contracted into a long slender recurved tip. Fruit oblong-cylindric,
gradually narrowed to the rounded apex, puberulous, dark rich purple,
2′—4′ long, with scales usually longer than broad, generally almost
twice as long; rarely not as long as their bracts, (var. _phanerolepis_
Fern.); seeds about ¼′ long and rather shorter than their light brown
wings.
A tree, 50°—60° high, with a trunk usually 12′—18′; or rarely 30′ in
diameter, spreading branches forming a handsome symmetrical
slender-pyramid, the lower branches soon dying from trees crowded in the
forest, and slender branchlets pale yellow-green and coated with fine
pubescence at first, becoming light gray tinged with red, and often when
four or five years old with purple. Winter-buds nearly globose, ⅛′—¼′ in
diameter, with lustrous dark orange-green scales. Bark on old trees
often ½′ thick, rich brown, much broken on the surface into small plates
covered with scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, coarse-grained,
perishable, pale brown streaked with yellow, with thick lighter colored
sapwood; occasionally made into lumber principally used for
packing-cases. From the bark of this tree oil of fir used in the arts
and in medicine is obtained.
Distribution. From the interior of the Labrador peninsula westward to
the shores of Lesser Slave Lake, southward through Newfoundland, the
maritime provinces of Canada, Quebec and Ontario, northern New England,
northern New York, northern Michigan to the shores of Saginaw Bay, and
northern Minnesota and northeastern Iowa, and along the Appalachian
Mountains from western Massachusetts and the Catskills of New York to
the high mountains of southwestern Virginia; common and often forming a
considerable part of the forest on low swampy ground; on well-drained
hillsides sometimes singly in forests of spruce or forming small almost
impenetrable thickets; in northern Wisconsin and vicinity occurs a form
with longer and more crowded leaves and larger cones (var. _macrocarpa_
Kent); near the timber-line on the mountains of New England and New York
reduced to a low almost prostrate shrub.
Sometimes planted in the northern states in the neighborhood of
farmhouses, but usually short-lived and of little value as an ornamental
tree in cultivation; formerly but now rarely cultivated in European
plantations; a dwarf form (var. _hudsonica_ Englm.) growing only a few
inches high and spreading into broad nests is often cultivated.
3. Abies lasiocarpa Nutt. Balsam Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 54]
Leaves marked on the upper surface but generally only above the middle
with 4 or 5 rows of stomata on each side of the conspicuous midrib and
on the lower surface by 2 broad bands each of 7 or 8 rows, crowded,
nearly erect by the twist at their base, on lower branches 1′—1¾′ long,
about 1/12′ wide, and rounded and occasionally emarginate at apex, on
upper branches somewhat thickened, usually acute, generally not more
than ½′ long, on leading shoots flattened, closely appressed, with long
slender rigid points. Flowers: male dark indigo-blue, turning violet
when nearly ready to open; female with dark violet-purple obovate scales
much shorter than their strongly reflexed bracts contracted into slender
tips. Fruit oblong-cylindric, rounded, truncate or depressed at the
narrowed apex, dark purple, puberulous, 2½′—4′ long, with scales
gradually narrowed from the broad rounded or nearly truncate apex to the
base, usually longer than broad, about three times as long as their
oblong-obovate red-brown bracts laciniately cut on the margins, rounded,
emarginate and abruptly contracted at the apex into long slender tips;
seeds ¼′ long, with dark lustrous wings covering nearly the entire
surface of the scales.
A tree, usually 80°—100°, occasionally 175°, or southward rarely more
than 50° high, with a trunk 2°—5° in diameter, short crowded tough
branches, usually slightly pendulous near the base of the tree,
generally clothing the trunks of the oldest trees nearly to their base
and forming dense spire-like slender heads, and comparatively stout
branchlets coated for three or four years with fine rufous pubescence,
or rarely glabrous before the end of their first season, pale
orange-brown, ultimately gray or silvery white. Winter-buds subglobose,
⅛′—¼′ thick, covered with light orange-brown scales. Bark becoming on
old trees ¾′—1½′ thick, divided by shallow fissures and roughened by
thick closely appressed cinnamon-red scales; on the San Francisco
Mountains, Arizona, thicker and spongy (var. _arizonica_ Lem.). Wood
light, soft, not strong, pale brown or nearly white, with light-colored
sapwood; little used except for fuel.
Distribution. High mountain slopes and summits from about latitude 61°
in Alaska, southward along the coast ranges to the Olympic Mountains of
Washington, over all the high mountain ranges of British Columbia and
Alberta, and southward along the Cascade Mountains of Washington and
Oregon to the neighborhood of Crater Lake, over the mountain ranges of
eastern Washington and Oregon, and of Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah
to the San Francisco peaks of northern Arizona, and on the Sandia and
Mogollon Mountains of New Mexico.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in the northern United States
and in northern Europe, but of little value in cultivation.
4. Abies grandis Lindl. White Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 55]
Leaves thin and flexible, deeply grooved very dark green and lustrous on
upper surface, silvery white on lower surface, with two broad bands of
7—10 rows of stomata, on sterile branches remote, rounded and
conspicuously emarginate at apex, 1½′—2¼′ long, usually about ⅛′ wide,
spreading in two ranks nearly at right angles to the branch, on
cone-bearing branches more crowded, usually 1′—1½′ long, less spreading
or nearly erect, blunt-pointed or often notched at apex, on vigorous
young trees ½′—¾′ long, acute or acuminate, usually persistent 4—10
years. Flowers: male pale yellow sometimes tinged with purple; female
light yellow-green, with semiorbicular scales and short-oblong bracts
emarginate and denticulate at the broad obcordate apex furnished with a
short strongly reflexed tip. Fruit cylindric, slightly narrowed to the
rounded and sometimes retuse apex, puberulous, bright green, 2′—4′ long,
with scales usually about two thirds as long as wide, gradually or
abruptly narrowed from their broad apex and three or four times as long
as their short pale green bracts; seeds ⅜′ in length, light brown, with
pale lustrous wings ½′—⅝′ long and nearly as broad as their abruptly
widened rounded apex.
A tree, in the neighborhood of the coast 250°—300° high, with a slightly
tapering trunk often 4° in diameter, long somewhat pendulous branches
sweeping out in graceful curves, and comparatively slender pale
yellow-green puberulous branchlets becoming light reddish brown or
orange-brown and glabrous in their second season; on the mountains of
the interior rarely more than 100° tall, with a trunk usually about 2°
in diameter, often smaller and much stunted at high elevations.
Winter-buds subglobose, ⅛′—¼′ thick. Bark becoming sometimes 2′ thick at
the base of old trees and gray-brown or reddish brown and divided by
shallow fissures into low flat ridges broken into oblong plates
roughened by thick closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft,
coarse-grained, not strong nor durable, light brown, with thin lighter
colored sapwood; occasionally manufactured into lumber in western
Washington and Oregon and used for the interior finish of buildings,
packing-cases, and wooden-ware.
Distribution. Northern part of Vancouver Island southward in the
neighborhood of the coast to northern Sonoma County, California, and
along the mountains of northern Washington and Idaho to the western
slopes of the continental divide in northern Montana, and to the
mountains of eastern Oregon; near the coast scattered on moist ground
through forests of other conifers; common in Washington and northern
Oregon from the sea up to elevations of 4000°; in the interior on moist
slopes in the neighborhood of streams from 2500° up to 7000° above the
sea; in California rarely ranging more than ten miles inland or
ascending to altitudes of more than 1500° above the sea.
Occasionally planted in the parks and gardens of temperate Europe, where
it grows rapidly and promises to attain a large size; rarely planted in
the United States.
5. Abies concolor Lindl. & Gord. White Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 56]
Leaves crowded, spreading in 2 ranks and more or less erect from the
strong twist at their base, pale blue or glaucous, becoming dull green
at the end of two or three years, with 2 broad bands of stomata on the
lower, and more or less stomatiferous on the upper surface, on lower
branches flat, straight, rounded, acute or acuminate at apex, 2′—3′
long, about 1/16′ wide, on fertile branches and on old trees frequently
thick, keeled above, usually falcate, acute or rarely notched at apex,
¾′—1½′ long, often ⅛′ wide. Flowers: male dark red or rose color; female
with broad rounded scales, and oblong strongly reflexed obcordate bracts
laciniate above the middle and abruptly contracted at apex into short
points. Fruit oblong, slightly narrowed from near the middle to the
ends, rounded or obtuse at apex, 3′—5′ long, puberulous, grayish green,
dark purple or bright canary-yellow, with scales much broader than long,
gradually and regularly narrowed from the rounded apex, rather more than
twice as long as their emarginate or nearly truncate bracts broad at the
apex and terminating in short slender tips; seeds ⅓′—½′ long, acute at
base, dark dull brown, with lustrous rose-colored wings widest near the
middle and nearly truncate at apex.
A tree, on the California sierras 200°—250° high, with a trunk often 6°
in diameter or in the interior of the continent rarely more than 125°
tall, with a trunk seldom exceeding 3° in diameter, a narrow spire-like
crown of short stout branches clothed with long lateral branches
pointing forward and forming great frond-like masses of foliage, and
glabrous lustrous comparatively stout branchlets dark orange color
during their first season, becoming light grayish green or pale reddish
brown, and ultimately gray or grayish brown. Winter-buds subglobose,
⅛′—¼′ thick. Bark becoming on old trunks sometimes 5′—6′ thick near the
ground and deeply divided into broad rounded ridges broken on the
surface into irregularly shaped plate-like scales. Wood very light,
soft, coarse-grained and not strong nor durable, pale brown or sometimes
nearly whiter occasionally manufactured into lumber, in northern
California used for packing-cases and butter-tubs.
Distribution. Rocky Mountains of southern Colorado, westward to the
mountain ranges of California, extending northward into northern Oregon,
and southward over the mountains of New Mexico and Arizona into northern
Mexico and Lower California (Mt. San Pedro Mártir Mountains); the only
Fir-tree in the arid regions of the Great Basin, of southern New Mexico
and Arizona, and of the mountain forests of southern California.
Often planted as an ornamental tree in Europe (the California form
usually as _A. Lowiana_ Murr.) and in the eastern states where it grows
more vigorously than other Fir-trees.
6. Abies amabilis Forbes. White Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 57]
Leaves deeply grooved, very dark green and lustrous on the upper
surface, silvery white on the lower, with broad bands of 6 or 8 rows of
stomata between the prominent midribs and incurved margins, on sterile
branches obtuse and rounded, or notched or occasionally acute at apex,
¾′—1¼′ long, 1/16′—1/12′ wide, often broadest above the middle, erect by
a twist at their base, very crowded, those on the upper side of the
branch much shorter than those on the lower and usually parallel with
and closely appressed against it, on fertile branches acute or acuminate
with callous tips, occasionally stomatiferous on the upper surface near
the apex, ½′—¾′ long; on vigorous leading shoots acute, with long rigid
points, closely appressed or recurved near the middle, about ¾′ long and
nearly ⅛′ wide. Flowers: male red; female with broad rounded scales and
rhombic dark purple lustrous bracts erose above the middle and gradually
contracted into broad points. Fruit oblong, slightly narrowed to the
rounded and often retuse apex, deep rich purple, puberulous, 3½′—6′
long, with scales 1′—1⅛′ wide, nearly as long as broad, gradually
narrowed from the rounded apex and rather more than twice as long as
their reddish rhombic or oblong-obovate bracts terminating in long
slender tips; seeds light yellow-brown, ½′ long, with oblique pale brown
lustrous wings about ¾′ long.
A tree, often 250° tall, or at high altitudes and in the north usually
not more than 70°—80° tall, with a trunk 4°—6° in diameter, in thick
forests often naked for 150°, but in open situations densely clothed to
the ground with comparatively short branches sweeping down in graceful
curves, and stout branchlets clothed for four or five years with soft
fine pubescence, light orange-brown in their first season, becoming dark
purple and ultimately reddish brown. Winter-buds nearly globose, ⅛′—¼′
thick, with closely imbricated lustrous purple scales. Bark on trees up
to 150 years old thin, smooth, pale or silvery white, becoming near the
ground on old trees 1½′—2½′ thick, and irregularly divided into
comparatively small plates covered with small closely appressed reddish
brown or reddish gray scales. Wood light, hard, not strong,
close-grained, pale brown, with nearly white sapwood; in Washington
occasionally manufactured into lumber used in the interior finish of
buildings.
Distribution. High mountain slopes and benches from southeastern Alaska
(Boca de Quadra Inlet and Sandfly Bay), to Vancouver Island and
southward along the coast ranges to Saddle Mountain near Astoria,
Oregon, and on the Cascade Mountains to the slopes of Old Bailey
Mountain, Oregon, ranging from the sea level at the north to elevations
of from 3000°—6000° southward; attaining its largest size on the Olympic
Mountains of Washington, where it is the most common Fir-tree.
Occasionally cultivated as an ornamental tree in the eastern states and
in western Europe, but without developing the beauty which distinguishes
this species in its native forests.
7. Abies nobilis Lindl. Red Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 58]
Leaves marked on the upper surface with a deep sharply defined groove,
rounded and obscurely ribbed on the lower surface, stomatiferous above
and below, dark or light blue-green, often very glaucous during their
first season, crowded in several rows, those on the lower side of the
branch two-ranked by the twisting of their bases, the others crowded,
strongly incurved, with the points erect or pointing away from the end
of the branch, on young plants and on the lower sterile branches of old
trees flat, rounded, usually slightly notched at apex, 1′—1½′ long,
about 1/16′ wide, on fertile branches much thickened and almost equally
4-sided, acuminate, with long rigid callous tips, ½′—¾′ long, on leading
shoots flat, gradually narrowed from the base, acuminate, with long
rigid points, about 1′ long. Flowers: male reddish purple; female often
scattered over the upper part of the tree, with broad rounded scales
much shorter than their nearly orbicular bracts erose on the margins and
contracted above into slender elongated strongly reflexed tips. Fruit
oblong-cylindric, slightly narrowed but full and rounded at apex, 4′—5′
long, purple or olive-brown, pubescent, with scales about one third
wider than long, gradually narrowed from the rounded apex to the base,
or full at the sides, rounded and denticulate above the middle and
sharply contracted and wedge-shaped below, nearly or entirely covered by
their strongly reflexed pale green spatulate bracts full and rounded
above, fimbriate on the margins, with broad midribs produced into short
broad flattened points; seeds ½′ long, pale reddish brown, about as long
as their wings, gradually narrowed from below to the nearly truncate
slightly rounded apex.
A tree, in old age with a comparatively broad somewhat rounded head,
usually 150°—200° and occasionally 250° high, with a trunk 6°—8° in
diameter, short rigid branches, short stout remote lateral branches
standing out at right angles, and slender reddish brown branchlets
puberulous for four or five years and generally pointing forward.
Winter-buds ovoid-oblong, red-brown, about ⅛′ long. Bark becoming on old
trunks 1′—2′ thick, bright red-brown, and deeply divided into broad flat
ridges irregularly broken by cross fissures and covered with thick
closely appressed scales. Wood light, hard, strong, rather
close-grained, pale brown streaked with red, with darker colored
sapwood; occasionally manufactured into lumber and used under the name
of larch for the interior finish of buildings and for packing-cases.
Distribution. Slopes of Mt. Baker in northern Washington and southward
to the valley of the Mackenzie River, Oregon, and the Siskiyou
Mountains, California, at elevations of from 2000°—5000° above the sea;
most abundant and often forming extensive forests on the Cascade
Mountains of Washington; less abundant and of smaller size on the
eastern and northern slopes of these mountains. In Oregon sometimes
called Larch.
Often planted in western and central Europe as an ornamental tree, and
in the eastern states hardy in sheltered positions as far north as
Massachusetts.
8. Abies magnifica A. Murr. Red Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 59]
Leaves almost equally 4-sided, ribbed above and below, with 6—8 rows of
stomata on each of the 4 sides, pale and very glaucous during their
first season, later becoming blue-green, persistent usually for about
ten years; on young plants and lower branches oblanceolate, somewhat
flattened, rounded, bluntly pointed, ¾′—1½′ long, 1/16′ wide, those on
the lower side of the branch spreading in 2 nearly horizontal ranks by
the twist at their base, on upper, especially on fertile branches, much
thickened, with more prominent midribs, acute, with short callous tips,
⅓′ long on the upper side of the branch to 1¼′ long on the lower side,
crowded, erect, strongly incurved, completely hiding the upper side of
the branch, on leading shoots ¾′ long, erect and acuminate, with long
rigid points pressed against the stem. Flowers: male dark reddish
purple; female with rounded scales much shorter than their oblong pale
green bracts terminating in elongated slender tips more or less tinged
with red. Fruit oblong-cylindric, slightly narrowed to the rounded,
truncate, or retuse apex, dark purplish brown, puberulous, from 6′—9′
long, with scales often 1½′ wide and about two thirds as wide as long,
gradually narrowed to the cordate base, somewhat longer or often two
thirds as long as their spatulate acute or acuminate bracts slightly
serrulate above the middle and often sharply contracted and then
enlarged toward the base; seeds dark reddish brown, ¾′ long, about as
wide as their lustrous rose-colored obovate cuneate wings nearly
truncate and often ¾′ wide at apex.
A tree, in old age occasionally somewhat round-topped, frequently 200°
high, with a trunk 8°—10° in diameter and often naked for half the
height of the tree, comparatively short small branches, the upper
somewhat ascending, the lower pendulous, and stout light yellow-green
branchlets pointing forward, slightly puberulous during their first
season, becoming light red-brown and lustrous and ultimately gray or
silvery white. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, ¼′⅓′ long, their bright
chestnut-brown scales with prominent midribs produced into short tips.
Bark becoming 4′—6′ thick near the ground, deeply divided into broad
rounded ridges broken by cross fissures and covered by dark red-brown
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, comparatively durable, light
red-brown, with thick somewhat darker sapwood; largely used for fuel,
and in California occasionally manufactured into coarse lumber employed
in the construction of cheap buildings and for packing-cases.
Distribution. Cascade Mountains of southern Oregon, southward over the
mountain ranges of northern California (summits of the Trinity and
Salmon Mountains and on the inner north coast ranges), and along the
western slope of the Sierra Nevada to the divide between White and Kern
Rivers; common in southern Oregon at elevations between 5000° and 7000°
above the sea, forming sometimes nearly pure forests; very abundant on
the Sierra Nevada, and the principal tree in the forest belt at
elevations between 6000° and 9000°; ascending towards the southern
extremity of its range to over 10,000°. Small stunted trees from the
neighborhood of Meadow Lake, Sierra County, California, with yellowish
cones have been described as var. _xancocarpa_ Lemm.
Often planted as an ornamental tree in western and central Europe, and
sometimes hardy in the United States as far north as eastern
Massachusetts.
A distinct form is
Abies magnifica var. shastensis Lemm. Red Fir.
[Illustration: Fig. 60]
On the mountains of southern Oregon and at high elevations on those of
northern California, and on the southern Sierra Nevada, occurs this form
distinguished only by the longer rounded or obtusely pointed (not acute)
bright yellow bracts which sometimes cover nearly half their scales.
9. Abies venusta K. Koch. Silver Fir.
_Abies bracteata_ D. Don.
[Illustration: Fig. 61]
Leaves thin, flat, rigid, linear or linear-lanceolate, gradually or
abruptly narrowed toward the base, often falcate, especially on fertile
branches, acuminate, with long slender callous tips, dark yellow-green,
lustrous and slightly rounded on the upper surface marked below the
middle with an obscure groove, silvery white or on old leaves pale on
the lower surface, with bands of 8—10 rows of stomata between the broad
midrib and the thickened strongly revolute margins, 2-ranked from the
conspicuous twist near their base and spreading at nearly right angles
to the branch, or pointing forward on upper fertile branches, 1½′—2¼′
long, on leading shoots standing out at almost right angles, rounded on
the upper surface, more or less incurved above the middle, 1½′—1¾′ long,
about ⅛′ wide. Flowers: male produced in great numbers near the base of
the branchlets on branches from the middle of the tree upward, pale
yellow; female near the ends of the branchlets of the upper branches
only, with oblong scales rounded above and nearly as long as their
cuneate obcordate yellow-green bracts ending in slender elongated awns.
Fruit on stout peduncles sometimes ½′ long, oval or subcylindric, full
and rounded at apex, glabrous, pale purple-brown, 3′—4′ long, with thin
scales strongly incurved above, obtusely short-pointed at apex,
obscurely denticulate on the thin margins, about one third longer than
their oblong-obovate obcordate pale yellow-brown bracts terminating in
flat rigid tips 1′—1¾′ long, above the middle of the cone pointing
toward its apex and often closely appressed to its sides, below the
middle spreading toward its base and frequently much recurved, firmly
attached to the cone-scales and deciduous with them from the thick
conical sharp-pointed axis of the cone; seeds dark red-brown, about ⅜′
long, and nearly as long as their oblong-obovate pale reddish brown
lustrous wings rounded at the apex.
A tree, 100°—150° high, with a trunk sometimes 3° in diameter,
comparatively short slender usually pendulous branches furnished with
long sinuous rather remote lateral branches sparsely clothed with
foliage, forming a broad-based pyramid abruptly narrowed 15°—20° from
the top of the tree into a thin spire-like head, and stout glabrous
light reddish brown branchlets covered at first with a glaucous bloom.
Winter-buds ovoid, acute, ¾′—1′ long, ¼′—⅓′ thick, with very thin,
loosely imbricated, pale chestnut-brown, acute, boat-shaped scales. Bark
becoming near the base of the tree ½′—¾′ thick, light reddish brown,
slightly and irregularly fissured and broken into thick closely
appressed scales. Wood heavy, not hard, coarse-grained, light brown
tinged with yellow, with paler sapwood.
Distribution. In the moist bottoms of cañons and on dry rocky summits,
usually at elevations of about 3000° above the sea on both slopes of the
outer western ridge of the Santa Lucia Mountains, Monterey County,
California.
Occasionally and successfully grown as an ornamental tree in the milder
parts of Great Britain and in northern Italy; not hardy in the eastern
United States.
7. SEQUOIA Endl.
Resinous aromatic trees, with tall massive lobed trunks, thick bark of 2
layers, the outer composed of fibrous scales, the inner thin, close and
firm, soft, durable, straight-grained red heartwood, thin nearly white
sapwood, short stout horizontal branches, terete lateral branchlets
deciduous in the autumn, and scaly or naked buds. Leaves
ovate-lanceolate or linear and spreading in 2 ranks especially on young
trees and branches, or linear, acute, compressed, keeled on the back and
closely appressed or spreading at apex, the two forms appearing
sometimes on the same branch or on different branches of the same tree.
Flowers minute, solitary, monœcious, appearing in early spring from buds
formed the previous autumn, the male terminal in the axils of upper
leaves, oblong or ovoid, surrounded by an involucre of numerous
imbricated ovate, acute, and apiculate bracts, with numerous spirally
disposed filaments dilated into ovoid acute subpeltate denticulate
connectives bearing on their inner face 2—5 pendulous globose 2-valved
anther-cells; the female terminal, ovoid or oblong, composed of numerous
spirally imbricated ovate scales abruptly keeled on the back, the keels
produced into short or elongated points closely adnate to the short
ovule-bearing scales rounded above and bearing below their upper margin
in 2 rows 5—7 ovules at first erect, becoming reversed. Fruit an ovoid
or short-oblong pendulous cone maturing during the first or second
season, persistent after the escape of the seeds, its scales formed by
the enlargement of the united flower and ovuliferous scales, becoming
woody, bearing large deciduous resin-glands, gradually enlarged upward
and widening at the apex into a narrow thickened oblong disk
transversely depressed through the middle and sometimes tipped with a
small point. Seeds 5—7 under each scale, oblong-ovoid, compressed;
seed-coat membranaceous, produced into broad thin lateral wings;
cotyledons 4—6, longer than the inferior radicle.
Sequoia, widely scattered with several species over the northern
hemisphere during the cretaceous and tertiary epochs, is now confined to
the coast of Oregon and California and the mountains of California,
where two species exist.
The name of the genus is formed from Sequoiah, the inventor of the
Cherokee alphabet.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Leaves mostly spreading in 2 ranks; cones maturing in one season; buds
scaly.
1. S. sempervirens (G).
Leaves slightly spreading or appressed; cones maturing in their second
season; buds naked.
2. S. gigantea (G).
1. Sequoia sempervirens Endl. Redwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 62]
Leaves of secondary branches and of lower branches of young trees
lanceolate, more or less falcate, acute or acuminate and usually tipped
with slender rigid points, slightly thickened on the revolute margins,
decurrent at the base, spreading in 2 ranks by a half-turn at their
base, ¼′—½′ long, about ⅛′ wide, obscurely keeled and marked above by 2
narrow bands of stomata, glaucous and stomatiferous below on each side
of their conspicuous midrib, on leading shoots disposed in many ranks,
more or less spreading or appressed, ovate or ovate-oblong, incurved at
the rounded apiculate apex, thickened, rounded, and stomatiferous on the
lower surface, concave, prominently keeled and covered with stomata on
the upper surface, usually about ¼′ long; dying and turning reddish
brown at least two years before falling. Flowers opening in December or
January; male oblong, obtuse; female with about 20 broadly ovate acute
scales tipped with elongated and incurved or short points. Fruit
ripening in October, oblong, ¾′—1′ long, ½′ broad, its scales gradually
enlarged from slender stipes abruptly dilated above into disks
penetrated by deep narrow grooves, and usually without tips; seeds about
1/16′ long, light brown, with wings as broad as their body.
A tree, from 200°—340° high, with a slightly tapering and irregularly
lobed trunk usually free of branches for 75°—100°, usually 10°—15°,
rarely 28° in diameter at the much buttressed base, slender branches,
clothed with branchlets spreading in 2 ranks and forming while the tree
is young an open narrow pyramid, on old trees becoming stout and
horizontal, and forming a narrow rather compact and very irregular head
remarkably small in proportion to the height and size of the trunk, and
slender leading branchlets covered at the end of three or four years
after the leaves fall with cinnamon-brown scaly bark; when cut producing
from the stump numerous vigorous long-lived shoots. Buds with numerous
loosely imbricated ovate acute scales persistent on the base of the
branchlet. Bark 6′—12′ thick, divided into rounded ridges and separated
on the surface into long narrow dark brown fibrous scales often broken
transversely and in falling disclosing the bright cinnamon-red inner
bark. Wood light, soft, not strong, close-grained, easily split and
worked, very durable in contact with the soil, clear light red; largely
manufactured into lumber and used for shingles, fence-posts,
railway-ties, wine-butts, and in buildings.
Distribution. Valley of the Chetco River, Oregon, 8 miles north of the
California state line, southward near the coast to Monterey County,
California; rarely found more than twenty or thirty miles from the
coast, or beyond the influence of the ocean fogs, or over 3000° above
the sea-level; often forming in northern California pure forests
occupying the sides of ravines and the banks of streams; southward
growing usually in small groves scattered among other trees; most
abundant and of its largest size north of Cape Mendocino.
Often cultivated as an ornamental tree in the temperate countries of
Europe, and occasionally in the southeastern United States.
2. Sequoia gigantea Decne. Big Tree.
_Sequoia Wellingtonia_ Seem.
[Illustration: Fig. 63]
Leaves ovate and acuminate, or lanceolate, rounded and thickened on the
lower surface, concave on the upper surface, marked by bands of stomata
on both sides of the obscure midrib, rigid, sharp-pointed, decurrent
below, spreading or closely appressed above the middle, ⅛′—¼′ or on
leading shoots ½′ long. Flowers opening in late winter and early spring;
male in great profusion over the whole tree, oblong-ovoid, with ovate
acute or acuminate connectives; female with 25—40 pale yellow scales
slightly keeled on the back and gradually narrowed into long slender
points. Fruit maturing in the second year, ovoid-oblong, 2′—3½′ long,
1½′—2¼′ wide, dark reddish brown, the scales gradually thickened upward
from the base to the slightly dilated apex, ¾′—1¼′ long, and ¼′—½′ wide,
deeply pitted in the middle, often furnished with an elongated reflexed
tip and on the upper side near the base with two or three large
deciduous resin-glands; seeds linear-lanceolate, compressed, ⅛′—¼′ long,
light brown, surrounded by laterally united wings broader than the body
of the seed, apiculate at the apex, often very unequal.
A tree, at maturity usually about 275° high, with a trunk 20° in
diameter near the ground, occasionally becoming 320° tall, with a trunk
35° in diameter, much enlarged and buttressed at base, fluted with broad
low rounded ridges, in old age naked often for 150° with short thick
horizontal branches, slender leading branchlets becoming after the
disappearance of the leaves reddish brown more or less tinged with
purple and covered with thin close or slightly scaly bark and naked
buds. Bark 1°—2° thick, divided into rounded lobes 4°—5° wide,
corresponding to the lobes of the trunk, separating into loose light
cinnamon-red fibrous scales, the outer scales slightly tinged with
purple. Wood very light, soft, not strong, brittle and coarse-grained,
turning dark on exposure; manufactured into lumber and used for fencing,
in construction, and for shingles.
Distribution. Western slopes of the Sierra Nevada of California, in an
interrupted belt at elevations of 5000°—8400° above the level of the
sea, from the middle fork of the American River to the head of Deer
Creek just south of latitude 36°; north of King’s River in isolated
groves, southward forming forests of considerable extent, and best
developed on the north fork of the Tule River.
Universally cultivated as an ornamental tree in all the countries of
western and southern Europe; and occasionally in the middle eastern
United States.
8. TAXODIUM Rich. Bald Cypress.
Resinous trees, with furrowed scaly bark, light brown durable heartwood,
thin white sapwood, erect ultimately spreading branches, deciduous
usually 2-ranked lateral branchlets, scaly globose buds, and stout
horizontal roots often producing erect woody projections (_knees_).
Leaves spirally disposed, pale and marked with stomata below on both
sides of the obscure midrib, dark green above, linear-lanceolate,
spreading in 2 ranks, or scale-like and appressed on lateral branchlets,
the two forms appearing on the same or on different branches of the same
tree or on separate trees, deciduous. Flowers unisexual, from buds
formed the previous year; male in the axils of scale-like bracts in long
terminal drooping panicles, with 6—8 stamens opposite in 2 ranks, their
filaments abruptly enlarged into broadly ovate peltate yellow
connectives bearing on their inner face in 2 rows 4—9 2-valved pendulous
anther-cells; female scattered near the ends of the branches of the
previous year, subglobose, composed of numerous ovate spirally arranged
long-pointed scales, adnate below to the thickened fleshy ovuliferous
scales bearing at their base 2 erect bottle-shaped ovules. Fruit a
globose or obovoid short-stalked woody cone maturing the first year and
persistent after the escape of the seeds, formed from the enlargement
and union of the flower and ovule-bearing scales abruptly dilated from
slender stipes into irregularly 4-sided disks often mucronate at
maturity, bearing on the inner face, especially on the stipes, large
dark glands filled with blood-red fragrant liquid resin. Seeds in pairs
under each scale, attached laterally to the stipes, erect, unequally
3-angled; seed-coat light brown and lustrous, thick, coriaceous or
corky, produced into 3 thick unequal lateral wings and below into a
slender elongated point; cotyledons 4—9, shorter than the superior
radicle.
Taxodium, widely distributed through North America and Europe in Miocene
and Pliocene times, is now confined to the southern United States and
Mexico. Two species are distinguished.
The generic name, from τάξος and εῖδος, indicates a resemblance of the
leaves to those of the Yew-tree.
1. Taxodium distichum Rich. Bald Cypress. Deciduous Cypress.
[Illustration: Fig. 64]
Leaves on distichously spreading branchlets, apiculate, ½′—¾′ long,
about 1/12′ wide, light bright yellow-green or occasionally silvery
white below; or on the form with pendulous compressed branchlets
long-pointed, keeled and stomatiferous below, concave above more or less
spreading at the free apex, about ½′ long; in the autumn turning with
the branchlets dull orange-brown before falling. Flowers: panicles of
staminate flowers 4′—5′ long, 1½′—2′ wide, with slender red-brown stems,
obovoid flower-buds nearly ⅛′ long, pale silvery-gray during winter and
purple when the flowers expand in the spring. Fruit usually produced in
pairs at the end of the branch or irregularly scattered along it for
several inches, nearly globose or obovoid, rugose, about 1′ in diameter,
the scales generally destitute of tips; seeds with wings nearly ¼′ long,
⅛′ wide.
A tree, with a tall lobed gradually tapering trunk, rarely 12° and
generally 4°—5° in diameter above the abruptly enlarged strongly
buttressed usually hollow base, occasionally 150° tall, in youth
pyramidal, with slender branches often becoming elongated and slightly
pendulous, in old age spreading out into a broad low rounded crown often
100° across, and slender branchlets light green when they first appear,
light red-brown and rather lustrous during their first winter, becoming
darker the following year, the lateral branchlets deciduous, 3′—4′ long,
spreading at right angles to the branch, or in the form with acicular
leaves pendulous or erect and often 6′ long. Bark 1′—2′ thick, light
cinnamon-red and divided by shallow fissures into broad flat ridges
separating on the surface into long thin closely appressed fibrous
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, easily worked, light or dark
brown, sometimes nearly black; largely used for construction,
railway-ties, posts, fences, and in cooperage.
Distribution. River swamps usually submerged during several months of
the year, low wet banks of streams, and the wet depressions of
Pine-barrens from southern New Jersey and southern Delaware southward
generally near the coast to the Everglade Keys, southern Florida, and
through the Gulf-coast region to the valley of Devil River, Texas,
through Louisiana to southern Oklahoma, through southern and western
Arkansas to southeastern Missouri, and through western and northern
Mississippi to Tishomingo County, and in western Tennessee and Kentucky
to southern Illinois and southwestern Indiana; most common and of its
largest size in the south Atlantic and Gulf states, often covering with
nearly pure forests great river swamps. From the coast of North Carolina
to southern Florida, southern Alabama and eastern and western Louisiana
the form with acicular leaves (_Taxodium distichum_ var. _imbricarium_,
Sarg.) is not rare as a small tree in Pine-barren ponds and swamps.
Often cultivated as an ornamental tree in the northern United States,
and in the countries of temperate Europe, especially the var.
_imbricarium_ (as _Glyptostrobus sinensis_ Hort. not Endl.).
9. LIBOCEDRUS Endl.
Tall resinous aromatic trees, with scaly bark, spreading branches,
flattened branchlets disposed in one horizontal plane and forming an
open 2-ranked spray and often ultimately deciduous, straight-grained
durable fragrant wood, and naked buds. Leaves scale-like, in 4 ranks, on
leading shoots nearly equally decussate, closely compressed or
spreading, dying and becoming woody before falling, on lateral flattened
branchlets much compressed, conspicuously keeled, and nearly covering
those of the other ranks; on seedling plants linear-lanceolate and
spreading. Flowers monœcious, solitary, terminal, the two sexes on
different branchlets; male oblong, with 12—16 decussate filaments
dilated into broad connectives usually bearing 4 subglobose
anther-cells; female oblong, subtended at base by several pairs of
leaf-like scales slightly enlarged and persistent under the fruit,
composed of 6 acuminate short-pointed scales, those of the upper and
middle ranks much larger than those of the lower rank, ovate or oblong,
fertile and bearing at the base of a minute accrescent ovuliferous scale
2 erect ovules. Fruit an oblong cone maturing in one season, with
subcoriaceous scales marked at the apex by the free thickened
mucronulate border of the enlarged flower-scales, those of the lowest
pair ovate, thin, reflexed, much shorter than the oblong thicker scales
of the second pair widely spreading at maturity; those of the third pair
confluent into an erect partition. Seeds in pairs, erect on the base of
the scale; seed-coat membranaceous, of 2 layers, produced into thin
unequal lateral wings, one narrow, the other broad, oblique, nearly as
long as the scale; cotyledons 2, about as long as the superior radicle.
Libocedrus is confined to western North America, western South America,
where it is distributed from Chile to Patagonia, New Zealand, New
Caledonia, New Guinea, Formosa, and southwestern China. Eight species
are distinguished.
_Libocedrus_, from λιβάς and _Cedrus_, relates to the resinous character
of these trees.
1. Libocedrus decurrens Torr. Incense Cedar.
[Illustration: Fig. 65]
Leaves oblong-obovate, decurrent and closely adnate on the branchlets
except at the callous apex, ⅛′ long on the ultimate lateral branchlets
to nearly ½′ long on leading shoots, those of the lateral ranks
gradually narrowed and acuminate at apex, keeled and glandular on the
back, and nearly covering the flattened obscurely glandular-pitted and
abruptly pointed leaves of the inner ranks. Flowers appearing in January
on the ends of short lateral branchlets of the previous year; male
tingeing the tree with gold during the winter and early spring, ovate,
nearly ¼′ long, with nearly orbicular or broadly ovate connectives,
rounded, acute or acuminate at the apex and slightly erose on the
margins; female subtended by 2—6 pairs of leaf-like scales, with ovate
acute light yellow-green slightly spreading scales. Fruit ripening and
discharging its seeds in the autumn, oblong, ¾′—1′ long, pendulous,
light red-brown; seeds oblong-lanceolate, ⅓′—½′ long, semiterete and
marked below by a conspicuous pale basal hilum; inner layer of the
seed-coat penetrated by elongated resin-chambers, filled with red liquid
balsamic resin.
A tree, usually 80°—100° or rarely 150° high, with a tall straight
slightly and irregularly lobed trunk tapering from a broad base, 3° or
4° or occasionally 6° or 7° in diameter, slender branches erect at the
top of the tree, below sweeping downward in bold curves, forming a
narrow open feathery crown becoming in old age irregular in outline by
the greater development of a few ultimately upright branches forming
secondary stems, and stout branchlets somewhat flattened and light
yellow-green at first, turning light red-brown during the summer and
ultimately brown more or less tinged with purple, the lateral branchlets
much flattened, 4′—6′ long, and usually deciduous at the end of the
second or third season. Bark ½′—1′ thick, bright cinnamon-red, and
broken into irregular ridges covered with closely appressed plate-like
scales. Wood light, soft, close-grained very durable in contact with the
soil, light reddish brown, with thin nearly white sapwood; often injured
by dry rot but largely used for fencing, laths and shingles, the
interior finish of buildings, for furniture, and in the construction of
flumes.
Distribution. Singly or in small groves from the southeastern slope of
Mt. Hood, Oregon, and southward along the Cascade Mountains; on the high
mountains of northern California, on the western slopes of the Sierra
Nevada, and in Alpine County on their eastern slope, on the Washoe
Mountains, western Nevada, in the California coast ranges from the Santa
Lucia Mountains, Monterey County to the high mountains in the southern
part of the state; on the Sierra del Pinal and the San Pedro Mártir
Mountains, Lower California; most abundant and of its largest size on
the Sierra Nevada, of central California at elevations of 5000°—7000°
above the sea.
Often cultivated as an ornamental tree in western and central Europe,
where it grows rapidly and promises to attain a large size; hardy and
occasionally planted in the New England and middle Atlantic states.
10. THUJA L. Arbor-vitæ.
Resinous aromatic trees, with thin scaly bark, soft durable
straight-grained heartwood, thin nearly white sapwood, slender spreading
or erect branches, pyramidal heads, flattened lateral pendulous
branchlets disposed in one horizontal plane, forming a flat frond-like
spray and often finally deciduous, and naked buds. Leaves decussate,
scale-like, acute, stomatiferous on the back, on leading shoots
appressed or spreading, rounded or slightly keeled on the back, narrowed
into long slender points, on lateral branchlets much compressed in the
lateral ranks, prominently keeled and nearly covering those of the other
ranks; on seedling plants linear-lanceolate, acuminate, spreading or
reflexed. Flowers minute, monœcious, from buds formed the previous
autumn, terminal, solitary, the two sexes usually on different
branchlets; male ovoid, with 4—6 decussate filaments, enlarged into
suborbicular peltate connectives bearing on their inner face 2—4
subglobose anther-cells; female oblong, with 8—12 oblong acute scales
opposite in pairs, the ovuliferous scales at their base bearing usually
2 erect bottle-shaped ovules. Fruit an ovoid-oblong erect pale
cinnamon-brown cone maturing in one season, its scales thin (thick in
one species), leathery, oblong, acute, marked near the apex by the
thickened free border of the enlarged flower-scales, those of the 2 or 3
middle ranks largest and fertile. Seeds usually 2, erect on the base of
the scale, ovoid, acute, compressed, light chestnut-brown; seed-coat
membranaceous, produced except in one species into broad lateral wings
distinct at the apex; cotyledons 2, longer than the superior radicle.
Thuja is confined to northeastern and northwestern America, to Japan,
Korea and northern China. Five species are recognized. Of the exotic
species the Chinese _Thuja orientalis_, L., with many varieties produced
by cultivation, is frequently planted in the United States, especially
in the south and west, for the decoration of gardens, and is
distinguished from the other species by the thick umbonate scales of the
cone, only the 4 lower scales being fertile, and by the thick rounded
dark red-purple seeds without wings.
_Thuja_ is the classical name of some coniferous tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Fruit with usually 4 fertile scales.
1. T. occidentalis (A).
Fruit with usually 6 fertile scales.
2. T. plicata (B, F, G).
1. Thuja occidentalis L. White Cedar. Arbor-vitæ.
[Illustration: Fig. 66]
Leaves on leading shoots often nearly ¼′ long, long-pointed and usually
conspicuously glandular, on lateral branchlets much flattened, rounded
and apiculate at apex, without glands or obscurely glandular-pitted,
about ⅛′ long. Flowers opening in April and May, liver color. Fruit
ripening and discharging its seeds in the early autumn, ⅓′—½′ long;
seeds ⅛′ long, the thin wings as wide as the body.
A tree, 50°—60° high, with a short often lobed and buttressed trunk,
occasionally 6° although usually not more than 2°—3° in diameter, often
divided into 2 or 3 stout secondary stems, short horizontal branches
soon turning upward and forming a narrow compact pyramidal head, light
yellow-green branchlets paler on the lower surface than on the upper,
changing with the death of the leaves during their second season to
light cinnamon-red, growing darker the following year, gradually
becoming terete and abruptly enlarged at the base and finally covered
with smooth lustrous dark orange-brown bark, and marked by conspicuous
scars left by the falling of the short pendulous lateral branchlets.
Bark ¼′—⅓′ thick, light red-brown often tinged with orange color and
broken by shallow fissures into narrow flat connected ridges separating
into elongated more or less persistent scales. Wood light, soft,
brittle, very coarse-grained, durable, fragrant, pale yellow-brown;
largely used in Canada and the northern states for fence-posts, rails,
railway-ties, and shingles. Fluid extracts and tinctures made from the
young branchlets are sometimes used in medicine.
Distribution. Frequently forming nearly impenetrable forests on swampy
ground or often occupying the rocky banks of streams, from Nova Scotia
and New Brunswick, northwestward to the mouth of the Saskatchewan, and
southward through eastern Canada to southern New Hampshire, central
Massachusetts, New York, central Ohio, northern Indiana and Illinois,
and Minnesota; occasionally on the high mountains of Virginia, West
Virginia, and northeastern Tennessee, and on the mountains of western
Burke County, North Carolina, at an altitude of 3000 feet; very common
at the north, less abundant and of smaller size southward.
Often cultivated, with many, often dwarf, forms produced in nurseries,
as an ornamental tree and for hedges; and in Europe from the middle of
the sixteenth century.
2. Thuja plicata D. Don. Red Cedar. Canoe Cedar.
[Illustration: Fig. 67]
Leaves on leading shoots ovate, long-pointed, often conspicuously
glandular on the back, frequently ¼′ long, on lateral branchlets ovate,
apiculate, without glands or obscurely glandular-pitted, usually not
more than ⅛′ long, mostly persistent 2—5 years. Flowers about 1/12′
long, dark brown. Fruit ripening early in the autumn, clustered near the
ends of the branches, much reflexed, ½′ long, with thin leathery scales,
conspicuously marked near the apex by the free border of the
flower-scale furnished with short stout erect or recurved dark mucros;
seeds often 3 under each fertile scale, rather shorter than their
usually slightly unequal wings about ¼′ long.
A tree, frequently 200° high, with a broad gradually tapering buttressed
base sometimes 15° in diameter at the ground and in old age often
separating toward the summit into 2 or 3 erect divisions, short
horizontal branches, usually pendulous at the ends, forming a dense
narrow pyramidal head, and slender much compressed branchlets often
slightly zigzag, light bright yellow-green during their first year, then
cinnamon-brown, and after the falling of the leaves, lustrous and dark
reddish brown often tinged with purple, the lateral branchlets 5′—6′
long, light green and lustrous on the upper surface, somewhat paler on
the lower surface, turning yellow and falling generally at the end of
their second season. Bark bright cinnamon-red, ½′—¾′ thick, irregularly
divided by narrow shallow fissures into broad ridges rounded on the back
and broken on the surface into long narrow rather loose plate-like
scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, brittle, coarse-grained, easily
split, dull brown tinged with red; largely used in Washington and Oregon
for the interior finish of buildings, doors, sashes, fences, shingles,
and in cabinet-making and cooperage. From this tree the Indians of the
northwest coast split the planks used in the construction of their
lodges, carved the totems which decorate their villages, and hollowed
out their great war canoes, and from the fibres of the inner bark made
ropes, blankets, and thatch for their cabins.
Distribution. Singly and in small groves on low moist bottom-lands or
near the banks of mountain streams, from the sea-level to elevations of
6000° in the interior, from Baranoff Island, Alaska, southward along the
coast ranges of British Columbia, western Washington, and Oregon, where
it is the most abundant and grows to its largest size, and through the
California-coast region to Mendocino County, ranging eastward along many
of the interior ranges of British Columbia, northern Washington, Idaho,
and Montana to the western slope of the continental divide.
Often cultivated as an ornamental tree in the parks and gardens of
western and central Europe where it has grown rapidly and vigorously,
and occasionally in the middle and north Atlantic states.
11. CUPRESSUS L. Cypress.
Resinous trees, with bark often separating into long shred-like scales,
fragrant durable usually light brown heartwood, pale yellow sapwood,
stout erect branches often becoming horizontal in old age, slender
4-angled branchlets, and naked buds. Leaves scale-like, ovate, acute,
acuminate, or bluntly pointed at apex, with slender spreading or
appressed tips, thickened, rounded, and often glandular on the back,
opposite in pairs, becoming brown and woody before falling; on vigorous
leading shoots and young plants needle-shaped or linear-lanceolate and
spreading. Flowers minute, monœcious, terminal, yellow, the two sexes on
separate branchlets; the male oblong, of numerous decussate stamens,
with short filaments enlarged into broadly ovate connectives bearing 2—6
globose pendulous anther-cells; female oblong or subglobose, composed of
6—10 thick decussate scales bearing in several rows at the base of the
ovuliferous scale numerous erect bottle-shaped ovules. Fruit an erect
nearly globose cone maturing in the second year, composed of the much
thickened ovule-bearing scales of the flower, abruptly dilated, clavate
and flattened at the apex, bearing the remnants of the flower-scales
developed into a short central more or less thickened mucro or boss;
long-persistent on the branch after the escape of the seeds. Seeds
numerous, in several rows, erect, thick, and acutely angled or
compressed, with thin lateral wings; seed-coat of 2 layers, the outer
thin and membranaceous, the inner thicker and crustaceous; cotyledons 3
or 4, longer than the superior radicle.
Cupressus with ten or twelve species is confined to Pacific North
America and Mexico in the New World and to southeastern Europe,
southwestern Asia, the Himalayas, and China in the Old World. Of the
exotic species _Cupressus sempervirens_ L., of southeastern Europe and
southwestern Asia, and especially its pyramidal variety, are often
planted for ornament in the south Atlantic and Pacific states.
_Cupressus_ is the classical name of the Cypress-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES
Leaves dark green.
Leaves eglandular or obscurely glandular on the back.
Leaves obtusely pointed; cones puberulous, 1′—1½′ in diameter;
seeds light chestnut-brown.
1. C. macrocarpa (G).
Leaves acutely pointed; cones ½′—⅔′ in diameter; seeds dark brown
or black.
2. C. Goveniana (G).
Leaves glandular-pitted on the back, acute.
Cones ⅔′—1′ in diameter; seeds brown, often glaucous.
3. C. Sargentii (G).
Cones ½′—1′ in diameter, often covered with a glaucous bloom;
seeds dark chestnut-brown.
4. C. Macnabiana (G).
Leaves pale bluish green.
Leaves obtusely pointed, with small gland-pits; bark of the trunk
smooth, lustrous, mahogany brown; branches bright red.
5. C. guadaloupensis (G).
Leaves acute, eglandular or occasionally obscurely glandular (in
var. _glabra_ conspicuously glandular); bark of the trunk dark
brown, separating into long narrow persistent fibres;
branchlets gray.
6. C. arizonica (H).
1. Cupressus macrocarpa Gord. Monterey Cypress.
[Illustration: Fig. 68]
Leaves dark green, bluntly pointed, eglandular, and ¼′—½′ long;
deciduous at the end of three or four years. Flowers opening late in
February or early in March, yellow. Fruit clustered on short stout stems
subglobose, slightly puberulous, 1′—1½′ in diameter, composed of 4 or 6
pairs of scales, with broadly ovoid thickened or occasionally on the
upper scales subconical bosses, the scales of the upper and lower pairs
being smaller than the others and sterile; seeds about 20 under each
fertile scale, angled, light chestnut-brown, about 1/16′ long.
A tree, often 60°—70° high, with a short trunk 2°—3° or exceptionally
5°—6° in diameter, slender erect branches forming a narrow or broad
bushy pyramidal head, becoming stout and spreading in old age into a
broad flat-topped crown, and stout branchlets covered when the leaves
fall at the end of three or four years with thin light or dark reddish
brown bark separating into small papery scales. Bark ¾′—1′ thick and
irregularly divided into broad flat connected ridges separating freely
into narrow elongated thick persistent scales, dark red-brown on young
stems and upper branches, becoming at last almost white on old and
exposed trunks. Wood heavy, hard and strong, very durable,
close-grained.
Distribution. Coast of California south of the Bay of Monterey,
occupying an area about two miles long and two hundred yards wide from
Cypress Point to the shores of Carmel Bay, with a small grove on Point
Lobos, the southern boundary of the bay.
Universally cultivated in the Pacific states from Vancouver Island to
Lower California, and often used in hedges and for wind-breaks;
occasionally planted in the southeastern states; much planted in western
and southern Europe, temperate South America, and in Australia and New
Zealand.
2. Cupressus Goveniana Gord.
_Cupressus pygmæa_ Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 69]
Leaves acutely pointed, dark green. Flowers: male obscurely 4-angled,
with broadly ovate peltate connectives: female with 6—10 ovate pointed
scales. Fruit usually sessile, subglobose ¼′—⅞′ in diameter, its scales
terminating in small bosses; seeds compressed, black, or dark brown,
papillose, about ⅛′ long.
A tree rarely 75° high, with a tall trunk up to 2°10′ in diameter, often
not more than 25° high, more often a shrub with numerous stems 1°—15°
tall, ascending branches, and comparatively stout bright reddish brown
branchlets, becoming purple and ultimately dark reddish brown; often
beginning to produce fertile cones when only 1° or 2° tall. Bark bright
reddish brown, about ¼′ thick, and divided by shallow fissures into flat
ridges separating on the surface into long thread-like scales. Wood
soft, very coarse-grained, pale reddish brown.
Distribution. California: pine barrens on the western slope of Point
Pinos Ridge two miles west of Monterey, and on alkaline soil in a narrow
belt beginning about three quarters of a mile from the shore of
Mendocino County and extending inland for three or four miles from Ten
Mile Run on the north to the Navarro River on the south; arborescent and
also of its smallest size only in this northern station.
3. Cupressus Sargentii Jeps. Sargent’s Cypress.
_Cupressus Goveniana_ Engelm., not Gord. (_Silva N. Am._ x. 107 t. 527)
[Illustration: Fig. 70]
Leaves obscurely glandular or without glands, dark green, pungently
aromatic, 1/16′—⅛′ long, turning bright red-brown in drying and falling
at the end of three or four years; on young plants ⅛′—¼′ long. Flowers:
male with thin slightly erose connectives: female of 6 or 8 acute
slightly spreading scales. Fruit often in crowded clusters,
short-stalked, subglobose, ½′—1′ in diameter, reddish brown or purple,
lustrous, puberulous, its 6 or 8 scales with broadly ovoid generally
rounded and flattened and rarely short-obconic bosses; seeds brown,
lustrous, often glaucous, with an acute margin, ⅙′ long, about 20 under
each fertile scale.
A tree, shrub, or small bushy tree rarely more than 15° or 16° high,
with a short trunk 2° in diameter, slender erect or spreading branches
forming a handsome open head, and thin branchlets covered with close
smooth bark, at first orange-colored, becoming bright reddish brown, and
ultimately purple or dark brown. Bark ¼′—½′ thick, dark grayish brown,
irregularly divided into narrow ridges covered with thin persistent
oblong scales. Wood light, soft, not strong, light brown, with thick
nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. California: dry mountain slopes usually between altitudes
of 1300° and 2300° in few widely isolated stations, Red Mountain,
Mendocino County, to Mt. Tamalpais, Marin County; Cedar Mountain,
Alameda County; Santa Cruz Mountains, Santa Cruz County; Santa Lucia
Mountains, Monterey County; often covering great areas on the hills of
Marin County with dense thickets only a few feet high.
Occasionally cultivated as _C. Goveniana_ in western and southern Europe
as an ornamental tree.
4. Cupressus Macnabiana A. Murr. Cypress.
_Cupressus Bakeri_ Jeps.
_Cupressus nevadensis_ Abrams.
[Illustration: Fig. 71]
Leaves acute or rounded at apex, rounded and conspicuously glandular on
the back, deep green, often slightly glaucous, usually not more than
1/16′ long. Flowers in March and April, male nearly cylindric, obtuse,
with broadly ovate rounded connectives: female subglobose, with broadly
ovate scales short-pointed and rounded at apex. Fruit oblong, subsessile
or raised on a slender stalk, ½′—1′ long, dark reddish brown more or
less covered with a glaucous bloom, slightly puberulous, especially
along the margins of the 6 or rarely 8 scales, their prominent bosses
thin and recurved on the lower scales, and much thickened, conical, and
more or less incurved on the upper scales; seeds dark chestnut-brown,
usually rather less than 1/16′ long, with narrow wings.
A tree in Oregon occasionally 80° high with a tall trunk sometimes 3½°
in diameter, southward rarely more than 30° high, with a short trunk
12′—15′ in diameter, slender branches covered with close smooth compact
bark, bright purple after the falling of the leaves, soon becoming dark
brown; more often a shrub with numerous stems 6°—12° tall forming a
broad open irregular head. Bark thin, dark reddish brown, broken into
brown flat ridges, and separating on the surface into elongated thin
slightly attached long-persistent scales. Wood light, soft, very
close-grained.
Distribution. Rare and local, usually in small groves; dry ridges of
Mount Steve and adjacent mountains up to altitudes of 5300°, Josephine
County, southwestern Oregon; California; on lava beds, southeastern
Siskiyou and southwestern Mono Counties (_C. Bakeri_); dry hills and low
slopes, Mt. Ætna, in central Napa County; through Lake County to Red
Mountain on the east side of Ukiah Valley, Mendocino County; in Trinity
County between Shasta and Whiskeytown; and on the Sierra Nevada (Red
Hill, Piute Mountains near Bodfish) Kern County, at an altitude of 5000°
(_C. nevadensis_).
Occasionally cultivated in western and southern Europe as an ornamental
tree.
5. Cupressus guadaloupensis S. Wats. Tecate Cypress.
[Illustration: Fig. 72]
Leaves acute, rounded and minutely glandular-pitted or eglandular on the
back, light blue-green, about 1/16′ long. Fruit on stout stems ¼′—⅓′ in
length, subglobose to short-oblong, ¾′—1¼′ in diameter, puberulous
especially along the margins of the six or eight scales, with prominent
flattened or conic acute often incurved bosses; seeds about 70 under
each scale, short-oblong, nearly square, light chestnut-brown up to ¼′
in length, with a narrow wing.
A tree in California sometimes 20°—25° in height, with a short slender
or on exposed mountain slopes a trunk occasionally 2° or 3° in diameter,
few short spreading or ascending branches forming an open head, and
light red-brown lustrous branchlets becoming purplish. Bark smooth,
lustrous, without resin or fibres, mahogany brown, the thin scales in
falling leaving pale marks.
Distribution. San Diego County, California, rare and local; valley of
the San Luis Rey River between Valley Centre and Pala; at altitudes
between 1100° and 4000° in the gulches and on the summit of Mt. Tecate
on the border between the United States and Lower California; on a
mountain below Descanso and Pine Valley; in Cedar Cañon between El-nido
and Dulzura; in Lower California on San Pedro Mártir Mountain and
Guadaloupe Island. The insular form is a larger tree often with larger
gland-pits on the leaves, and now often cultivated in California,
western Europe, and in other countries with temperate climates.
6. Cupressus arizonica Greene. Cypress.
[Illustration: Fig. 73]
Leaves obtusely pointed, rounded, eglandular or rarely glandular-pitted
on the back, pale green, 1/16′ long, dying and turning red-brown in
their second season, generally falling four years later. Flowers: male
oblong, obtuse, their 6 or 8 stamens with broadly ovate acute yellow
connectives slightly erose on the margins: female not seen. Fruit on
stout pedicels ¼′—½′ in length, subglobose, rather longer than broad,
wrinkled, dark red-brown and covered with a glaucous bloom, the six or
eight scales with stout flattened incurved prominent bosses; seeds
oblong to nearly triangular, dark red-brown, 1/16′—⅛′ long with a thin
narrow wing.
A conical tree 40°—70° high with a trunk 2°—4° in diameter, and stout
spreading branches covered with bark separating into thin plates,
leaving a smooth red surface, and branchlets dark gray after the leaves
fall. Bark on young trunks separating into large irregular curling thin
scales, on old trees becoming dark red-brown and fibrous.
Distribution. Mountains above Clifton, Greenlee County, eastern Arizona;
on the San Francisco Mountains, Socorro County, and San Luis Mountains,
Grant County, western New Mexico; and in Chihuahua. Passing into
Cupressus arizonica var. bonita Lemm.
_Cupressus glabra_ Sudw.
[Illustration: Fig. 74]
Differing from the type in the prominent oblong or circular glandular
depressions on the backs of the leaves.
A tree 30°—70° high, with a trunk 18′—24′ or rarely 5° in diameter,
erect branches forming a rather compact conical head. Bark of the trunk
and large branches thin, smooth, dark reddish brown, separating into
small curled scale-like plates, becoming on old trees dark gray and
fibrous. Wood heavy, hard, pale straw color with lighter-colored
sapwood, durable in contact with the ground, somewhat used for
fence-posts, corral-piles, mine-timbers and in log cabins.
Distribution. Gravelly slopes and moist gulches often in groups of
considerable size at altitudes between 4000° and 7000°, Arizona; near
Camp Verde, Tonto Basin; Natural Bridge, Payson, etc.; on the Chiracahua
Mountains (_J. W. Toumey_, July, 1894); on the Santa Rita and Santa
Catalina Mountains, and in Oak Creek Cañon twenty miles south of
Flagstaff (_P. Lowell_, June, 1911).
Now often cultivated in western Europe as _C. arizonica_.
12. CHAMÆCYPARIS.
Tall resinous pyramidal trees, with thin scaly or deeply furrowed bark,
nodding leading shoots, spreading branches, flattened, often deciduous
or ultimately terete branchlets 2-ranked in one horizontal plane, pale
fragrant durable heartwood, thin nearly white sapwood, and naked buds.
Leaves scale-like, ovate, acuminate, with slender spreading or appressed
tips, opposite in pairs, becoming brown and woody before falling, on
vigorous sterile branches and young plants needle-shaped or
linear-lanceolate and spreading. Flowers minute, monœcious, terminal,
the two sexes on separate branchlets; the male oblong, of numerous
decussate stamens, with short filaments enlarged into ovate connectives
decreasing in size from below upward and bearing usually 2 pendulous
globose anther-cells; the female subglobose, composed of usually 6
decussate peltate scales bearing at the base of the ovuliferous scales
2—5 erect bottle-shaped ovules. Fruit an erect globose cone maturing at
the end of the first season, surrounded at the base by the sterile lower
scales of the flowers, and formed by the enlargement of the
ovule-bearing scales, abruptly dilated, club-shaped and flattened at the
apex, bearing the remnants of the flower-scales as short prominent
points or knobs; persistent on the branches after the escape of the
seeds. Seeds 1—5, erect on the slender stalk-like base of the scale,
subcylindric and slightly compressed; seed-coat of 2 layers, the outer
thin and membranaceous, the inner thicker and crustaceous, produced into
broad lateral wings; cotyledons 2, longer than the superior radicle.
Chamæcyparis is confined to the Atlantic and Pacific coast regions of
North America, and to Japan and Formosa. Six species are distinguished.
Of exotic species the Japanese Retinosporas, _Chamæcyparis obtusa_
Endl., and _Chamæcyparis pisifera_ Endl., with their numerous abnormal
forms are familiar garden plants in all temperate regions.
_Chamæcyparis_ is from χαµαί, on the ground, and κυπάρισσος, cypress.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Bark thin, divided into flat ridges;
Branchlets slender, often compressed; leaves dull blue-green,
usually conspicuously glandular.
1. C. thyoides (A, C).
Branchlets stout, slightly flattened or terete; leaves dark
blue-green, usually without glands.
2. C. nootkatensis (B, G).
Bark thick, divided into broad rounded ridges; branchlets slender,
compressed; leaves bright green, conspicuously glandular.
3. C. Lawsoniana (G).
1. Chamæcyparis thyoides B. S. P. White Cedar.
_Cupressus thyoides_ L.
[Illustration: Fig. 75]
Leaves closely appressed, or spreading at the apex especially on
vigorous leading shoots, keeled and glandular or conspicuously
glandular-punctate on the back, dark dull blue-green or pale below, at
the north becoming russet-brown during the winter, 1/16′—⅛′ long, dying
during the second season and then persistent for many years. Flowers:
male composed of 5 or 6 pairs of stamens, with ovate connectives rounded
at apex, dark brown below the middle, nearly black toward the apex:
female subglobose, with ovate acute spreading pale liver-colored scales
and black ovules. Fruit ¼′ in diameter, sessile on a short leafy branch,
light green, covered with a glaucous bloom when fully grown, later
bluish purple and very glaucous, finally becoming dark red-brown, its
scales terminating in ovate acute, often reflexed bosses; seeds 1 or 2
under each fertile scale, ovoid, acute, full and rounded at the base,
slightly compressed, gray-brown, about ⅛′ long, with wings as broad as
the body of the seed and dark red-brown.
A tree, 70°—80° high, with a tall trunk usually about 2 and occasionally
3°—4° in diameter, or northward much smaller, slender horizontal
branches forming a narrow spire-like head, and 2-ranked compressed
branchlets disposed in an open fan-shaped more or less deciduous spray,
the persistent branchlets gradually becoming terete, light green tinged
with red, light reddish brown during their first winter, and then dark
brown, their thin close bark separating slightly at the end of three or
four years into small papery scales. Bark ¾′—1′ thick, light reddish
brown, and divided irregularly into narrow flat connected ridges often
spirally twisted round the stem, separating on the surface into
elongated loose or closely appressed plate-like scales. Wood light,
soft, not strong, close-grained, slightly fragrant, light brown tinged
with red; largely used in boat-building and cooperage, for wooden ware,
shingles, the interior finish of houses, fence-posts, and railway-ties.
Distribution. Cold swamps usually immersed during several months of the
year, often forming dense pure forests; near Concord, New Hampshire,
southern Maine, southward only near the coast to northern Florida, and
westward to southwestern Mississippi; most abundant south of
Massachusetts Bay; comparatively rare east of Boston and west of Mobile
Bay.
Occasionally planted as an ornamental tree in the eastern states and in
the countries of temperate Europe.
2. Chamæcyparis nootkatensis Sudw. Yellow Cypress. Sitka Cypress.
_Cupressus nootkatensis_ Lamb.
[Illustration: Fig. 76]
Leaves rounded, eglandular or glandular-pitted on the back, dark
blue-green, closely appressed, about ⅛′ long, on vigorous leading
branchlets somewhat spreading and often ¼′ long, with more elongated and
sharper points, beginning to die at the end of their second year and
usually falling during the third season. Flowers: male on lateral
branchlets of the previous year, composed of 4 or 5 pairs of stamens,
with ovate rounded slightly erose light yellow connectives: female
clustered near the ends of upper branchlets, dark liver color, the
fertile scales each bearing 2—4 ovules. Fruit ripening in September and
October. nearly ½′ in diameter, dark red-brown, with usually 4 or 6
scales tipped with prominent erect pointed bosses and frequently covered
with conspicuous resin-glands; seeds 2—4 under each scale, ovoid, acute,
slightly flattened, about ¼′ long, dark red-brown, with thin light
red-brown wings often nearly twice as wide as the body of the seed.
A tree, frequently 120° high, with a tall trunk 5°—6° in diameter,
horizontal branches forming a narrow pyramidal head, stout distichous
somewhat flattened or terete light yellow branchlets often tinged with
red at first, dark or often bright red-brown during their third season,
ultimately paler and covered with close thin smooth bark. Bark ½′—¾′
thick, light gray tinged with brown, irregularly fissured, and separated
on the surface into large thin loose scales. Wood hard, rather brittle,
very close-grained, exceedingly durable, bright clear yellow, with very
thin nearly white sapwood; fragrant with an agreeable resinous odor;
used in boat and shipbuilding, the interior finish of houses, and the
manufacture of furniture.
Distribution. Islands of Prince William Sound, Alaska, and southward
over the coast mountains of Alaska and British Columbia, and along the
Cascade Mountains of Washington and Oregon to the northeastern slopes of
Mt. Jefferson, extending eastward to the headwaters of the Yakima River
on the eastern slope of the range; on Whiskey Peak of the Siskiyou
Mountains in the southeastern corner of Josephine County, Oregon and
about two miles from the California line; most abundant and of its
largest size near the coast of Alaska and northern British Columbia,
ranging from the sea-level up to altitudes of 3000°; at high elevations
on the Cascade Mountains sometimes a low shrub.
Occasionally cultivated, with its several abnormal forms, as an
ornamental tree in the middle Atlantic states and in California, and
commonly in the countries of western and central Europe.
3. Chamæcyparis Lawsoniana Parl. Port Orford Cedar. Lawson Cypress.
_Cupressus Lawsoniana_ A. Murr.
[Illustration: Fig. 77]
Leaves bright green or pale below, conspicuously glandular on the back,
usually not more than 1/16′ long on lateral branchlets, on leading
shoots often spreading at the apex, ⅛′ to nearly ¼′ long, usually dying,
turning bright red-brown and falling during their third year. Flowers:
male with bright red connectives bearing usually 2 pollen-sacs: female
with dark ovate acute spreading scales, each bearing 2—4 ovules. Fruit
clustered on the upper lateral branchlets and produced in great
profusion, ripening in September and October, about ⅓′ in diameter,
green and glaucous when full grown, red-brown and often covered with a
bloom at maturity, its scales with thin broadly ovate acute reflexed
bosses; seeds 2—4 under each fertile scale, ovoid, acute, slightly
compressed, ⅛′ long, light chestnut-brown, with broad thin wings.
A tree, often 200° high, with a tall trunk frequently 12° in diameter
above its abruptly enlarged base, a spire-like head of small horizontal
or pendulous branches clothed with remote flat spray frequently 6′—8′
long. Bark often 10′ thick at the base of old trees and 3′—4′ thick on
smaller stems, dark reddish brown, with 2 distinct layers, the inner
⅛′—¼′ thick, darker, more compact, and firmer than the outer, divided
into great broad-based rounded ridges separated on the surface into
small thick closely appressed scales. Wood light, hard, strong, very
close-grained, abounding in fragrant resin, durable, easily worked,
light yellow, or almost white, with hardly distinguishable sapwood;
largely manufactured into lumber used for the interior finish and
flooring of buildings, railway-ties, fence-posts, and boat and
shipbuilding, and on the Pacific coast almost exclusively for matches.
The resin is a powerful diuretic.
Distribution. Usually scattered in small groves from the shores of Coos
Bay, southwestern Oregon, south to the mouth of the Klamath River,
California, ranging inland usually for about thirty miles; near Waldorf,
in Josephine County, Oregon, on the slopes of the Siskiyou Mountains,
and on the southern flanks of Mt. Shasta, California; most abundant
north of Rogue River on the Oregon coast and attaining its largest size
on the western slopes of the Coast Range foothills, forming between
Point Gregory and the mouth of the Coquille River a nearly continuous
forest belt twenty miles long.
Often cultivated with the innumerable forms originated in nurseries, in
the middle Atlantic states and California, in all the temperate
countries of Europe, and in New Zealand.
13. JUNIPERUS L. Juniper.
Pungent aromatic trees or shrubs, with usually thin shreddy bark, soft
close-grained durable wood, slender branches, and scaly or naked buds.
Leaves sessile, in whorls of 3, persistent for many years, convex on the
lower side, concave and stomatiferous above, linear-subulate,
sharp-pointed, without glands (_Oxycedrus_); or scale-like, ovate,
opposite in pairs or ternate, closely imbricated, appressed and adnate
to the branch, glandular or eglandular on the back, becoming brown and
woody on the branch, but on young plants and vigorous shoots often free
and awl-shaped (_Sabina_). Flowers minute, diœcious, axillary or
terminal on short axillary branches from buds formed the previous autumn
on branches of the year; the male solitary, oblong-ovoid, with numerous
stamens decussate or in 3’s, their filaments enlarged into ovate or
peltate yellow scale-like connectives bearing near the base 2—6 globose
pollen-sacs; the female ovoid, surrounded at the base by many minute
scale-like bracts persistent and unchanged under the fruit, composed of
2—6 opposite or ternate pointed scales alternate with or bearing on
their inner face at the base on a minute ovuliferous scale 1 or 2
ovules. Fruit a berry-like succulent fleshy blue, blue-black, or red
strobile formed by the coalition of the flower-scales, inclosed in a
membranaceous skin covered with a glaucous bloom, ripening during the
first, second, or rarely during the third season, smooth or marked by
the ends of the flower-scales, or by the pointed tips of the ovules,
closed, or open at the top and exposing the apex of the seeds. Seeds
1—12, ovoid, acute or obtuse, terete or variously angled, often
longitudinally grooved by depressions caused by the pressure of
resin-cells in the flesh of the fruit, smooth or roughened and
tuberculate, chestnut-brown, marked below by the large conspicuous
usually 2-lobed hilum; seed-coat of 2 layers, the outer thick and bony,
the inner thin, membranaceous or crustaceous; cotyledons 2, or 4—6,
about as long as the superior radicle.
Juniperus is widely scattered over the northern hemisphere from the
Arctic Circle to the highlands of Mexico, Lower California, and the West
Indies in the New World, and to the Azores and Canary Islands, northern
Africa, Abyssinia, the mountains of east tropical Africa, Sikkim,
central China, Formosa, Japan and the Bonin Islands in the Old World.
About thirty-five species are now distinguished. Of the exotic species
cultivated in the United States the most common are European forms of
_Juniperus communis_ L. with fastigiate branches, and dwarf forms of the
European _Juniperus Sabina_ L., and of _Juniperus chinensis_ L.
_Juniperus_ is the classical name of the Juniper.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Flowers axillary; stamens decussate; ovules 3, alternate with the
scales of the flower, their tips persistent on the fruit; seeds
usually 3; leaves ternate, linear-lanceolate, prickle-pointed,
jointed at the base, eglandular, dark yellow-green, channeled,
stomatose, and glaucous above; fruit maturing in the third year,
subglobose, bright blue, covered with a glaucous bloom; buds
scaly (_Oxycedrus_).
1. J. communis.
Flowers terminal on short axillary branchlets; stamens decussate or in
3’s; ovules in the axils of small fleshy scales often enlarged
and conspicuous on the fruit; seeds 1—12; leaves ternate or
opposite, mostly scale-like, crowded, generally closely
appressed, free and awl-shaped on vigorous shoots and young
plants; buds naked (_Sabina_).
Fruit red or reddish brown.
Bark of the trunk separating into long thin persistent scales;
fruit maturing in one season.
Leaves closely appressed to the branchlet, obtusely pointed.
Leaves conspicuously glandular-pitted, ternate or opposite;
fruit red, subglobose, ¼′ in diameter.
2. J. Pinchotii (C, H).
Leaves eglandular or slightly glandular; fruit reddish brown.
Leaves ternate, rarely opposite; fruit short-oblong, ¼′—½′
in diameter.
3. J. californica (G).
Leaves opposite, rarely ternate; fruit subglobose, ⅛′—¼′, in
one form ¾′ in diameter.
4. J. utahensis (F, G).
Leaves not closely appressed, spreading at the apex,
long-pointed, glandular or eglandular; fruit subglobose,
⅓′—½′ in diameter.
5. J. flaccida (L).
Bark of the trunk divided into thick nearly square plates; leaves
eglandular or occasionally glandular-pitted; fruit
subglobose to short-oblong, ½′ in diameter, ripening at the
end of its second season.
6. J. pachyphlæa (H).
Fruit blue or blue-black, with resinous juicy flesh, subglobose to
short-oblong, 1/12′—⅓′ in diameter; seeds, 1—4; cotyledons 2.
Leaves denticulately fringed, opposite or ternate; fruit maturing
in one season.
Branchlets about 1/12′ in diameter; leaves acute, conspicuously
glandular; fruit short-oblong, ¼′—⅓′ in diameter; seeds 2
or 3.
7. J. occidentalis (B, G).
Branchlets not more than 1/24′ in diameter; leaves usually
ternate; fruit short-oblong.
Seeds 1 or rarely 2, pale chestnut-brown, obtuse, prominently
ridged; leaves acute or acuminate, usually glandular.
8. J. monosperma (F).
Seeds 1 or 2, dark chestnut-brown, acute, obscurely ridged;
leaves obtusely pointed, often eglandular.
9. J. mexicana (C).
Leaves naked on the margins, mostly opposite, glandular or
eglandular; fruit subglobose.
Fruit ripening at the end of the first season.
Fruit ¼′—⅓′ in diameter; seeds 1 or 2, rarely 3 or 4; leaves
acute or acuminate; branches spreading or erect.
10. J. virginiana (A, C).
Fruit 1/12′—⅙′ in diameter; seeds 1 or 2; leaves acute;
branches usually pendulous.
11. J. lucayana (C).
Fruit ripening at the end of the second season, ¼′—⅓′ in
diameter; seeds 1 or 2; leaves acute or acuminate.
12. J. scopulorum (B, F).
1. Juniperus communis L. Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 78]
Leaves spreading nearly at right angles to the branchlets, ⅓′—½′ long,
about 1/32′ wide, turning during winter a deep rich bronze color on the
lower surface, persistent for many years. Flowers: male composed of 5 or
6 whorls each of 3 stamens, with broadly ovate acute and short-pointed
connectives, bearing at the very base 3 or 4 globose anther-cells;
female surrounded by 5 or 6 whorls of ternate leaf-like scales, composed
of 3 slightly spreading ovules abruptly enlarged and open at the apex,
with 3 minute obtuse fleshy scales below and alternate with them. Fruit
maturing in the third season, subglobose or short-oblong, about ¼′ in
diameter, with soft mealy resinous sweet flesh and 1—3 seeds; often
persistent on the branches one or two years after ripening; seeds ovoid,
acute, irregularly angled or flattened, deeply penetrated by numerous
prominent thin-walled resin-glands, about ⅛′ long, the outer coat thick
and bony, the inner membranaceous.
In America only occasionally tree-like and 10°—20° tall, with a short
eccentric irregularly lobed trunk rarely a foot in diameter, erect
branches forming an irregular open head, slender branchlets, smooth,
lustrous, and conspicuously 3-angled between the short nodes during
their first and second years, light yellow tinged with red, gradually
growing darker, their dark red-brown bark separating in the third season
into small thin scales, and ovoid acute buds about ⅛′ long and loosely
covered with scale-like leaves; more often a shrub, with many short
slender stems prostrate at the base and turning upward and forming a
broad mass sometimes 20° across and 3° or 4° high (var. _depressa_
Pursh.); at high elevations and in the extreme north prostrate, with
long decumbent stems and shorter and more crowded leaves (var. _montana_
Ait.) passing into the var. _Jackii_ Rehdr. with long trailing branches
and broader incurved leaves. Bark about 1/16′ thick, dark reddish brown,
separating irregularly into many loose papery persistent scales. Wood
hard, close-grained, very durable in contact with the soil, light brown,
with pale sapwood. In northern Europe the sweet aromatic fruit of this
tree is used in large quantities to impart its peculiar flavor to gin;
occasionally employed in medicine.
Distribution. Occasionally arborescent in New England, eastern
Pennsylvania, and on the high mountains of North Carolina; the var.
_depressa_, common in poor rocky soil, Newfoundland to southern New
England, and to the shores of the Great Lakes and northwestward; the
var. _montana_ from the coast of Greenland to northern New England, on
the high Appalachian Mountains, North Carolina, and to northern
Nebraska, along the Rocky Mountains from Alberta to western Texas, and
on the Pacific coast from Alaska, southward along mountain ranges to the
high Sierras of central California, extending eastward to the mountains
of eastern Washington and Oregon, and on the high peaks of northern
Arizona up to altitudes of 10,000°—11,500° (_P. Lowell_); the var.
_Jackii_ on the coast mountains from northern California to Vancouver
Island; in the Old World widely distributed in many forms through all
the northern hemisphere from arctic Asia and Europe to Japan, the
Himalayas and the mountains of the Mediterranean Basin.
Often planted, especially in several of its pyramidal and dwarf forms,
in the eastern United States and in the countries of western, central,
and northern Europe.
2. Juniperus Pinchotii Sudw.
[Illustration: Fig. 79]
Leaves ternate, obtusely pointed, rounded and glandular-pitted on the
back, 1/16′ long, dark yellow-green, turning light red-brown before
falling; on vigorous shoots and seedling plants linear-lanceolate, thin,
acuminate, eglandular, ¼′—⅓′ in length. Fruit ripening in one season,
subglobose, bright red, ¼′ in diameter, with a thin skin and thick dry
mealy resinous flesh and 1 seed; seed ovoid, bluntly pointed, deeply
grooved, irregularly marked by the usually two-lobed hilum, ⅙′—¼′ long
and 2 cotyledons.
A tree rarely 20 feet high, with a trunk 1 foot in diameter, stout
wide-spreading branches forming an open irregular head and thick
branchlets covered with dark gray-brown scaly bark, their ultimate
divisions about 1/12′ in diameter; more often a shrub with several stems
1° to 12° tall. Bark thin, light brown, separating into long narrow
persistent scales.
Distribution. Dry rocky slopes and the rocky sides of cañons, Panhandle
of western Texas (Armstrong, Potter and Hartley Counties), and in
Hardaman, Garza, Tom Green, Kemble, Valverde and Menard Counties; on
Comanche Peak near Granbury, Hood County, Texas; in central and on the
mountains of southern Arizona.
3. Juniperus californica Carr. Desert White Cedar. Sweet-berried Cedar.
[Illustration: Fig. 80]
Leaves usually in 3’s, closely appressed, thickened, slightly keeled and
conspicuously glandular-pitted on the back, pointed at apex,
cartilaginously fringed on the margins, light yellow-green, about ⅛′
long, dying and turning brown on the branch at the end of two or three
years; on vigorous shoots linear-lanceolate, rigid, sharp-pointed, ¼′—½′
long, whitish on the upper surface. Flowers from January to March; male
of 18—20 stamens, disposed in 3’s, with rhomboidal short-pointed
connectives; scales of the female flower usually 6, ovate, acute,
spreading, obliterated or minute on the fruit. Fruit short-oblong or
ovoid, ½′—¾′ long, reddish brown, with a membranaceous loose skin
covered with a thick glaucous bloom, thick fibrous dry sweet flesh, and
1 or 2 seeds; seeds ovoid, obtusely pointed, irregularly lobed and
angled, and 4—6 cotyledons.
A conical tree, occasionally 40° high, with a straight, large-lobed
unsymmetrical trunk 1°—2° in diameter; more often shrubby, with many
stout irregular usually contorted stems forming a broad open head. Bark
thin and divided into long loose plate-like scales ashy gray on the
outer surface and persistent for many years. Wood soft, close-grained,
durable in contact with the soil, light brown slightly tinged with red,
with thin nearly white sapwood; used for fencing and fuel. The fruit is
eaten by Indians fresh or ground into flour.
Distribution. Dry mountain slopes and hills at altitudes between 400°
and 4000°, from Moraga Pass and Mt. Diabolo, Contra Costa County,
California, southward on the coast ranges, spreading inland to their
union with the Sierra Nevada, and northward at low altitudes along the
western slopes of the Sierras to Kern and Mariposa Counties; on the
desert slopes of the Tehachapi Mountains, the northern foothills of the
San Bernardino Mountains, on the western slopes of the San Jacinto and
Cayamaca Ranges, and southward in Lower California to Agua Dulce;
arborescent and probably of its largest size on the Mohave Desert.
4. Juniperus utahensis Lemm. Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 81]
Leaves opposite or in 3’s, rounded, usually glandular, acute or often
acuminate, light yellow-green, rather less than ⅛′ long, persistent for
many years. Flowers: male with 18—24 opposite or ternate stamens, their
connectives rhomboidal; scales of the female flower acute, spreading,
often in pairs. Fruit ripening during the autumn of the second season,
subglobose or short-oblong, marked by the more or less prominent tips of
the flower-scales, reddish brown, with a thick firm skin covered with a
glaucous bloom and closely investing the thin dry sweet flesh, ¼′—⅓′
long, with 1 or rarely 2 seeds; seeds ovoid, acute, obtusely angled,
marked to the middle by the hilum, with a hard bony shell, and 4—6
cotyledons.
A bushy tree, rarely exceeding 20° in height, with a short usually
eccentric trunk sometimes 2° in diameter, generally divided near the
ground by irregular deep fissures into broad rounded ridges, many erect
contorted branches forming a broad open head, slender light yellow-green
branchlets covered after the falling of the leaves with thin light
red-brown scaly bark; more often with numerous stems spreading from the
ground and frequently not more than 8°—10° high. Bark about ¼′ thick,
ashy gray or sometimes nearly white, and broken into long thin
persistent scales. Wood light brown, slightly fragrant, with thick
nearly white sapwood; largely used locally for fuel and fencing. The
fruit is eaten by Indians fresh, or ground and baked into cakes.
Distribution. Southwestern Wyoming (_J. Knightii_ A. Nels.),
southwestern Idaho (Pocatello, Bannock County), western Colorado,
eastern Utah, and western New Mexico to northern Arizona and
southeastern California at altitudes from 5000° to 8000°; the most
abundant and generally distributed tree of the Great Basin, forming in
the valleys open forests of stunted trees and shrubs, and on arid slopes
more numerous and of larger size in dense nearly pure forests.
A variety (var. _megalancocarpa_ Sarg.) occurs in eastern New Mexico and
northern Arizona, with fruit sometimes ¾′ in diameter. A tree often 40°
high with a single erect stem sometimes 3° in diameter.
5. Juniperus flaccida Schlecht. Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 82]
Leaves opposite, acuminate and long-pointed, spreading at the apex,
glandular or eglandular on the back, light yellow-green, about ⅛′ long,
turning cinnamon-red and dying on the branch; on vigorous young shoots
ovate-lanceolate, sometimes ½′ long, with elongated rigid callous tips.
Flowers: male slender, composed of 16—20 stamens, with ovate pointed
connectives prominently keeled on the back; female with acute or
acuminate spreading scales. Fruit subglobose, dull red-brown, more or
less covered with a glaucous bloom, ⅓′—½′ in diameter, with a close firm
skin and thick resinous flesh; seeds 4—12, pointed at apex, slightly
ridged, often abortive and distorted, ⅛′—¼′ long, with 2 cotyledons.
A tree, occasionally 30° high, with gracefully spreading branches and
long slender drooping branchlets, covered after the leaves fall with
thin bright cinnamon-brown bark separating into thin loose papery
scales; often a shrub. Bark about ½′ thick, reddish brown, separating
into long narrow loosely attached scales.
Distribution. In the United States only on the slopes of the Chisos
Mountains, in Brewster County, southern Texas; common in northeastern
Mexico, growing at elevations of 6000°—8000° on the hills east of the
Mexican table-lands.
Occasionally cultivated in the gardens of southern France and of
Algeria.
6. Juniperus pachyphlæa Torr. Juniper. Checkered-bark Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 83]
Leaves appressed, acute and apiculate at apex, thickened, obscurely
keeled and glandular on the back, bluish green, rather less than ⅛′
long; on vigorous shoots and young branchlets linear-lanceolate, tipped
with slender elongated points, and pale blue-green like the young
branchlets. Flowers opening in February and March: the male stout, ⅛′
long, with 10 or 12 stamens, their connectives broadly ovate, obscurely
keeled on the back, short-pointed: scales of the female flower, ovate,
acuminate, and spreading. Fruit ripening in the autumn of its second
season, subglobose to short-oblong, irregularly tuberculate, ⅓′—½′ in
diameter, usually marked with the short tips of the flower-scales,
occasionally opening and discharging the seeds at the apex, dark
red-brown, more or less covered with a glaucous bloom, especially during
the first season and then occasionally bluish in color, with a thin skin
closely investing the thick dry mealy flesh, and usually 4 seeds; seeds
acute or obtusely pointed, conspicuously ridged and gibbous on the back,
with a thick shell and 2 cotyledons.
A tree, often 50°—60° high, with a short trunk 3°—5° in diameter, long
stout spreading branches forming a broad-based pyramidal or ultimately a
compact round-topped head, and slender branchlets covered after the
disappearance of the leaves with thin light red-brown usually smooth
close bark occasionally broken into large thin scales. Bark ¾′—4′ thick,
on young stems reddish brown becoming on old trunks whitish, deeply
fissured and divided into nearly square plates 1′—2′ long, and
separating on the surface into small thin closely appressed scales. Wood
light, soft, not strong, brittle, close-grained, clear light red often
streaked with yellow, with thin nearly white sapwood; often producing
vigorous shoots from the base of the trunk or from the stumps of felled
trees.
Distribution. Dry arid mountain slopes usually at elevations of
4000°—6000° above the sea, from the Eagle and Limpio mountains in
southwestern Texas, westward along the desert ranges of New Mexico and
Arizona, extending northward to the lower slopes of many of the high
mountains of northern Arizona, and southward into Mexico.
7. Juniperus occidentalis Hook. Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 84]
Leaves opposite or ternate, closely appressed, acute or acuminate,
rounded and conspicuously glandular on the back, denticulately fringed,
gray-green, about ⅛′ long. Flowers: male stout, obtuse, with 12—18
stamens, their connectives broadly ovoid, rounded, acute or apiculate
and scarious or slightly ciliate on the margins: scales of the female
flower ovate, acute, spreading, mostly obliterated from the fruit. Fruit
subglobose or short-oblong, ¼′—⅓′ in diameter, with a thick firm
blue-black skin coated with a glaucous bloom, thin dry flesh filled with
large resin-glands, and 2 or 3 seeds; seeds ovoid, acute, rounded and
deeply grooved or pitted on the back, flattened on the inner surface,
about ⅛′ long, with a thick bony shell, a thin brown inner seed-coat,
and 2 cotyledons.
A tree, occasionally 60° high, with a tall straight trunk 2°—3° in
diameter, more often not more than 20° in height, with a short trunk
sometimes 10° in diameter, enormous branches, spreading at nearly right
angles and forming a broad low head, and stout branchlets covered after
the leaves fall with thin bright red-brown bark broken into loose papery
scales; frequently when growing on dry rocky slopes and toward the
northern limits of its range a shrub, with many short erect or
semiprostrate stems. Bark about ½′ thick, bright cinnamon-red, divided
by broad shallow fissures into wide flat irregularly connected ridges
separating on the surface into thin lustrous scales. Wood light, soft,
very close-grained, exceedingly durable, light red or brown, with thick
nearly white sapwood; used for fencing and fuel. The fruit is gathered
and eaten by the California Indians.
Distribution. Mountain slopes and high prairies of western Idaho and of
eastern Washington to the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains;
eastern and southern Oregon up to altitudes of 4500°; along the summits
and upper slopes of the Sierra Nevada of California, and southward to
the San Bernardino Mountains, here abundant in Bear and Holcomb valleys;
attaining its greatest trunk diameter on the wind-swept peaks of the
California sierras, usually at altitudes between 6000° and 10,000° above
the sea.
8. Juniperus monosperma Sarg. Juniper.
[Illustration: Fig. 85]
Leaves opposite or ternate, often slightly spreading at apex, acute or
occasionally acuminate, much thickened and rounded on the back, usually
glandular, denticulately fringed, gray-green, rather less than ⅛′ long,
turning bright red-brown before falling; on vigorous shoots and young
plants ovate, acute, tipped with long rigid points, thin, conspicuously
glandular on the back, often ½′ long. Flowers: male with 8—10 stamens,
their broadly ovate, rounded or pointed connectives slightly erose on
the margins: female with spreading pointed scales. Fruit subglobose or
short-oblong, ⅛′—¼′ long, dark blue or perhaps occasionally light
chestnut-brown with a thick firm skin covered with a thin glaucous
bloom, thin flesh, and 1 or rarely 2 seeds; seeds often protruding from
the top of the fruit, ovoid, often 4-angled, somewhat obtuse at apex,
with a small hilum, and 2 cotyledons.
A tree, occasionally 40°—50° high, with a stout much-lobed and
buttressed trunk sometimes 3° in diameter, short stout branches forming
an open very irregular head, and slender branchlets covered after the
falling of the leaves with light red-brown bark spreading freely into
thin loose scales; more often a much branched shrub sometimes only a few
feet high. Bark ashy gray, divided into irregularly connected ridges,
separating into long narrow persistent shreddy scales. Wood heavy,
slightly fragrant, light reddish brown, with nearly white sapwood and
eccentric layers of annual growth; largely used for fencing and fuel.
The fruit is ground into flour and baked by the Indians, who use the
thin strips of fibrous bark in making saddles, breechcloths, and
sleeping-mats.
Distribution. Along the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains from the
valley of the Platte River, Wyoming (near Alcova, Natrona County) and
the divide between the Platte and Arkansas rivers in Colorado; western
Oklahoma (near Kenton, Cimarron County, common) and western Texas; on
the Colorado plateau, northern Arizona; over the mountain ranges of
southwestern Wyoming, Nevada, southern New Mexico and Arizona, and
southward into northern Mexico; often covering, with the Nut Pine, in
southern Colorado and Utah, and in northern and central New Mexico and
Arizona, great areas of rolling hills 6000°—7000° above the sea-level;
reaching its largest size in northern Arizona.
9. Juniperus mexicana Spreng. Cedar. Rock Cedar.
_Juniperus sabinoides_ Nees.
[Illustration: Fig. 86]
Leaves usually opposite or ternate, thickened and keeled on the back,
obtuse or acute at apex, mostly without glands, denticulately fringed,
rather more than 1/16′ long, dark blue-green, on vigorous young shoots
and seedling plants lanceolate, long-pointed, rigid, ¼′—½′ long.
Flowers: male with 12—18 stamens, their connectives ovoid, obtuse, or
slightly cuspidate: scales of the female flower ovate, acute, and
spreading, very conspicuous when the fruit is half grown, becoming
obliterated at its maturity. Fruit short-oblong to subglobose, ¼′—½′ in
diameter, dark blue, with a thin skin covered with a glaucous bloom,
sweet resinous flesh, and 1 or 2 seeds; seeds ovoid, acute, slightly
ridged, rarely tuberculate, dark chestnut-brown, with a small hilum, a
thin outer seed-coat, a membranaceous dark brown inner coat, and 2
cotyledons.
A tree, occasionally 100° but generally not more than 20°—30° high, with
a short or elongated slightly lobed trunk seldom exceeding a foot in
diameter, small spreading branches forming a wide round-topped open and
irregular or a narrow pyramidal head, slender sharply 4-angled
branchlets becoming terete after the falling of the leaves, light
reddish brown or ashy gray, with smooth or slightly scaly bark; often a
shrub, with numerous spreading stems. Bark on old trees ¼′—½′ thick,
brown tinged with red, and divided into long narrow slightly attached
scales persistent for many years and clothing the trunk with a loose
thatch-like covering. Wood light, hard, not strong, slightly fragrant,
brown streaked with red; largely used for fencing, fuel,
telegraph-poles, and railway-ties.
Distribution. From Brazos County over the low limestone hills of western
and southern Texas, and southward into Mexico; forming great thickets
and growing to its largest size on the San Bernardo River; much smaller
farther westward, and usually shrubby at the limits of vegetation on the
high mountains of central Mexico.
10. Juniperus virginiana L. Red Cedar. Savin.
[Illustration: Fig. 87]
Leaves usually opposite, acute or acuminate or occasionally obtuse,
rounded and glandular or eglandular on the back, about 1/16′ long, dark
blue-green or glaucous (var. _glauca_ Carr.), at the north turning
russet or yellow-brown during the winter, beginning in their third
season to grow hard and woody, and remaining two or three years longer
on the branches, on young plants and vigorous branchlets
linear-lanceolate, long-pointed, light yellow-green, without glands,
½′—¾′ long. Flowers: diœcious or very rarely monœcious: male with 10 or
12 stamens, their connectives rounded and entire, with 4 or occasionally
5 or 6 pollen-sacs; scales of the female flower violet color, acute and
spreading, becoming obliterated from the fruit. Fruit subglobose, ¼′—⅓′
in diameter, pale green when fully grown, dark blue and covered with a
glaucous bloom at maturity, with a firm skin, thin sweetish resinous
flesh, and 1 or 2 or rarely 3 or 4 seeds; seeds acute and occasionally
apiculate at apex, ⅙′—⅛′ long, with a comparatively small 2-lobed hilum,
and 2 cotyledons.
A tree, occasionally 100° high, with a trunk 3°—4° in diameter, often
lobed and eccentric, and frequently buttressed toward the base,
generally not more than 40°—50° tall, with short slender branches
horizontal on the lower part of the tree, erect above, forming a narrow
compact pyramidal head, in old age usually becoming broad and
round-topped or irregular, and slender branchlets terete after the
disappearance of the leaves and covered with close dark brown bark
tinged with red or gray; on exposed cliffs on the coast of Maine,
sometimes only a few inches high with long branches forming broad dense
mats. Bark ⅛′—¼′ thick, light brown tinged with red, and separated into
long narrow scales fringed on the margins, and persistent for many
years. Wood light, close-grained, brittle, not strong, dull red, with
thin nearly white sapwood, very fragrant, easily worked; largely used
for posts, the sills of buildings, the interior finish of houses, the
lining of closets and chests for the preservation of woolens against the
attacks of moths, and largely for pails and other small articles of
wooden ware. A decoction of the fruit and leaves is used in medicine,
and oil of red cedar distilled from the leaves and wood as a perfume.
Distribution. Dry gravelly slopes and rocky ridges, often immediately on
the seacoast, from southern Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to the coast
of Georgia, the interior of southern Alabama and Mississippi, and
westward to the valley of the lower Ottawa River, southern Michigan,
eastern North and South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas, and eastern Texas,
not ascending the mountains of New England and New York nor the high
southern Alleghanies; in middle Kentucky and Tennessee, and northern
Alabama and Mississippi, covering great areas of low rolling limestone
hills with nearly pure forests of small bushy trees.
Often cultivated, in several forms, in the northern and eastern states
as an ornamental tree and occasionally in the gardens of western and
central Europe.
11. Juniperus lucayana Britt. Red Cedar.
_Juniperus barbadensis_ Sarg., not L.
[Illustration: Fig. 88]
Leaves usually opposite, narrow, acute, or gradually narrowed above the
middle and acuminate, marked on the back by conspicuous oblong glands.
Flowers opening in early March: male elongated, ⅛′ to nearly ¼′ long,
with 10 or 12 stamens, their connectives rounded, entire, and bearing
usually 3 pollen-sacs: female with scales gradually narrowed above the
middle, acute at apex, and obliterated from the ripe fruit. Fruit
subglobose to short-oblong, dark blue, covered when ripe with a glaucous
bloom, about 1/24′ in diameter, with a thin skin, sweet resinous flesh,
and 1 or 2 seeds; seeds acute, prominently ridged.
A tree, sometimes 50° high, with a trunk occasionally 2° in diameter,
small branches erect when the tree is crowded in the forest, spreading
when it has grown in open ground and forming a broad flat-topped head
often 30° or 40° in diameter, long thin secondary branches erect at the
top of the tree and pendulous below, and pendulous branchlets about
1/24′ in diameter, becoming light red-brown or ashy gray at the end of
four or five years after the disappearance of the leaves. Bark thin,
light red-brown, separating into long thin scales. Wood light, close,
straight-grained, fragrant, dull red; formerly exclusively used in the
manufacture of the best lead pencils.
Distribution. Inundated river swamps from southern Georgia, southward to
the shores of the Indian River, Florida, and on the west coast of
Florida from the northern shores of Charlotte Harbor to the valley of
the Apalachicola River, often forming great thickets under the shade of
larger trees; along streams and creeks in low woods near Houston, Harris
County, and Milano, Milano County, Texas (_E. J. Palmer_); common in the
Bahamas, San Domingo, eastern Cuba, and on the mountains of Jamaica and
Antigua.
Often planted for the decoration of squares and cemeteries in the cities
and towns in the neighborhood of the coast from Florida to western
Louisiana, and now often naturalized beyond the limits of its natural
range on the Gulf coast; occasionally cultivated in the temperate
countries of Europe, and in cultivation the most beautiful of the
Junipers.
12. Juniperus scopulorum Sarg. Red Cedar.
[Illustration: Fig. 89]
Leaves usually opposite, closely appressed, acute or acuminate,
generally marked on the back by obscure elongated glands, dark green, or
often pale and very glaucous. Flowers: male with about 6 stamens, their
connectives rounded and entire, bearing 4 or 5 anther-sacs: scales of
the female flower spreading, acute or acuminate, and obliterated from
the mature fruit. Fruit ripening at the end of the second season, nearly
globose, ¼′—⅓′ in diameter, bright blue, with a thin skin covered with a
glaucous bloom, sweet resinous flesh, and 1 or usually 2 seeds; seeds
acute, prominently grooved and angled, about 3/16′ long, with a thick
bony outer coat and a small 2-lobed hilum.
A tree, 30°—40° high, with a short stout trunk sometimes 3° in diameter,
often divided near the ground into a number of stout spreading stems,
thick spreading and ascending branches covered with scaly bark, forming
an irregular round-topped head, and slender 4-angled branchlets becoming
at the end of three or four years terete and clothed with smooth pale
bark separating later into thin scales. Bark dark reddish brown or gray
tinged with red, divided-by shallow fissures into narrow flat connected
ridges broken on the surface into persistent shredded scales.
Distribution. Scattered often singly over dry rocky ridges, usually at
altitudes of 5000° or 6000° but occasionally ascending in Colorado to
9000° above the sea, from the eastern foothill region of the Rocky
Mountains from Alberta to the Black Hills of South Dakota, the valley of
the Niobrara River, Sheridan County, northwestern Nebraska (_J. M.
Bates_) and to western Texas and eastern and northern New Mexico, and
westward to eastern Oregon, Nevada, and northern Arizona; descending to
the sea-level in Washington on the shores of the northern part of Puget
Sound and on the islands and mainland about the Gulf of Georgia, British
Columbia.
II. TAXACEÆ.
Slightly resinous trees and shrubs, producing when cut vigorous stump
shoots, with fissured or scaly bark, light-colored durable close-grained
wood, slender branchlets, linear-lanceolate entire rigid acuminate
spirally disposed leaves, usually appearing 2-ranked by a twist in their
short compressed petioles and persistent for many years, and small ovoid
acute buds. Flowers opening in early spring from buds formed the
previous autumn, diœcious or monœcious, axillary and solitary,
surrounded by the persistent decussate scales of the buds, the male
composed of numerous filaments united into a column, each filament
surmounted by several more or less united pendant pollen-cells; the
female of a single erect ovule, becoming at maturity a seed with a hard
bony shell, raised upon or more or less surrounded by the enlarged and
fleshy aril-like disk of the flower; embryo axile, in fleshy ruminate or
uniform albumen; cotyledons 2, shorter than the superior radicle. Of the
ten genera widely distributed over the two hemispheres, two occur in
North America.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN GENERA.
Filaments dilated into 4 pollen-sacs united into a half ring; seeds
drupe-like, green or purple, ripening at the end of the second
season; albumen ruminate.
1. Torreya.
Filaments dilated into a globose head of 4—8 connate pollen-sacs;
seeds berry-like, scarlet, ripening at the end of the first
season; albumen uniform.
2. Taxus.
1. TORREYA ARN.
_Tumion_ Raf.
Glabrous fœtid or pungent aromatic trees, with fissured bark and
verticillate or opposite spreading or drooping branches. Leaves thin,
long-pointed, abruptly contracted at base, dark green, lustrous and
slightly rounded above, thickened and revolute on the margins, with pale
bands of stomata on each side of the midvein on the lower surface.
Flowers diœcious; the male crowded in the axils of adjacent leaves, on
shoots of the previous year, oval or oblong, composed of 6 or 8 close
whorls each of 4 stamens, subverticillately arranged on a slender axis;
filaments stout and expanded above into 4 globose yellow pollen-sacs
united into a half ring, their connectives produced above the cells; the
female on shoots of the year less numerous and scattered, sessile, the
ovule surrounded by and finally inclosed in an ovoid urn-shaped fleshy
sac, and becoming at the end of the second season an oblong-ovate
yellow-brown seed, rounded and apiculate at apex, acute and marked at
base by the large dark hilum; seed-coat thick and woody, its inner layer
folded into the thick white albumen, surrounded and finally inclosed in
the thick green or purple enlarged disk of the flower composed of thin
flat easily separable fibers, splitting longitudinally when ripe into
two parts and separating from the basal scales persistent on the short
stout stalk of the seed.
Torreya is now confined to Florida and Georgia, western California,
Japan, the island of Quelpart, and central and northern China. Four
species are recognized. Of the exotic species the Japanese _Torreya
nucifera_ S. & Z. is occasionally cultivated in the eastern states.
The genus is named in honor of Dr. John Torrey, the distinguished
American botanist.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Leaves slightly rounded on the back, pale below; leaves, branches, and
wood fœtid; branchlets gray or yellowish green.
1. T. taxifolia (C).
Leaves nearly flat, green below; leaves, branches and wood
pungent-aromatic; branchlets reddish brown.
2. T. californica (G).
1. Torreya taxifolia Arn. Stinking Cedar. Torreya.
_Tumion taxifolium_ Greene.
[Illustration: Fig. 90]
Leaves slightly falcate, 1½′ long, about ⅛′ wide, somewhat rounded, dark
green and lustrous above, paler and marked below with broad bands of
stomata. Flowers appearing in March and April; male with pale yellow
anthers; female broadly ovoid, with a dark purple fleshy covering to the
ovule, ⅛′ long, and inclosed at the base by broad thin rounded scales.
Seed fully grown at midsummer, slightly obovoid, dark purple, 1′—1¼′
long, ¾′ thick, with a thin leathery covering, a light red-brown
seed-coat furnished on the inner surface with 2 opposite longitudinal
thin ridges extending from the base toward the apex, and conspicuously
ruminate albumen.
A tree, occasionally 40° high, with a short trunk 1°—2° in diameter,
whorls of spreading slightly pendulous branches forming a rather open
pyramidal head tapering from a broad base. Bark ½′ thick, brown faintly
tinged with orange color, and irregularly divided by broad shallow
fissures into wide low ridges slightly rounded on the back and covered
with thin closely appressed scales. Wood hard, strong, clear bright
yellow, with thin lighter colored sapwood; largely used for fence-posts.
Distribution. On bluffs along the eastern bank of the Apalachicola
River, Florida, from River Junction to the neighborhood of Bristol,
Liberty County, and in the southwestern corner of Decatur County,
Georgia (_R. M. Harper_). Rare and local.
Now often planted in the public grounds and gardens of Tallahassee,
Florida.
2. Torreya californica Torr. California Nutmeg.
_Tumion californicum_ Greene.
[Illustration: Fig. 91]
Leaves slightly falcate, nearly flat, dark green and lustrous on the
upper, somewhat paler and marked below with a narrow band of stomata,
tipped with slender callous points, 1′—3½′ long, 1/16′—⅛′ wide. Flowers
appearing in March and April; male with broadly ovate acute scales;
female nearly ¼′ long, with oblong-ovate rounded scales. Seed ovoid or
oblong-ovoid, 1′—1½′ long, light green more or less streaked with
purple.
A tree, 50°—70° but occasionally 100° high, with a trunk 1°—2° or rarely
4° in diameter, and whorls of spreading slender slightly pendulous
branches forming a handsome pyramidal and in old age a round-topped
head. Bark ⅓′—½′ thick, gray-brown tinged with orange color, deeply and
irregularly divided by broad fissures into narrow ridges covered with
elongated loosely appressed plate-like scales. Wood light, soft,
close-grained, clear light yellow, with thin nearly white sapwood;
occasionally used for fence-posts.
Distribution. Borders of mountain streams, California, nowhere common
but widely distributed from Mendocino County to the Santa Cruz Mountains
in the coast region and along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada
from Eldorado to Tulare Counties at altitudes of 3000°—5000° above the
sea; most abundant and of its largest size on the northern coast ranges.
Rarely cultivated as an ornamental tree in California and western
Europe.
2. TAXUS L. Yew.
Trees or shrubs, with brown or dark purple scaly bark, and spreading
usually horizontal branches. Leaves flat, often falcate, gradually
narrowed at the base, dark green, smooth and keeled on the upper
surface, paler, papillate, and stomatiferous on the lower surface, their
margins slightly thickened and revolute. Flowers diœcious or monœcious:
the male composed of a slender stipe bearing at the apex a globular head
of 4—8 pale yellow stamens consisting of 4—6 conic pendant pollen-sacs
peltately connate from the end of a short filament; the female sessile
in the axils of the upper scale-like bracts of a short axillary branch,
the ovule erect, sessile on a ring-like disk, ripening in the autumn
into an ovoid-oblong seed gradually narrowed and short-pointed at apex,
marked at base by the much-depressed hilum, about ⅓′ long, entirely or
nearly surrounded by but free from the now thickened succulent
translucent sweet scarlet aril-like disk of the flower open at apex;
seed-coat thick, of two layers, the outer thin and membranaceous or
fleshy, the inner much thicker and somewhat woody; albumen uniform.
Taxus with six or seven species, which can be distinguished only by
their leaf characters and habit, is widely distributed through the
northern hemisphere, and is found in eastern North America where two
species occur, in Pacific North America, Mexico, Europe, northern
Africa, western and southern Asia, China, and Japan. Of the exotic
species the European, African, and Asiatic _Taxus baccata_ L., and its
numerous varieties, is often cultivated in the United States, especially
in the more temperate parts of the country, and is replaced with
advantage by the hardier _Taxus cuspidata_ S. & Z., of eastern Asia in
the northern states, where the native shrubby _Taxus canadensis_ Marsh,
with _monœcious_ flowers is sometimes cultivated.
_Taxus_, from τάξος, is the classical name of the Yew-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN ARBORESCENT SPECIES.
Leaves usually short, yellow-green.
1. T. brevifolia (G).
Leaves elongated, usually falcate, dark green.
2. T. floridana (C).
1. Taxus brevifolia Nutt. Yew.
[Illustration: Fig. 92]
Leaves ½′—1′ long, about 1/16′ wide, dark yellow-green above, rather
paler below, with stout midribs, and slender yellow petioles 1/12′ long,
persistent for 5—12 years. Flowers and fruit as in the genus.
A tree, usually 40°—50° but occasionally 70°—80° high, with a tall
straight trunk 1°—2° or rarely 4½° in diameter, frequently
unsymmetrical, with one diameter much exceeding the other, and
irregularly lobed, with broad rounded lobes, and long slender horizontal
or slightly pendulous branches forming a broad open conical head. Bark
about ¼′ thick and covered with small thin dark red-purple scales. Wood
heavy, hard, strong, bright red, with thin light yellow sapwood; used
for fence-posts and by the Indians of the northwest coast for paddles,
spear-handles, bows, and other small articles.
Distribution. Banks of mountain streams, deep gorges, and damp ravines,
growing usually under large coniferous trees; nowhere abundant, but
widely distributed usually in single individuals or in small clumps from
the extreme southern part of Alaska, southward along the coast ranges of
British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon, where it attains its greatest
size; along the coast ranges of California as far south as the Bay of
Monterey, and along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada to Tulare
County at altitudes between 5000° and 8000° above the sea-level, ranging
eastward in British Columbia to the Selkirk Mountains, and over the
mountains of Washington and Oregon to the western slopes of the
continental divide in northern Montana; in the interior much smaller
than near the coast and often shrubby in habit.
Occasionally cultivated in the gardens of western Europe.
2. Taxus floridana Chapm. Yew.
[Illustration: Fig. 93]
Leaves usually conspicuously falcate, ¾′ to nearly 1′ long, 1/16′—1/12′
wide, dark green above, pale below, with obscure midribs and slender
petioles about 1/16′ in length. Flowers appearing in March. Fruit
ripening in October.
A bushy tree, rarely 25° high, with a short trunk occasionally 1° in
diameter, and numerous stout spreading branches; more often shrubby in
habit and 12°—15° tall. Bark ⅛′ thick, dark purple-brown, smooth,
compact, occasionally separating into large thin irregular plate-like
scales. Wood heavy, hard, very close-grained, dark brown tinged with
red, with thin nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. River bluffs and ravines on the eastern bank of the
Apalachicola River, in Gadsden County, Florida, from Aspalaga to the
neighborhood of Bristol.
Class 2. ANGIOSPERMÆ.
Carpels or pistils consisting of a closed cavity containing the ovules
and becoming the fruit.
Division 1. Monocotyledons.
Stems with woody fibres distributed irregularly through them, but
without pith or annual layers of growth. Parts of the flower in 3’s;
ovary superior; embryo with a single cotyledon. Leaves parallel-veined,
alternate, long-persistent, without stipules.
III. PALMÆ.
Trees, growing by a single terminal bud, with stems covered with a thick
rind, usually marked below by the ring-like scars of fallen leaf-stalks,
and clothed above by their long-persistent sheaths; occasionally
stemless. Leaves clustered at the top of the stem, plaited in the bud,
fan-shaped or pinnate, their rachis sometimes reduced to a narrow
border, long-stalked, with petioles dilated into clasping sheaths of
tough fibres (_vaginas_); on fan-shaped leaves, furnished at the apex on
the upper side with a thickened concave body (_ligule_). Flowers minute,
perfect or unisexual, in the axils of small thin mostly deciduous
bracts, in large compound clusters (_spadix_) surrounded by boat-shaped
bracts (_spathes_); sepals and petals free or more or less united;
stamens usually 6; anthers 2-celled, introrse, opening longitudinally;
ovary 3-celled, with a single ovule in each cell; styles 1—3. Fruit a
drupe or berry; embryo cylindric in a cavity of the hard albumen near
the circumference of the seed. Of the 130 genera now usually recognized
and chiefly inhabitants of the tropics, seven have arborescent
representatives in the United States.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN ARBORESCENT GENERA.
Leaves fan-shaped.
Leaf-stalks unarmed.
Calyx and corolla united into a short 6-lobed perianth.
Fruit white, drupaceous; albumen even.
1. Thrinax.
Fruit black, baccate; albumen channeled.
2. Coccothrinax.
Calyx and corolla distinct; fruit baccate.
3. Sabal.
Leaf-stalks armed with marginal spines.
Filaments slender, free; fruit baccate.
4. Washingtonia.
Filaments triangular, united into a cup adnate to the base of the
corolla; fruit drupaceous.
5. Acœlorraphe.
Leaves pinnate.
Flower-clusters produced on the stem below the leaves; fruit
violet-blue.
6. Roystonea.
Flower-clusters produced from among the leaves; fruit bright
orange-scarlet.
7. Pseudophœnix.
1. THRINAX Sw.
Small unarmed trees, with stems covered with pale gray rind. Leaves
orbicular, or truncate at the base, thick and firm, usually silvery
white on the lower surface, divided to below the middle into narrow
acuminate parted segments with thickened margins and midribs; rachis a
narrow border, with thin usually undulate margins; ligule thick,
concave, pointed, lined while young with hoary tomentum; petioles
compressed, rounded above and below, thin and smooth on the margins,
with large clasping bright mahogany-red sheaths of slender matted fibres
covered with thick hoary tomentum. Spadix interfoliar, stalked, its
primary branches short, alternate, flattened, incurved, with numerous
slender rounded flower-bearing branchlets; spathes numerous, tubular,
coriaceous, cleft and more or less tomentose at the apex. Flowers
opening in May and June, and occasionally irregularly in the autumn,
solitary, perfect; perianth 6-lobed; stamens inserted on the base of the
perianth, with subulate filaments thickened and only slightly united at
the base, or nearly triangular and united into a cup adnate to the
perianth, and oblong anthers; ovary 1-celled, gradually narrowed into a
stout columnar style crowned by a large funnel-formed flat or oblique
stigma; ovule basilar, erect. Fruit a globose drupe with juicy bitter
ivory-white flesh easily separable from the thin-shelled tawny brown
nut. Seed free, erect, slightly flattened at the ends, with an oblong
pale conspicuous subbasilar hilum, a short-branched raphe, a thin coat,
and uniform albumen more or less deeply penetrated by a broad basal
cavity; embryo lateral.
Thrinax is confined to the tropics of the New World and is distributed
from southern Florida through the West Indies to the shores of Central
America. Seven or eight species are now generally recognized.
The wood of the Florida species is light and soft, with numerous small
fibro-vascular bundles, the exterior of the stem being much harder than
the spongy interior. The stems are used for the piles of small wharves
and turtle-crawls, and the leaves for thatch, and in making hats,
baskets, and small ropes.
_Thrinax_, from θρῖναξ, is in allusion to the shape of the leaves.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Flowers on elongated pedicels; perianth obscurely lobed; stamens much
exserted, their filaments subulate, barely united at base;
stigma oblique; cavity of the seed extending to the apex.
Perianth obscurely lobed; style abruptly enlarged into a large
oblique stigma; leaves silvery white on the lower surface.
1. T. floridana (D).
Perianth deeply lobed; style narrowed gradually into a small oblique
stigma; leaves green on both surfaces.
2. T. Wendlandiana (D).
Flowers on short pedicels; lobes of the perianth ovate, acuminate;
filaments nearly triangular, united below into a cup; stigma
flat; cavity of the seed extending only to the middle.
Seeds pale chestnut-brown; spadix about 6° long; leaves 3°—4° in
diameter.
3. T. keyensis (D).
Seeds dark chestnut-brown; spadix less than 3° long; leaves not over
2° in diameter.
4. T. microcarpa (D).
1. Thrinax floridana Sarg. Thatch.
[Illustration: Fig. 94]
Leaves 2½°—3° in diameter, rather longer than broad, yellow-green and
lustrous on the upper surface, silvery white on the lower surface, with
a long-pointed, bright orange-colored ligule ¾′ long and broad; petioles
4°—4½° long, pale yellow-green or orange color toward the apex, coated
at first with hoary deciduous tomentum, much thickened and tomentose
toward the base. Flowers: spadix 3°—3½° long, the primary branches 6′—8′
long and ivory-white, flower-bearing branches 1½′—2′ in length; flowers
on slender pedicels nearly ⅛′ long, ivory-white, very fragrant, with an
obscurely-lobed perianth, much exserted stamens barely united at the
base, and a large stigma. Fruit ⅜′ in diameter, somewhat depressed at
the ends; seed from ⅛′ to nearly ¼′ in diameter, dark chestnut-brown.
A tree, with a slightly tapering stem 20°—30° high and 4′—6′ in
diameter, clothed to the middle and occasionally almost to the ground
with the sheaths of dead leaf-stalks.
Distribution. Florida, dry coral ridges and sandy shores of keys from
Long Key to Torch Key, and on the mainland from Cape Romano to Cape
Sable.
2. Thrinax Wendlandiana Becc. Thatch.
[Illustration: Fig. 95]
Leaves 2½°—3° in diameter, orbicular, pale yellow-green, lustrous above,
with a thick concave ligule, acuminate or rarely rounded at apex;
petioles 2°—4° long, much thickened and tomentose toward the base.
Flowers: spadix stalked, 2°—4° long, its primary branches short,
flattened, incurved, with numerous terete flower-bearing branchlets;
flowers on slender pedicels 1/10′—⅛′ long, with a deeply lobed perianth,
the lobes nearly triangular, acuminate, and a small stigma. Fruit ¼′—⅜′
in diameter, globose; seed from ⅛′—¼′ in diameter, dark chestnut-brown.
A tree, in Florida, with a smooth pale trunk 20°—25° high and 3′—4′ in
diameter.
Distribution. Florida: Dade County, Madeira Hummock, Pumpkin Key,
Flamingo, and northwest of Cape Sable; also in Cuba and on Mugueres
Island, Gulf of Honduras.
3. Thrinax keyensis Sarg. Thatch.
[Illustration: Fig. 96]
Leaves rather longer than broad, 3°—4° long, the lowest segments
parallel with the petiole or spreading from it nearly at right angles,
light yellow-green and lustrous on the upper surface, with bright
orange-colored margins, below coated while young with deciduous hoary
tomentum and pale blue-green and more or less covered with silvery white
pubescence at maturity, with a thick pointed ligule 1′ long and wide,
lined at first with hoary tomentum; petioles flattened above, obscurely
ridged on the lower surface, tomentose while young, pale blue-green,
3°—4° long. Flowers: spadix usually about 6° long, spreading and
gracefully incurved, with spathes more or less coated with hoary
tomentum, large compressed primary branches, and short bright
orange-colored flower-bearing branches; flowers on short thick disk-like
pedicels, about ⅛′ long, white, slightly fragrant, with a tubular
perianth, the lobes broadly ovate and acute, stamens with nearly
triangular filaments united at the base, and a flat stigma. Fruit 1/16′
to nearly ¼′ in diameter; seed brown, 3/16′ in diameter.
A tree, with a stem often 25° high and 10′—14′ in diameter, raised on a
base of thick matted roots 2°—3° high and 18′—20′ in diameter, and a
broad head of leaves, the upper erect, the lower pendulous and closely
pressed against the stem.
Distribution. Dry, sandy soil close to the beach on the north side of
the largest of the Marquesas Keys, and on Crab Key, a small island to
the westward of Torch Key, one of the Bahia Honda group, Florida; on the
Bahamas.
4. Thrinax microcarpa Sarg. Silvertop Palmetto. Brittle Thatch.
[Illustration: Fig. 97]
Leaves 2°—3° across, pale green above, silvery white below, more or less
thickly coated while young with hoary tomentum, especially on the lower
surface, divided near the base almost to the rachis, with an orbicular
thick concave ligule lined with a thick coat of white tomentum; petioles
thin and flexuose. Flowers: spadix elongated, with short, compressed
erect branches slightly spreading below, numerous slender pendulous
flower-bearing branches, and long acute spathes deeply parted at the
apex, coriaceous and coated above the middle with thick hoary tomentum;
flowers on short thick disk-like pedicels, with a cupular perianth, the
lobes broadly ovate and acute, stamens with thin nearly triangular
exserted filaments slightly united at base and oblong anthers becoming
reversed and extrorse at maturity, and a deep orange-colored ovary
narrowed above into a short thick style dilated into a large
funnel-formed stigma. Fruit globose, ⅛′ in diameter; seed subglobose,
bright to dark chestnut-brown, depressed.
A tree, rarely more than 30° high, with a trunk 8′—10′ in diameter.
Distribution. Dry coral soil, on the shores of Sugar Loaf Sound, and on
No Name and Bahia Honda keys, Florida; in Cuba.
2. COCCOTHRINAX Sarg.
Small unarmed trees, with simple or clustered stems or rarely stemless.
Leaves orbicular, or truncate at base, pale or silvery white on the
lower surface, divided into narrow obliquely folded segments acuminate
and divided at apex; rachis narrow; ligules thin, free, erect, concave,
pointed at the apex; petioles compressed, slightly rounded and ridged
above and below, thin and smooth on the margins, gradually enlarged
below into elongated sheaths of coarse fibres forming an open network
covered while young by thick hoary tomentum. Spadix interfoliar,
paniculate, shorter than the leaf-stalks, its primary branches furnished
with numerous short slender pendulous flower-bearing secondary branches;
spathes numerous, papery, cleft at the apex. Flowers solitary, perfect,
jointed on elongated slender pedicels; perianth cup-shaped, obscurely
lobed; stamens 9, inserted on the base of the perianth, with subulate
filaments enlarged and barely united at the base, and oblong anthers;
ovary 1-celled, narrowed into a slender style crowned by a funnel-formed
oblique stigma; ovule basilar, erect. Fruit a subglobose berry raised on
the thickened torus of the flower, with thick juicy black flesh. Seed
free, erect, depressed-globose, with a thick hard vertically grooved
shell deeply infolded in the bony albumen; hilum subbasilar, minute;
raphe hidden in the folds of the seed-coat; embryo lateral.
Coccothrinax is confined to the tropics of the New World. Two species,
of which one is stemless, inhabit southern Florida, and at least two
other species are scattered over several of the West Indian islands.
_Coccothrinax_, from κόκκος and _Thrinax_, is in allusion to the
berry-like fruit.
1. Coccothrinax jucunda Sarg. Brittle Thatch.
[Illustration: Fig. 98]
Leaves nearly orbicular, the lower segments usually parallel with the
petiole, thin and brittle, 18′—24′ in diameter, divided below the middle
of the leaf or toward its base nearly to the ligule, with much-thickened
bright orange-colored midribs and margins, pale yellow-green and
lustrous on the upper surface, bright silvery white and coated at first
on the lower surface with hoary deciduous pubescence, with a thin
undulate obtusely short-pointed dark orange-colored rachis, and a thin
concave crescent-shaped often oblique slightly undulate short-pointed
and light or dark orange-colored ligule ¾′ wide, ⅓′ deep; petioles
slender, pale yellow-green, 2½°—3° long. Flowers: spadix 18′—24′ long,
with flattened stalks, slender much-flattened primary branches 8′—10′
long, light orange-colored slender terete flower-bearing branches 1½′—3′
long, and pale reddish brown spathes coated toward the ends with pale
pubescence; flowers opening in June and irregularly also in the autumn
on ridged spreading pedicels ⅛′ long, with an orange-colored ovary
surmounted by an elongated style dilated into a rose-colored stigma.
Fruit ripening at the end of six months, from ½′—¾′ in diameter, bright
green at first when fully grown, becoming deep violet color, with
succulent very juicy flesh, ultimately black and lustrous; seed light
tawny brown.
A tree, with a stem slightly enlarged from the ground upward, 15°—25°
high, 4′—6′ thick, covered with pale blue rind, and surmounted by a
broad head of leaves at first erect, then spreading and ultimately
pendulous. Wood used for the piles of small wharves and turtle-crawls.
The soft tough young leaves are made into hats and baskets.
Distribution. Dry coral ridges and sandy flats from the shores of Bay
Biscayne along many of the southern keys to the Marquesas group (var.
_marquesensis_ Becc.) Florida; and on the Bahamas (var. _macrosperma_
Becc.).
3. SABAL Adans. Palmetto.
Unarmed trees, with stout columnar stems covered with red-brown rind.
Leaves flabellate, tough and coriaceous, divided into many narrow
long-pointed parted segments plicately folded at base, often separating
on the margins into narrow threads; rachis extending nearly to the
middle of the leaves, rounded and broadly winged toward the base on the
lower side, thin and acute on the upper side; ligule adnate to the
rachis, acute, concave, with thin incurved entire margins; petioles
rounded and concave on the lower side, conspicuously ridged on the upper
side, acute and entire on the margins, with elongated chestnut-brown
shining sheaths of stout fibres. Spadix interfoliar, stalked,
decompound, with a flattened stem, short branches, slender densely
flowered ultimate branches, and numerous acuminate spathes, the outer
persistent and becoming broad and woody. Flowers solitary, perfect;
calyx tabular, unequally lobed, the lobes slightly imbricated in the
bud; corolla deeply lobed, with narrow ovate-oblong concave acute lobes
valvate at the apex in the bud; stamens 6, those opposite the corolla
lobes rather longer than the others, with subulate filaments united
below into a shallow cup adnate to the tube of the corolla, and ovoid
anthers, their cells free and spreading at the base; ovary of 3 carpels,
3-lobed, 3-celled, gradually narrowed into an elongated 3-lobed style
truncate and stigmatic at the apex; ovule basilar, erect. Fruit a small
black 1 or 2 or 3-lobed short-stemmed berry with thin sweet dry flesh.
Seed depressed-globose, marked on the side by the prominent micropyle,
with a shallow pit near the minute basal hilum, a thin seed-coat, and a
ventral raphe; embryo minute, dorsal, in horny uniform albumen
penetrated by a hard shallow basal cavity filled by the thickening of
the seed-coat.
Sabal belongs to the New World, and is distributed from the Bermuda
Islands and the South Atlantic and Gulf states of North America through
the West Indies to Venezuela and Mexico.
Of the eight species now recognized four inhabit the United States; of
these two are small stemless plants.
The generic name is of uncertain origin.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN ARBORESCENT SPECIES.
Spadix short; fruit subglobose, 1-celled; seed-coat light chestnut
color.
1. S. Palmetto (C).
Spadix elongated; fruit often 2 or 3-lobed, with 2 or 3 seeds;
seed-coat dark chestnut-brown.
2. S. texana (E).
1. Sabal Palmetto R. & S. Cabbage Tree. Cabbage Palmetto.
[Illustration: Fig. 99]
Leaves 5°—6° long and 7°—8° broad, dark green and lustrous, deeply
divided into narrow parted recurved segments, with ligules 4′ long and
more or less unsymmetrical at apex; petioles 6°—7° long and 1½′ wide at
apex. Flowers: spadix 2°—2½° long, with slender incurved branches,
slender ultimate divisions, and thin secondary spathes flushed with red
at apex and conspicuously marked by pale slender longitudinal veins;
flowers in the axils of minute deciduous bracts much shorter than the
perianth, opening in June. Fruit ripening late in the autumn, subglobose
or slightly obovoid, gradually narrowed at base, 1-seeded, about ⅓′ in
diameter; seed light bright chestnut-colored, ¼′ broad.
A tree, often 40°—50° and occasionally 80°—90° high, with a tall clear
trunk often 2° in diameter, sometimes branched by the destruction of the
terminal bud, divided by shallow irregular interrupted fissures into
broad ridges, with a short pointed knob-like underground stem surrounded
by a dense mass of contorted roots often 4° or 5° in diameter and 5° or
6° deep, from which tough light orange-colored roots often nearly ½′ in
diameter penetrate the soil for a distance of 15° or 20°, and a broad
crown of leaves at first upright, then spreading nearly at right angles
with the stem, and finally pendulous. Wood light, soft, pale brown, or
occasionally nearly black, with numerous hard fibro-vascular bundles,
the outer rim about 2′ thick and much lighter and softer than the
interior. In the southern states the trunks are used for wharf-piles,
and polished cross sections of the stem sometimes serve for the tops of
small tables; the wood is largely manufactured into canes. From the
sheaths of young leaves the bristles of scrubbing-brushes are made. The
large succulent leaf-buds are cooked and eaten as a vegetable, and
coarse hats, mats, and baskets are made from the leaves. Pieces of the
spongy bark of the stem are used as a substitute for scrubbing-brushes.
Distribution. Sandy soil in the immediate neighborhood of the coast from
the neighborhood of Cape Hatteras and Smith Island at the mouth of Cape
Fear River, North Carolina, southward near the coast to northern
Florida; in Florida extending across the peninsula and south to Upper
Metacomb Key, and along the west coast to Saint Andrews Bay; most
abundant and of its largest size on the west coast of the Florida
peninsula.
Often planted as a street tree in the cities of the southern states.
2. Sabal texana Becc. Palmetto.
_Sabal mexicana_ S. Wats., not Mart.
[Illustration: Fig. 100]
Leaves dark yellow-green and lustrous, 5°—6° long, often 7° wide,
divided nearly to the middle into narrow divided segments, with
thickened pale margins separating into long thin fibres, with ligules
about 6′ long; petioles 7°—8° long, 1½′ wide at the apex. Flowers:
spadix 7°—8° long, with stout ultimate divisions; flowers in Texas
appearing in March or April in the axils of persistent bracts half as
long as the perianth. Fruit ripening early in the summer, globose, often
2 or 3-lobed; seeds nearly ½′ broad and ¼′ wide, dark chestnut-brown,
with a broad shallow basal cavity, and a conspicuous orange-colored
hilum.
A tree, with a trunk 30°—50° high, often 2½° in diameter, and a broad
head of erect ultimately pendulous leaves. Wood light, soft, pale brown
tinged with red, with thick light-colored rather inconspicuous
fibro-vascular bundles, the outer rim 1′ thick, soft, and light colored.
On the Gulf coast the trunks are used for wharf-piles, and on the lower
Rio Grande the leaves for the thatch of houses.
Distribution. Rich soil of the bottom-lands on the Bernado River,
Cameron County, and near the mouth of the Rio Grande, Texas, and
southward in Mexico in the neighborhood of the coast.
Frequently planted as a street tree in the towns in the lower Rio Grande
valley.
4. WASHINGTONIA H. Wendl.
Trees, with stout columnar stems and broad crowns of erect and spreading
finally pendulous leaves. Leaves flabellate, divided nearly to the
middle into many narrow deeply parted recurved segments separating on
the margins into numerous slender pale fibres; rachis short, slightly
rounded on the back, gradually narrowed from a broad base, with concave
margins furnished below with narrow erect wings, and slender and acute
above; ligule elongated, oblong, thin and laciniate on the margins;
petioles elongated, broad and thin, flattened or slightly concave on the
upper side, rounded on the lower, armed irregularly with broad thin
large and small straight or hooked spines confluent into a thin bright
orange-colored cartilaginous margin, gradually enlarged at base into
thick broad concave bright chestnut-brown sheaths composed of a network
of thin strong fibres. Spadix interfoliar, stalked, elongated,
paniculate, with pendulous flower-bearing ultimate divisions and
numerous long spathes. Flowers perfect, jointed on thick disk-like
pedicels; calyx tubular, scarious, thickened at base, gradually enlarged
and slightly lobed at apex, the lobes imbricated in the bud; corolla
funnel-formed, with a fleshy tube inclosed in the calyx and about half
as long as the lanceolate lobes thickened and glandular on the inner
surface at the base, imbricated in the bud; stamens inserted on the tube
of the corolla, with free filaments thickened near the middle and
linear-oblong anthers; ovary 3-lobed, 3-celled, with slender elongated
flexuose styles stigmatic at apex; ovules lateral, erect. Fruit a small
ellipsoidal short-stalked black berry with thin dry flesh. Seed free,
erect, oblong-ovoid, concave above, with a flat base depressed in the
centre, a minute sublateral hilum, a broad conspicuous rachis, a minute
lateral micropyle, and a thin pale chestnut-brown inner coat closely
investing the simple horny albumen; embryo minute, lateral, with the
radicle turned toward the base of the fruit.
Three species of Washingtonia are known: one inhabits the interior dry
region of southern California and the adjacent parts of Lower
California, and the others the mountain cañons of western Sonora and
southern Lower California.
The genus is named for George Washington.
1. Washingtonia filamentosa O. Kuntze. Desert Palm. Fan Palm.
[Illustration: Fig. 101]
Leaves 5°—6° long and 4°—5° wide, light green, slightly tomentose on the
folds; petioles 4°—6° long and about 2′ broad at apex, with sheaths
16′—18′ long and 12′—14′ wide, and ligules 4′ long and cut irregularly
into long narrow lobes. Flowers: spadix 10°—12° long, 3 or 4 being
produced each year from the axils of upper leaves, the outer spathe
inclosing the bud, narrow, elongated, and glabrous, those of the
secondary branches coriaceous, yellow tinged with brown, and laciniate
at apex; flowers slightly fragrant, opening late in May or early in
June. Fruit produced in great profusion, ripening in September, ⅓′ long;
seed ¼′ long, ⅛′ thick.
A tree, occasionally 75° high, with a trunk sometimes 50°—60° tall and
2°—3° in diameter, covered with a thick light red-brown scaly rind and
clothed with a thick thatch of dead pendant leaves descending in a
regular cone from the broad crown of living leaves sometimes nearly to
the ground. Wood light and soft, with numerous conspicuous dark
orange-colored fibro-vascular bundles. The fruit is gathered and used as
food by the Indians.
Distribution. Often forming extensive groves or small isolated clumps in
wet usually alkali soil in depressions along the northern and
northwestern margins of the Colorado Desert in southern California,
sometimes extending for several miles up the cañons of the San
Bernardino and San Jacinto mountains; and in Lower California.
Now largely cultivated in southern California, New Orleans, southern
Europe, and other temperate regions.
5. ACŒLORRAPHE H. Wendl.
Trees, with tall slender often clustered stems clothed for many years
with the sheathing bases of the petioles of fallen leaves. Leaves
suborbicular, divided into numerous two-parted segments plicately folded
at the base; rachis short, acute; ligule thin, concave, furnished with a
broad membranaceous dark red-brown deciduous border; petioles slender,
flat or slightly concave on the upper side, rounded and ridged on the
lower side, with a broad high rounded ridge, thickened and cartilaginous
on the margins, more or less furnished with stout or slender flattened
teeth; vagina thin and firm, bright mahogany red, lustrous, closely
infolding the stem, its fibres thin and tough. Spadix paniculate,
interpetiolar, its rachis slender, compressed, ultimate branches,
numerous, slender, elongated, gracefully drooping, hoary-tomentose, the
primary branches flattened, the secondary terete in the axils of ovate
acute chestnut-brown bracts; spathes flattened, thick and firm, deeply
two-cleft and furnished at apex with a red-brown membranaceous border,
inclosing the rachis of the panicle, each primary branch with its spathe
and the node of the rachis below it inclosed in a separate spathe, the
whole surrounded by the larger spathe of the node next below. Flowers
perfect, minute, sessile on the ultimate branches of the spadix, in the
axils of ovate acute chestnut-brown caducous bracts, solitary toward the
end of the branches and in two- or three-flowered clusters near their
base; calyx truncate at base, divided into three broadly ovate sepals
dentate on the margins, valvate in æstivation, enlarged and persistent
under the fruit; corolla three-parted nearly to the base, its divisions
valvate in æstivation, oblong-ovate, thick, concave and thickened at
apex, deciduous; stamens six, included; filaments nearly triangular,
united below into a cup adnate to the short tube of the corolla; anthers
short-oblong, attached on the back below the middle, introrse,
two-celled, the cells opening longitudinally; ovary obovoid, of three
carpels, each with two deep depressions on their outer face, united into
a slender style; stigma minute, terminal, persistent on the fruit; ovule
solitary, erect from the bottom of the cell, anatropous. Fruit
drupaceous, subglobose, one-seeded, black and lustrous; exocarp thin and
fleshy; endocarp thin, crustaceous; seed erect, free, subglobose, light
chestnut-brown; testa thin and hard; hilum small, suborbicular; raphe
ventral, oblong, elongated, black, slightly prominent, without
ramifications; embryo lateral; albumen homogeneous.
Two species of Acœlorraphe have been distinguished; they inhabit
southern Florida, and one species occurs also in Cuba and on the Bahama
Islands.
The generic name, from ἀ priv., Κοῖλος and ῥαφη, refers to the character
of the seed.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Petioles furnished with stout marginal teeth throughout their entire
length; leaves green on both surfaces, their primary divisions
extending to the middle, secondary divisions only from 3½′—9′
long; stems forming large thickets.
1. A. Wrightii (D).
Petioles furnished with thinner teeth, usually unarmed toward the
apex; leaves green or glaucescent on the lower surface, their
primary divisions extending nearly to the base, secondary
divisions often 10′ long or more; stems often prostrate.
2. A. arborescens (D).
1. Acœlorraphe Wrightii Becc.
[Illustration: Fig. 102]
Leaves 30′—36′ in diameter, thin, light green, divided only to the
middle, the divisions of the primary lobes 3½′—9′ long; petioles thin,
gradually tapering from the base, 40′—60′ in length, armed throughout
with stout straight or incurved teeth. Flowers: spadix 4°—6° long;
flowers ⅛′—⅙′ long, with a light chestnut-brown calyx and a pale
yellow-green corolla. Fruit ¼′ in diameter.
A tree with numerous stems, in Florida sometimes 10 metres high, forming
great thickets.
Distribution. Dade County, Florida, from the rear of Madeira Hummock to
Cape Sable, in swamps of fresh or brackish water at some distance from
the coast; also in Cuba and on the Bahamas.
2. Acœlorraphe arborescens Becc.
_Serenoa arborescens_ Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 103]
Leaves about 2° in diameter, light yellow-green on the upper surface,
blue-green or glaucescent on the lower surface, divided nearly to the
base into numerous lobes slightly thickened at the pale yellow midribs
and margins; petioles 18′—24′ long, armed, except toward the apex, with
stout flattened curved orange-colored teeth. Flowers: spadix 3°—4° long,
with a slender much-flattened stalk, panicled lower branches 18′—20′ in
length, and 6—8 thick firm pale green conspicuously ribbed spathes
dilated at apex into a narrow border; flowers with a light
chestnut-brown calyx and a pale yellow-green corolla. Fruit globose, ⅓′
in diameter; seed somewhat flattened below, with a pale vertical mark on
the lower side, and a hilum joined to the micropyle by a pale band.
A tree, from 30°—40° high, with 1 or several clustered erect inclining
or occasionally semiprostrate stems 3′—4′ in diameter, covered almost to
the ground by the closely clasping bases of the leaf-stalks and below
with a thick pale rind.
Distribution. Low undrained soil covered for many months of every year
in water from 1′—18′ deep, occasionally occupying almost exclusively
areas of several acres in extent or more often scattered among
Cypress-trees or Royal Palms, in the swamps and along the hummocks
adjacent to the Chokoloskee River and its tributaries and at the head of
East River, Whitewater Bay, in southwestern Florida.
6. ROYSTONEA Cook. Royal Palm.
Unarmed trees, with massive stems enlarged near the middle, and
terminating in long slender bright green cylinders formed by the densely
imbricated sheaths of the leaf-stalks. Leaves equally pinnate, with
linear-lanceolate long-pointed unequally cleft plicately-folded pinnæ
inserted obliquely on the upper side of the rachis, folded together at
the base, with thin midribs and margins; rachis convex on the back,
broad toward the base of the leaf and acute toward its apex; petioles
semicylindric, gradually enlarged into thick elongated green sheaths.
Spadix large, decompound, produced near the base of the green part of
the stem, with long pendulous branches and 2 spathes, the outer
semicylindric and as long as the spadix, the inner splitting ventrally
and inclosing the branches of the spadix. Flowers monœcious, in a loose
spiral, toward the base of the branch in 3-flowered clusters, with a
central staminate and smaller lateral pistillate flowers, higher on the
branch the staminate in 2-flowered clusters; calyx of the staminate
flower of minute broadly ovate obtuse scarious sepals imbricated in the
bud, much shorter than the corolla; petals nearly equal, valvate in the
bud, ovate or obovate, acute, slightly united at the base, coriaceous;
stamens 6, 9, or 12, with subulate filaments united below and adnate to
the base of the corolla, and large ovate-sagittate anthers, the cells
free below; ovary rudimentary, subglobose or 3-lobed; pistillate flowers
much smaller, ovoid-conic; sepals obtuse; corolla erect, divided to the
middle into acute erect lobes incurved at apex; staminodia 6,
scale-like, united into a cup adnate to the corolla; ovary subglobose,
obscurely 2 or 3-lobed, 2 or 3-celled, gibbous, the cells crowned with a
3-lobed stigma becoming subbasilar on the fruit; ovule ascending. Fruit
a short-stalked drupe with thin crustaceous flesh. Seed oblong-reniform,
marked by the conspicuous fibrous reticulate branches of the raphe
radiating from the narrow basal hilum, and covered with a thin
crustaceous coat; embryo minute, cylindric, lateral, in uniform albumen.
Roystonea is confined to the tropics of the New World, where two or
three species occur.
The genus as here limited was named for General Roy Stone of the United
States army.
1. Roystonea regia Cook. Royal Palm.
_Oreodoxa regia_ H. B. K.
[Illustration: Fig. 104]
Leaves 10°—12° long, closely pinnate, the pinnæ, 2½°—3° long, 1½′ wide
near the base of the leaf, and gradually decreasing in size toward its
apex, deep green with slender conspicuous veins, and covered below with
minute pale glandular dots; petioles almost terete, concave near the
base, with thin edges separating irregularly into pale fibres, and
enlarged into bright green cylindrical clasping bases 8° or 9° long and
more or less covered with dark chaffy scales. Flowers: spadix about 2°
long, with a nearly terete stem and slightly ridged primary and
secondary branches compressed above, abruptly enlarged at the base, and
simple slender flexuose long-pointed flower-bearing branchlets 3′—6′
long, pendant and closely pressed against the secondary branches;
flowers opening in Florida in January and February, the staminate nearly
¼′ long and rather more than twice as long as the pistillate. Fruit
oblong-obovoid, full and rounded at apex, narrowed at base, violet-blue,
about ½′ long, with a thin outer coat and a light red-brown inner coat,
loose and fibrous on the outer surface, and closely investing the thin
light brown seed.
A tree, 80°—100° high, with a trunk rising from an abruptly enlarged
base, gradually tapering from the middle to the ends and often 2° in
diameter, covered with light gray rind tinged with orange color, marked
with dark blotches and irregularly broken into minute plates, the green
upper portion 8°—10° long, and a broad head of gracefully drooping
leaves. Wood of the interior of the stem spongy, pale brown, much
lighter than the hard exterior rim, containing numerous dark conspicuous
fibro-vascular bundles. The outer portion of the stem is made into
canes, and the trunks are sometimes used for wharf-piles and in
construction.
Distribution. Florida, hummocks on Rogue River twenty miles east of
Caximbas Bay, on some of the Everglades Keys, Long’s Key, and formerly
on the shores of Bay Biscayne near the mouth of Little River; common in
the West Indies and Central America.
Largely cultivated as an ornamental tree in tropical countries, and
often planted to form avenues, for which its tall pale columnar stems
and noble heads of graceful foliage make it valuable.
7. PSEUDOPHŒNIX H. Wendl.
A tree, with a slender stem abruptly enlarged at the base or tapering
from the middle to the ends, covered with thin pale blue or nearly white
rind, and conspicuously marked by the dark scars of fallen leaf-stalks.
Leaves erect, abruptly pinnate, with crowded linear-lanceolate acuminate
leaflets increasing in length and width from the ends to the middle of
the leaf, thick and firm in texture, dark yellow-green above, pale and
glaucous below; rachis convex on the lower side, concave on the upper
side near the base of the leaf, with thin margins, becoming toward the
apex of the leaf flat and narrowed below and acute above, marked on the
sides at the base with dark gland-like excrescences; petioles short,
concave above, with thin entire margins separating into slender fibres,
gradually enlarged into broad thick sheaths of short brittle fibres.
Spadix interfoliar, compound, pendulous, stalked, much shorter than the
leaves, with spreading primary branches, stout and much flattened toward
the base, slender and rounded above the middle, furnished at the base
with a thickened ear-like body, slender secondary branches, short thin
rigid densely flowered ultimate divisions, and compressed light green
double spathes erose on their thin dark brown margins. Flowers on
slender pedicels articulate by an expanded base, widely scattered on the
ultimate branches of the spadix, staminate and bisexual in the same
inflorescence; calyx reduced to the saucer-like rim of the thickened
receptacle, undulate on the margin, the rounded angles alternating with
the petals; petals 3, valvate in the bud, oblong, rounded at apex, thick
conspicuously longitudinally veined, persistent; stamens 6, with short
flattened nearly triangular filaments slightly united at the base into a
narrow fleshy disk, and triangular cordate anthers attached at the base
in a cavity on their outer face, 2-celled, the cells opening by lateral
slits; styles of the perfect flower 3-lobed at the apex with obtuse
appressed lobes, that of the sterile flower as long or longer than that
of the perfect flower, more slender and tapering into a narrow 3-pointed
apex. Fruit a stalked globose 2 or 3-lobed orange-scarlet thin-fleshed
drupe marked by the lateral style and surrounded below by the withered
remnants of the flower; pedicel abruptly enlarged at base, articulate
from a persistent cushion-like body furnished in the centre with a
minute point penetrating a cavity in the base of the pedicel. Seed
subglobose, free, erect, with a basal hilum and a thin light red-brown
coat marked by the pale conspicuous ascending 2 or 3-branched raphe;
embryo minute, basal, in uniform horny albumen.
Pseudophœnix with a single species inhabits the keys of southern
Florida, and the Bahamas.
The generic name is in allusion to a fancied resemblance to _Phœnix_, a
genus of Palms.
1. Pseudophœnix vinifera Becc.
[Illustration: Fig. 105]
Leaves 5°—6° long, with pinnæ often 18′ long and 1′ wide near the middle
of the leaf, becoming at its extremities not more than half as long and
wide; petioles 6′—8′ in length. Flowers: spadix 3° long and 2½° wide.
Fruit ripening in May and June, ½′—¾′ in diameter on a peduncle ¼′ long;
seed ¼′ in diameter.
Distribution. Florida, east end of Elliot’s Key, and east end of Key
Largo near the southern shore, here forming a grove of 200 or 300
plants; more common on the Bahamas.
Occasionally cultivated in the gardens of southern Florida.
IV. LILIACEÆ.
YUCCÆ.
Leaves, alternate, linear-lanceolate. Flowers in terminal panicles;
sepals and petals nearly similar, subequal, withering-persistent; ovary
with more or less deeply introduced dorsal partitions; ovules numerous,
2-ranked in each cell; embryo subulate, obliquely placed across the
seed; cotyledon arched in germination.
Yuccæ as here limited consists of two American genera, Hesperaloe, with
two species, low plants of Texas and Mexico, and Yucca.
1. YUCCA L.
Trees with simple or branched stems prolonged by axillary naked buds,
dark thick corky bark, light fibrous wood in concentric layers, and
large stout horizontal roots; or often stemless. Leaves involute in the
bud, at first erect, usually becoming reflexed, abruptly narrowed above
the broad thickened clasping base, usually widest near the middle,
concave on the upper surface, involute toward the horny usually
sharp-pointed apex, convex and often slightly keeled toward the base on
the lower surface, the margins serrulate or filamentose, light or dull
green. Flowers fertilized by insects and opening for a single night, on
slender pedicels in 2 or 3-flowered clusters or singly at the base of
the large compound panicle furnished with conspicuous leathery white or
slightly colored bracts, those at the base of the pedicels thin and
scarious; perianth cup-shaped, with thick ovate-lanceolate creamy white
segments more or less united at base, usually furnished with small tufts
of white hairs at the apex, those of the outer rank narrower, shorter,
and more colored than the more delicate petal-like segments of the inner
rank; stamens 6, in 2 series, free, shorter than the ovary (_as long in_
1), white, with club-shaped fleshy filaments, obtuse and slightly
3-lobed at the apex, and cordate emarginate anthers attached on the
back, the cells opening longitudinally, curling backward and expelling
the large globose powdery pollen-grains; ovary oblong, 6-sided, sessile
or stalked, with nectar-glands within the partitions, dull greenish
white, 3-celled, gradually narrowed into a short or elongated 3-lobed
ivory-white style forming a triangular stigmatic tube. Fruit oblong or
oval, more or less distinctly 6-angled, 6-celled, usually beaked at the
apex, baccate and indehiscent or capsular and 3-valved, the valves
finally separating at the apex; pericarp of 2 coats, the outer at
maturity thick, succulent and juicy, thin, dry and leathery, or thin and
woody. Seeds compressed, triangular, obovoid, or obliquely ovoid or
orbicular, thick, with a narrow 2-edged rim, or thin, with a wide or
narrow brittle margin; seed-coat thin, black, slightly rugose or smooth;
embryo in plain or rarely ruminate hard farinaceous oily albumen;
cotyledon much longer than the short radicle turned toward the small
oblong white hilum.
Yucca is confined to the New World and is distributed from Bermuda and
the eastern Antilles, through the south Atlantic and Gulf states to
Oklahoma and Arkansas, and through New Mexico and northward along the
eastern base of the Rocky Mountains to South Dakota, westward to middle
California, and southward through Arizona, Mexico, and Lower California
to Central America. About thirty species with many varieties and
probable hybrids are recognized. Of the species which inhabit the
territory of the United States nine assume the habit and attain the size
of small trees. The root-stalks of Yucca are used as a substitute for
soap, and ropes, baskets, and mats are made from the tough fibres of the
leaves. Many of the species are cultivated, especially in countries of
scanty rainfall, for their great clusters of beautiful flowers, or in
hedges to protect gardens from cattle.
The generic name is from the Carib name of the root of the Cassava.
CONSPECTUS OF THE ARBORESCENT SPECIES OF THE UNITED STATES.
Flower-clusters usually sessile, or short-stalked.
Fruit pendulous, with thick succulent flesh; seeds thick; albumen
ruminate.
Segments of the perianth slightly united at the base.
Panicle glabrous or puberulous.
Ovary stipitate; leaves sharply toothed on their horny
margins, smooth, dark green, slightly concave.
1. Y. aloifolia (C).
Ovary sessile.
Leaves concave, blue-green, rough on the lower surface.
2. Y. Treculeana (E).
Leaves concave above the middle, light yellow-green, smooth.
Style elongated.
3. Y. macrocarpa (E, H).
Style short.
4. Y. mohavensis (G, H).
Panicle coated with hoary tomentum; leaves concave, smooth,
light yellow-green.
5. Y. Schottii (H).
Segments of the perianth united below into a narrow tube; leaves
flat, smooth, dark green.
6. Y. Faxoniana (E).
Fruit erect or spreading, the flesh becoming thin and dry at
maturity; seeds thin; albumen entire.
Leaves rigid, concave above the middle, blue-green, sharply
serrate.
7. Y. brevifolia (F, G).
Leaves thin, flat or concave toward the apex, nearly entire, rough
on the lower surface, dull or glaucous green.
8. Y. gloriosa (C).
Flower-clusters long-stalked; fruit capsular, erect, finally splitting
between the carpels and through their backs at the apex; seeds
thin; albumen entire; leaves thin, flat, filamentose on the
margins, smooth, pale yellow-green.
9. Y. elata (E, H).
1. Yucca aloifolia L. Spanish Bayonet.
[Illustration: Fig. 106]
Leaves 18′—32′ long, 1¼′—2½′ wide, erect, rigid, conspicuously narrowed
above the light green base, widest above the middle, slightly concave on
the upper surface, smooth, dark rich green, with a stiff dark red-brown
tip, and horny finely and irregularly serrate margins; long-persistent.
Flowers from June until August on stout pedicels, in nearly sessile
glabrous or slightly pubescent panicles 18′—24′ long; perianth 1′—1½′ in
length and 3′ or 4′ across when fully expanded, the segments ovate,
thick and tumid toward the base, those of the outer rank rounded and
often marked with purple at apex, the inner acuminate and short-pointed;
stamens as long or sometimes a little longer than the light green ovary
raised on a short stout stipe. Fruit ripening from August to October,
elongated, ellipsoidal, hexagonal, 3′—4′ long, 1¼′—1½′ thick, light
green when fully grown, and in ripening turning dark purple, the outer
and inner coats forming a thick succulent mass of bitter-sweet juicy
flesh, finally becoming black and drying on its stalk; seeds ¼′—⅓′ wide,
about 1/16′ thick, with a thin narrow ring-like border to the rim.
A tree, occasionally 25° high, usually much smaller, with an erect or
more or less inclining simple or branched trunk slightly swollen at
base, and rarely more than 6′ in diameter; sometimes with numerous
clustered stems. Bark near the base of the trunk thick, rough, dark
brown, marked above by scars left by falling leaves.
Distribution. Sand dunes of the coast from North Carolina to eastern
Louisiana; west of the Apalachicola River attaining its largest size and
sometimes ranging inland through Pine-forests for thirty or forty miles;
and in Yucatan (var. yucatana Trel.).
A common garden plant in all countries with a temperate climate, and
long naturalized in the southern states far beyond the limits of its
natural range, in some of the West Indian islands and on the Gulf coast
of Mexico. Forms with leaves variously striped with white, yellow, and
red or with recurving leaves are frequent in cultivation.
2. Yucca Treculeana Carr. Spanish Bayonet. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 107]
Leaves 2½°—4° long, 2′—3¼′ wide, slightly or not at all contracted above
the dark red lustrous base, concave, stiff, rigid, dark blue-green,
rough on the lower surface, nearly smooth on the upper, with a short
stout dark red-brown tip, and dark brown margins roughened by minute
deciduous teeth and ultimately separating into slender dark fibres;
persistent for many years, the dead leaves hanging closely appressed
against the trunk below the terminal crown of closely imbricated living
leaves. Flowers in March and April on slender pedicels, in dense
many-flowered glabrous or puberulous panicles 2°—4° long and raised on
short stout stalks; perianth 1′—2′ long, 2′—4′ in diameter when fully
expanded, with narrow elongated ovate-lanceolate to ovate segments, ¼′
wide, acute, thin and delicate, furnished at apex with a conspicuous
tuft of short pale hairs; filaments slightly papillose, about as long as
the prismatic ovary gradually narrowed above and crowned by the deeply
divided stigmatic lobes. Fruit ripening in the summer, 3′—4′ long, about
1′ thick, dark reddish brown or ultimately black, with thin succulent
sweetish flesh; seeds about ⅛′ wide, nearly 1/16′ thick, with a narrow
border to the rim.
A tree, occasionally 25°—30° high, with a trunk sometimes 2° in diameter
and numerous stout wide-spreading branches; usually smaller and often
forming broad low thickets 4°—5° tall. Bark on old trunks ¼′—½′ thick,
dark red-brown and broken into thin oblong plates covered by small
irregular closely appressed scales. Wood light brown, fibrous, spongy,
heavy, difficult to cut and work.
Distribution. Shores of Matagorda Bay, southward through western Texas
into Nuovo Leon, and through the valley of the Rio Grande to the eastern
base of the mountains of western Texas; forming open stunted forests on
the coast dunes at the mouth of the Rio Grande; farther from the coast
often spreading into great impenetrable thickets.
Cultivated as an ornamental plant in the gardens of central and western
Texas and in other southern States, and occasionally in those of
southern Europe.
3. Yucca macrocarpa Coville. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 108]
Leaves 1½°—2° long, 1′—2′ wide, gradually narrowed from the dark red
lustrous base to above the middle, rigid, concave, yellow-green, rough
on the lower surface and frequently also on the upper surface, with a
stout elongated dark tip, and thickened margins separated into stout
gray filaments. Flowers in March and April in densely flowered sessile
or short-stalked glabrous or occasionally pubescent panicles; perianth
usually about 2′ long, with acuminate segments, those of the outer and
inner rows nearly of the same size; stamens shorter than the elongated
style. Fruit 3′—4′ long, about 1½′ thick, abruptly contracted at apex
into a stout point, nearly black when fully ripe, with sweet succulent
flesh; seeds about ⅓′ wide, ⅛′ thick, with a narrow border to the rim.
A tree, rarely exceeding 15° in height, with a usually simple stem 6′—8′
in diameter, and often clothed to the ground with living leaves. Bark
dark brown and scaly.
Distribution. Arid plains from western Texas to eastern Arizona and
southward in Chihuahua.
4. Yucca mohavensis Sarg. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 109]
Leaves 18′—20′ long, about 1½′ wide, abruptly contracted above the dark
red lustrous base, gradually narrowed upward to above the middle, thin
and concave except toward the slightly thickened base of the blade, dark
green, smooth on both surfaces, with a stout rigid sharp-pointed tip,
and entire bright red-brown margins soon separating into numerous pale
filaments. Flowers from March to May on slender erect ultimately
drooping pedicels 1′—1½′ long, in densely flowered sessile or
short-stemmed panicles 12′—18′ in length; perianth 1′—2′ long, the
segments united at the base into a short tube, thickened and hood-shaped
at the apex, those of the outer rank often deeply flushed with purple,
but little longer than the less prominently ribbed usually wider and
thinner segments of the inner rank; stamens with more or less pilose
filaments nearly as long as the short style. Fruit ripening in August
and September, 3′—4′ long, about 1½′ thick, usually much constricted
near the middle, abruptly contracted at apex into a short stout point,
dark dull brown or nearly black, with flesh often nearly ½′ thick; seeds
⅓′ wide, rather less than ⅛′ thick, with a narrow border to the rim.
A tree, rarely exceeding 15° in height, with a trunk usually simple or
occasionally furnished with short spreading branches, and 6′—8′ in
diameter, usually surrounded by a cluster of shorter more or less
spreading stems and often clothed to the ground with living leaves. Bark
dark brown and scaly. Wood soft, spongy, light brown.
Distribution. Southern Nevada and northwestern Arizona across the Mohave
Desert to the California coast, extending northward to the neighborhood
of Monterey, California, and southward into northern Lower California;
common and attaining its largest size on the Mohave Desert, and
sometimes ascending arid mountain slopes to altitudes of 4000° above the
sea.
5. Yucca Schottii Engelm. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 110]
Leaves 2½°—3° long, about 1½′ wide, gradually narrowed upward from the
comparatively thin lustrous red base to above the middle, flat except
toward the apex, smooth, light yellow-green, with a long rigid sharp
light red tip, and thick entire red-brown margins finally separating
into short thin brittle threads. Flowers from July to September in erect
stalked tomentose panicles; perianth 1′—1¾′ long, the broad oval or
oblong-obovate thin segments pubescent on the outer surface toward the
base and furnished at the apex with conspicuous clusters of white
tomentum; stamens about two thirds as long as the ovary, with filaments
pilose at the base, and only slightly enlarged at the apex. Fruit
ripening in October and November, obscurely angled, 3½′—4′ long, about
1¼′ thick, often narrowed above the middle, with a stout thick point,
and thin succulent flesh; seeds ¼′ wide, about ⅛′ thick, with a thin
conspicuous marginal rim.
A tree, in Arizona rarely 18°—20° high, with a trunk often crooked or
slightly inclining and simple or furnished with 2 or 3 short erect
branches, covered below with dark brown scaly bark, roughened for many
years by persistent scars of fallen leaves, and clothed above by the
pendant dead leaves of many seasons.
Distribution. Dry slopes of the mountain ranges of Arizona near the
Mexican boundary usually at altitudes between 5000° and 6000°, and
southward into Sonora.
6. Yucca Faxoniana Sarg. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 111]
Leaves 2½°—4° long, 2½′—3′ wide, abruptly contracted above the
conspicuously thickened lustrous base, widest above the middle, flat on
the upper surface, thickened and rounded on the lower surface toward the
base, rigid, smooth and clear dark green, with a short stout dark tip,
and brown entire margins breaking into numerous stout gray or brown
fibres short and spreading near the apex of the leaf, longer, more
remote, and forming a thick cobweb-like mass at their base. Flowers
appearing in April on thin drooping pedicels, in dense many-flowered
glabrous panicles 3°—4° long, with elongated pendulous branches;
perianth 2½′ long, the segments thin, concave, widest above the middle,
narrowed at the ends, united at base into a short tube, those of the
outer rank being about half as wide as those of the inner rank and two
thirds as long; stamens much shorter than the ovary, with slender
filaments pilose above the middle and abruptly dilated at apex; ovary
conspicuously ridged, light yellow marked with large pale raised
lenticels, and gradually narrowed into an elongated slender style. Fruit
ripening in early summer, slightly or not at all angled, abruptly
contracted at apex into a long or short hooked beak, 3′—4′ long, 1′—1½′
thick, light orange-colored and lustrous when first ripe, becoming
nearly black, with thick succulent bitter-sweet flesh; seeds ¼′ long,
about ⅛′ thick, with a narrow nearly obsolete margin to the rim.
A tree, often 40° high, with a trunk sometimes 2° in diameter above the
broad abruptly enlarged base, unbranched or divided into several short
branches, and covered above by a thick thatch of the pendant dead leaves
of many seasons; frequently smaller and until ten or twelve years old
clothed from the ground with erect living leaves. Bark near the base of
old trees dark reddish brown, ⅓′—½′ thick, broken on the surface into
small thin loose scales.
Distribution. Common on the high desert plateau of southwestern Texas.
7. Yucca brevifolia Engelm. Joshua Tree.
_Yucca arborescens_ Trel.
[Illustration: Fig. 112]
Leaves 5′—8′ or on young plants rarely 10′—12′ long, ¼′—½′ wide, rigid,
crowded in dense clusters, lanceolate, gradually tapering from the
bright red-brown lustrous base, bluish green and glaucous, smooth or
slightly roughened, concave above the middle, with a sharp dark brown
tip, and thin yellow margins armed with sharp minute teeth; persistent
for many years. Flowers appearing from March until the beginning of May,
the creamy white closely imbricated bracts of the nearly sessile
pubescent panicle forming before its appearance a conspicuous cone-like
bud 8′ or 10′ long; perianth globose to oblong, 1′—2′ long, greenish
white, waxy, dull or lustrous, its segments slightly united at the base,
keeled on the back, thin below the middle, gradually thickened upward
into the concave incurved rounded tip, those of the outer rank rather
broader, thicker, and more prominently keeled than those of the inner
rank, glabrous or pubescent; stamens about half as long as the ovary,
with filaments villose-papillate from the base; ovary conic, 3-lobed
above the middle, bright green, with narrow slightly developed septal
nectar-glands, and a sessile nearly equally 6-lobed stigma. Fruit
ripening in May or June, spreading or more or less pendant at maturity,
oblong-ovoid, acute, slightly 3-angled, 2′—4′ long, 1½′—2′ thick, light
red or yellow-brown, the outer coat becoming dry and spongy at maturity;
seeds nearly ½′ long, rather less than 1/16′ thick, with a broad
well-developed margin to the rim, and a large conspicuous hilum.
A tree, 30°—40° high, with a trunk 2°—3° in diameter, rising abruptly
from a broad thick basal disk, thick tough roots descending deeply into
the soil, and stout branches spreading into a broad, often symmetrical
head formed by the continued forking of the branches at the base of the
terminal flower-clusters; the stem until 8°—10° high simple and clothed
to the ground with leaves erect until after the appearance of the first
flowers, then spreading at right angles and finally becoming reflexed.
Bark 1′—1½′ thick, deeply divided into oblong plates frequently 2° long.
Wood light, soft, spongy, difficult to work, light brown or nearly
white; sometimes cut into thin layers and used as wrapping material or
manufactured into boxes and other small articles. The seeds are gathered
and eaten by Indians.
Distribution. Southwestern Utah to the western and northern rim of the
Mohave Desert in California; most abundant and of its largest size on
the foothills on the desert slope of the Tehachapi Mountains,
California.
8. Yucca gloriosa L. Spanish Dagger.
[Illustration: Fig. 113]
Leaves 2°—2½° long, gradually narrowed above the broad base and then
gradually broadened to above the middle, thin, flat or slightly concave
toward the apex, frequently longitudinally folded, dull often glaucous
green, roughened on the under surface especially above the middle, with
a stout dark red tip, and pale margins serrulate toward the base of the
leaf, with minute early deciduous teeth, or occasionally separating into
thin fibres. Flowers in October, in pubescent or glabrate panicles,
2°—4° long, on stout stalks sometimes 3°—4° in length, their large
creamy white bracts forming before the panicle emerges a conspicuous
egg-shaped bud 4′—6′ long; perianth when fully expanded 3½′—4′ across,
its segments thin, ovate, acute, or lance-ovate, often tinged with green
or purple, slightly united at the base, pubescent at apex; stamens about
as long as the ovary, with hispid or slightly papillose filaments and
deeply emarginate anthers; ovary slightly lobed, 6-sided, light green,
gradually narrowed into the elongated spreading stigmatic lobes. Fruit
very rarely produced, prominently 6-ridged, pendulous, 3′ long, 1′ in
diameter, cuspidate, raised on a short stout stipe, with a thin leathery
almost black outer coat; seeds ¼′ wide and about 1/36′ thick, with a
smooth coat and a narrow marginal rim.
A tree, with a trunk occasionally 6°—8° high and 4′—6′ in diameter,
simple or rarely furnished with a few short branches and usually clothed
to the base with pendant dead leaves; in cultivation often becoming much
larger, with a stout trunk covered with smooth light gray bark, and
erect or in one form (var. _recurvifolia_ Engelm.) pendulous leaves.
Distribution. Sand dunes and the borders of beaches of the seacoast from
North Carolina to northern Florida.
Often cultivated with many forms in the gardens and pleasure-grounds of
all temperate countries.
9. Yucca elata Engelm. Spanish Dagger.
1. _Yucca radiosa_ Trel.
[Illustration: Fig. 114]
Leaves 20′—30′ long, ¼′—½′ wide, rigid, gradually narrowed from the thin
base, tapering toward the apex, or sometimes somewhat broadest at the
middle, thin, flat on the upper surface, slightly thickened and rounded
on the lower surface toward the base, smooth, pale yellow-green, with a
slender stiff red-brown tip, and thickened entire pale margins soon
splitting into long slender filaments. Flowers in May and June on
slender spreading more or less recurved pedicels, in glabrous
much-branched panicles 4°—6° long, raised on stout naked stem 3°—7° in
length; perianth ovoid and acute in the bud, when fully expanded 3½′—4′
across, its segments united at the base into a short slender distinct
tube, ovate or slightly obovate, those of the outer rank usually acute,
not more than half as broad as those of the inner rank; stamens as long
or a little longer than the ovary, with slender nearly terete filaments;
ovary sessile, almost terete, pale green, abruptly contracted into the
stout elongated style. Fruit an erect oblong capsule rounded and obtuse
at the ends, tipped by a short stout mucro, conspicuously 3-ribbed, with
rounded ridges on the back of the carpels, 1½′—2′ long, 1′—1½′ wide,
with a thin firm light brown ligneous outer coat closely adherent to the
lustrous light yellow inner coat, in ripening splitting from the top to
the bottom between the carpels, and through their backs at the apex;
seeds ⅓′ wide and about 1/32′ thick, with a smooth coat and a thin
brittle wide margin to the rim.
A tree, with a rough much-branched underground stem penetrating deep
into the soil and a trunk often 15°—20° high and 7′—8′ in diameter,
covered above with a thick thatch of the pendant dead leaves of many
years, simple, or branched at the top with a few short stout branches
densely covered with leaves at first erect, then spreading nearly at
right angles, and finally pendulous. Bark dark brown, irregularly
fissured, broken into thin plates, about ¼′ thick. Wood light, soft,
spongy, pale brown or yellow.
Distribution. High desert plateaus from southwestern Texas to southern
Arizona; southward into northern Mexico; most abundant and of its
largest size on the eastern slope of the continental divide in southern
New Mexico and along the northern rim of the Tucson Desert in Arizona.
Division II. Dicotyledons.
Stems formed of bark, wood, or pith, and increasing by the addition of
an annual layer of wood inside the bark. Parts of the flower mostly in
4’s and 5’s; embryo with a pair of opposite cotyledons. Leaves
netted-veined.
_Subdivision 1._ Apetalæ. Flowers without a corolla and sometimes
without a calyx (with a corolla in _Olacaceæ_).
Section 1. Flowers in unisexual aments (_female flowers of Juglans and
Quercus solitary or in spikes_); ovary inferior (_superior in
Leitneriaceæ_) when calyx is present.
V. SALICACEÆ.
Trees or shrubs, with watery juice, alternate simple stalked deciduous
leaves with stipules, soft light usually pale wood, astringent bark,
scaly buds, and often stoloniferous roots. Flowers appearing in early
spring usually before the leaves, solitary in the axils of the scales of
unisexual aments from buds in the axils of leaves of the previous year,
the male and female on different plants; perianth 0; stamens 1, 2 or
many, their anthers introrse, 2-celled, the cells opening
longitudinally; styles usually short or none; stigmas 2—4, often
2-lobed. Fruit a 1-celled 2—4-valved capsule, with 2—4 placentas bearing
below their middle numerous ascending anatropous seeds without albumen
and surrounded by tufts of long white silky hairs attached to the short
stalks of the seeds and deciduous with them; embryo straight, filling
the cavity of the seed; cotyledons flattened, much longer than the short
radicle turned toward the minute hilum.
The two genera of this family are widely scattered but most abundant in
the northern hemisphere, with many species, and are often conspicuous
features of vegetation.
CONSPECTUS OF THE GENERA.
Scales of the aments laciniate; flowers surrounded by a cup-shaped
often oblique disk; stamens numerous; buds with numerous scales.
1. Populus.
Scales of the aments entire; disk a minute gland-like body; stamens 1,
2 or many; buds with a single scale.
2. Salix.
1. POPULUS L. Poplar.
Large fast-growing trees, with pale furrowed bark, terete or angled
branchlets, resinous winter-buds covered by several thin scales, those
of the first pair small and opposite, the others imbricated, increasing
in size from below upward, accrescent and marking the base of the
branchlet with persistent ring-like scars, and thick roots. Leaves
involute in the bud, usually ovate or ovate-lanceolate, entire, dentate
with usually glandular teeth, or lobed, penniveined, turning yellow in
the autumn; petioles long, often laterally compressed, sometimes
furnished at the apex on the upper side with 2 nectariferous glands,
leaving in falling oblong often obcordate, elliptic, arcuate, or
shield-shaped leaf-scars displaying the ends of 3 nearly equidistant
fibro-vascular bundles; stipules caducous, those of the first leaves
resembling the bud-scales, smaller higher on the branch, and
linear-lanceolate and scarious on the last leaves. Flowers in pendulous
stalked aments, the pistillate lengthening and rarely becoming erect
before maturity; scales obovate, gradually narrowed into slender stipes,
dilated and lobed, palmately cleft or fimbriate at apex, membranaceous,
glabrous or villose, more crowded on the staminate than on the
pistillate ament, usually caducous; disk of the flower broadly
cup-shaped, often oblique, entire, dentate or irregularly lobed, fleshy
or membranaceous, stipitate, usually persistent under the fruit; stamens
4—12 or 12—60 or more, inserted on the disk, their filaments free,
short, light yellow; anthers ovoid or oblong, purple or red; ovary
sessile in the bottom of the disk, oblong-conical subglobose or
ovoid-oblong, cylindric or slightly lobed, with 2 or 3 or rarely 4
placentas; styles usually short; stigmas as many as the placentas,
divided into filiform lobes or broad, dilated, 2-parted or lobed. Fruit
ripening before the full growth of the leaves, greenish, reddish brown,
or buff color, oblong-conic, subglobose or ovoid-oblong, separating at
maturity into 2—4 recurved valves. Seeds broadly obovoid or ovoid,
rounded or acute at the apex, light chestnut-brown; cotyledons elliptic.
Populus in the extreme north often forms great forests, and is common on
the alluvial bottom-lands of streams and on high mountain slopes,
ranging from the Arctic Circle to northern Mexico and Lower California
and from the Atlantic to the Pacific in the New World, and to northern
Africa, the southern slopes of the Himalayas, central China, and Japan
in the Old World. Of the thirty-four species now generally recognized
fifteen are found in North America. The wood of many of the American
species is employed in large quantities for paper-making, and several
species furnish wood used in construction and in the manufacture of
small articles of wooden ware. The bark contains tannic acid and is used
in tanning leather and occasionally as a tonic, and the fragrant balsam
contained in the buds of some species is occasionally used in medicine.
The rapidity of their growth, their hardiness and the ease with which
they can be propagated by cuttings, make many of the species useful as
ornamental trees or in wind-breaks, although planted trees often suffer
severely from the attacks of insects boring into the trunks and
branches. Of the exotic species, the Abele, or White Poplar, _Populus
alba_ L., of Europe and western Asia, and its fastigiate form, and the
so-called Lombardy Poplar, a tree of pyramidal habit and a form of the
European and Asiatic _Populus nigra_ L., and one of its hybrids, have
been largely planted in the United States.
_Populus_, of obscure derivation, is the classical name of the Poplar.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES.
Stigmas 2, 2-lobed, their lobes filiform; leaf stalks elongated,
laterally compressed; buds slightly resinous.
Leaves finely serrate; winter-buds glabrous.
1. P. tremuloides (A, B, F, G).
Leaves coarsely serrate; winter-buds tomentose or pubescent.
2. P. grandidentata.
Stigmas 2—4, 2-lobed and dilated, their lobes variously divided; buds
resinous.
Leaf-stalks round.
Leaves tomentose below early in the season, broadly ovate, acute
or rounded at apex.
3. P. heterophylla (A, C).
Leaves glabrous or pilose below.
Leaves dark green above, pale, rarely pilose below.
Ovary and capsule glabrous.
4. P. tacamahacca (A, B, F).
Ovary and capsule tomentose or pubescent.
5. P. trichocarpa (B, F).
Leaves light green on both surfaces, glabrous.
Leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate.
6. P. angustifolia (F).
Leaves rhombic-lanceolate to ovate.
7. P. acuminata (F).
Leaf-stalks laterally compressed.
Leaves without glands at apex of the petiole, coarsely serrate,
thick.
Pedicels shorter than the fruit.
Disk cup-shaped.
Branchlets stout; capsule ⅓′—½′ long.
8. P. Fremontii (G, H).
Branchlets slender; capsule not more than ¼′ long.
9. P. arizonica (F, H).
Disk minute.
Branchlets glabrous; leaves broad-ovate to deltoid,
long-pointed and acuminate at apex.
10. P. texana (C).
Branchlets pubescent; leaves broad-ovate, abruptly
short-pointed or acute at apex.
11. P. McDougallii (G, H).
Pedicels 2 or 3 times longer than the fruit; leaves broadly
deltoid, abruptly short-pointed.
12. P. Wislizenii (E, F).
Leaves furnished with glands at apex of the petiole.
Branchlets stout; leaves thick.
Winter-buds puberulous; leaves coarsely serrate; branchlets
light yellow.
13. P. Sargentii (F).
Winter-buds glabrous; leaves less coarsely serrate; branchlets
gray or reddish brown.
14. P. balsamifera (A, C).
Branchlets slender; leaves thin, ovate, cuneate or rounded at
base, finely serrate.
15. P. Palmeri (E).
1. Populus tremuloides Michx. Aspen. Quaking Asp.
[Illustration: Fig. 115]
Leaves ovate to broad-ovate or rarely reniform (var. _reniformis_
Tidestrom) abruptly short-pointed or acuminate at apex rounded or rarely
cuneate at the wide base, closely crenately serrate with glandular
teeth, thin, green and lustrous above, dull green or rarely pale below,
up to 4½′ long and broad with a prominent midrib, slender primary veins
and conspicuous reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, compressed
laterally, 1½′—3′ long. Flowers: aments 1½′—2½′ long, the pistillate
becoming 4′ in length at maturity; scales deeply divided into 3—5 linear
acute lobes fringed with long soft gray hairs; disk oblique, the
staminate entire, the pistillate slightly crenate; stamens 6—12; ovary
conic, with a short thick style and erect stigmas thickened and
club-shaped below and divided into linear diverging lobes. Fruit
maturing in May and June, oblong-conic, light green, thin-walled, nearly
¼′ long; seeds obovoid, light brown, about 1/32′ in length.
A tree, 20°—40° high, with a trunk 18′—20′ in diameter, slender remote
and often contorted branches somewhat pendulous toward the ends, forming
a narrow symmetrical round-topped head, and slender branchlets covered
with scattered oblong orange-colored lenticels, bright red-brown and
very lustrous during their first season, gradually turning light gray
tinged with red, ultimately dark gray, and much roughened for two or
three years by the elevated leaf-scars. Winter-buds slightly resinous,
conic, acute, often incurved, about ¼′ long, narrower than the more
obtuse flower-buds, with 6 or 7 lustrous glabrous red-brown scales
scarious on the margins. Bark thin, pale yellow-brown or orange-green,
often roughened by horizontal bands of circular wart-like excrescences,
frequently marked below the branches by large rows of lunate dark scars.
Wood light brown, with nearly white sapwood of 25—30 layers of annual
growth.
Distribution. Southern Labrador to the southern shores of Hudson’s Bay
and northwesterly to the mouth of the Mackenzie River, through the
northern states to the mountains of Pennsylvania, northern Ohio, Indiana
and Illinois, eastern and central Iowa and northeastern Missouri; common
and generally distributed usually on moist sandy soil and gravelly
hillsides; most valuable in the power of its seeds to germinate quickly
in soil made infertile by fire and of its seedlings to grow rapidly in
exposed situations; westward passing into the var. _aurea_ Daniels, with
thicker rhombic to semiorbicular or broad-ovate generally smaller
leaves, usually pale on the lower surface, rounded or acute and minutely
short-pointed at apex, rounded or cuneate at base, often entire with
slightly thickened margins, or occasionally coarsely crenately serrate,
with inconspicuous reticulate veinlets, turning bright golden yellow in
the autumn before falling.
A tree occasionally 100° high with a trunk up to 3° in diameter, with
pale often white bark, becoming near the base of old stems 2′ thick,
nearly black, and deeply divided into broad flat ridges broken on the
surface into small appressed plate-like scales.
Distribution. Valley of the Yukon River to Saskatchewan, and southward
through the mountain ranges of the Rocky Mountain region to southern New
Mexico, the San Francisco Mountains of Arizona, and westward to the
valley of the Skeena River, British Columbia, western Washington and
Oregon, the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada and the high mountains
of southern California, and eastward to North and South Dakota and
western Nebraska; on the mountains of Chihuahua, and on the Sierra de
Laguna, Lower California.
Populus tremuloides var. vancouveriana Sarg.
_Populus vancouveriana Trel._
[Illustration: Fig. 116]
Leaves broadly ovate to semiorbicular, abruptly short-pointed or rounded
at apex, rounded or slightly cordate at the broad base, coarsely
crenately serrate and sometimes obscurely crispate on the margins, when
they unfold covered below and on the petioles with a thick coat of long
matted pale hairs, and slightly villose, glabrous or nearly glabrous
above, soon glabrous, and at maturity thick dark green, lustrous and
scabrate on the upper surface, paler on the lower surface, 3′—4½′ long
and broad, with a prominent midrib and primary veins; petioles slender,
compressed, becoming glabrous, 2′—3′ in length. Flowers: staminate
aments slightly villose; pedicels pubescent; disk of the flower
puberulous toward the base; flowers as in the species; pistillate aments
2′—2¼′ long, becoming 3′—3½′ in length at maturity; the rachis, pedicels
and slightly lobed disk of the flower densely villose-pubescent; ovary
conic, pubescent, with a short style and stigma divided into narrow
divergent lobes. Fruit on pedicel not more than 1/24′ in length,
oblong-conic, pubescent or glabrous, ¼′ long.
A tree 30°—36° high, with a trunk 12′—16′ in diameter, stout spreading
branches forming a round-topped head, stout, reddish brown pubescent or
puberulous branchlets often becoming glabrous during their first summer.
Winter-buds acute, tomentose, pubescent or glabrous.
Coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia and shores of Puget Sound;
Tualitin, Washington County, and valley of the Willamette River at
Corvallis, Benton County, Oregon.
2. Populus grandidentata Michex. Poplar.
[Illustration: Fig. 117]
Leaves semiorbicular to broad-ovate, short-pointed at apex, rounded,
abruptly cuneate or rarely truncate at the broad entire base, coarsely
repand-dentate above with few stout incurved teeth, covered like the
petioles early in the season with white tomentum, soon glabrous, thin
and firm in texture, dark green above, paler on the lower surface, 2′—3′
long, 2′—2½′ wide, with a prominent yellow midrib, conspicuously forked
veins, and reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, laterally compressed,
1½′—2½′ long. Flowers: aments pubescent, 1½′—2½′ long, the pistillate
becoming 4′—5′ long at maturity; scales pale and scarious below, divided
above into 5 or 6 small irregular acute lobes covered with soft pale
hairs; disk shallow, oblique, the staminate entire, the pistillate
slightly crenate; stamens 6—12, with short slender filaments and light
red anthers; ovary oblong-conic, bright green, puberulous, with a short
style, and spreading stigmas divided nearly to the base into elongated
filiform lobes. Fruit ripening before the leaves are fully grown, often
more or less curved above the middle, light green and puberulous,
thin-walled, 2-valved, about ⅛′ long; pedicel slender, pubescent, about
1/12′ in length; seeds minute dark brown.
A tree, often 60°—70° high, with a trunk occasionally 2° in diameter,
slender rather rigid branches forming a narrow round-topped head, and
stout branchlets marked by scattered oblong orange-colored lenticels,
coated when they first appear with thick hoary deciduous tomentum,
becoming during their first year dark red-brown or dark orange-colored,
glabrous, lustrous, or covered with a delicate gray pubescence, and in
their second year dark gray sometimes slightly tinged with green and
much roughened by the elevated 3-lobed leaf-scars; generally smaller,
and usually not more than 30°—40° tall. Winter-buds terete, broadly
ovoid, acute, with light bright chestnut-brown scales, pubescent during
the winter especially on their thin scarious margins, about ⅛′ long and
not more than half the size of the flower-buds. Bark thin, smooth, light
gray tinged with green, becoming near the base of old trunks ¾′—1′
thick, dark brown tinged with red, irregularly fissured and divided into
broad flat ridges roughened on the surface by small thick closely
appressed scales. Wood light brown, with thin nearly white sapwood of
20—30 layers of annual growth.
Distribution. Rich moist sandy soil near the borders of swamps and
streams; Nova Scotia, through New Brunswick, southern Quebec and Ontario
to northern Minnesota, southward through the northern states to
Pennsylvania, northern Ohio, and eastern (Muscatine County) and central
Iowa, and westward to central Kentucky and Tennessee; passing into the
var. _meridionalis_ Tidestrom with broad-ovate acuminate leaves with
more numerous teeth, often 4′—5′ long and 3′ wide; the common form in
Maryland, northern Delaware, the piedmont region of Virginia and North
Carolina, southern Ohio, and southern Indiana and Illinois; rare
northward to northern New England.
3. Populus heterophylla L. Swamp Cottonwood. Black Cottonwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 118]
Leaves broadly ovate, gradually narrowed and acute, short-pointed or
rounded at apex, slightly cordate or truncate or rounded at the wide
base, usually furnished with a narrow deep sinus, finely or coarsely
crenately serrate with incurved glandular teeth, covered as they unfold
with thick hoary deciduous tomentum, becoming thin and firm in texture,
dark deep green above, pale and glabrous below, with a stout yellow
midrib, forked veins and conspicuous reticulate veinlets, 4′—7′ long,
3′—6′ wide; petioles slender terete tomentose or nearly glabrous 2½′—3½′
in length. Flowers: staminate aments broad, densely flowered, 1′ long,
erect when the flowers first open, becoming pendulous and 2′—2½′ long;
scales narrowly oblong-obovate, brown, scarious and glabrous below,
divided into numerous elongated filiform light red-brown lobes; disk
oblique, slightly concave; stamens 12—20, with slender filaments about
as long as the large dark red anthers; pistillate aments slender,
pendulous, few-flowered, 1′—2′ long, becoming erect and 4′—6′ long
before maturing, their scales concave and infolding the flowers,
linear-obovate, brown and scarious, laterally lobed, fimbriate above the
middle, caducous; disk thin, irregularly divided in numerous triangular
acute teeth, long-stalked; ovary ovoid, terete or obtusely 3-angled,
with a short stout elongated style and 2 or 3 much-thickened dilated 2
or 3-lobed stigmas. Fruit on elongated pedicels, ripening when the
leaves are about one third grown, ovoid, acute, dark red-brown, rather
thick-walled, 2 or 3-valved, about ½′ long; seeds obovoid, minute, dark
red-brown.
A tree, 80°—90° high, with a tall trunk 2°—3° in diameter, short rather
slender branches forming a comparatively narrow round-topped head, and
stout branchlets, marked by small elongated pale lenticels, coated at
first with hoary caducous tomentum, becoming dark brown and rather
lustrous or ashy gray, or rarely pale orange color and glabrous or
slightly puberulous, or covered with a glaucous bloom in their first
winter, growing darker in their second year and much roughened by the
large thickened leaf-scars; usually much smaller and at the north rarely
more than 40° tall. Winter-buds slightly resinous, broadly ovoid, acute,
with bright red-brown scales, about ¼′ long and about one half the size
of the flower-buds. Bark on young trunks divided by shallow fissures
into broad flat ridges separating on the surface into thick plate-like
scales, becoming on old trunks ¾′—1′ thick, light brown tinged with red,
and broken into long narrow plates attached only at the middle and
sometimes persistent for many years. Wood dull brown, with thin lighter
brown sapwood of 12—15 layers of annual growth; now often manufactured
into lumber in the valley of the Mississippi River and in the Gulf
states, and as black poplar used in the interior finish of buildings.
Distribution. Southington, Connecticut, and Northport, Long Island,
southward near the coast to southern Georgia, and the valley of the
lower Apalachicola River, Florida, through the Gulf states to western
Louisiana, and through Arkansas to southeastern Missouri, western
Kentucky and Tennessee, southern Illinois and Indiana, and in central
and northern Ohio (Williams, Ottawa and Lake Counties); in the north
Atlantic states in low wet swamps, rare and local; more common south and
west on the borders of river swamps; very abundant and of its largest
size in the valley of the lower Ohio and in southeastern Missouri,
eastern Arkansas, and western Mississippi.
4. Populus tacamahacca Mill. Balsam. Tacamahac.
_Populus balsamifera_ Du Roi, not L.
[Illustration: Fig. 119]
Leaves ovate-lanceolate, gradually narrowed and acuminate at apex,
cordate or rounded at base, or narrow-elliptic and acute or acuminate at
the ends, finely crenately serrate, with slightly thickened revolute
margins, coated when they unfold with the gummy secretions of the bud,
glabrous, or puberulous on the under side of the midrib, becoming thin
and firm in texture, deep dark green and lustrous above, pale green or
glaucous and more or less rusty and conspicuously reticulate-venulose
below, 3′—5′ long, 1½′—3′ wide, with thin veins running obliquely almost
to the margins; petioles slender, terete, 1½′ long, glabrous or rarely
puberulous. Flowers: aments long-stalked, the pistillate becoming 4′—5′
long before the fruit ripens, glabrous or pubescent; scales broadly
obovate, light brown and scarious, often irregularly 3-parted at apex,
cut into short thread-like brown lobes; disk of the staminate flower
oblique, short-stalked; stamens 20—30, with short filaments and large
light red anthers; disk of the pistillate flower cup-shaped; ovary
ovoid, slightly 2-lobed, with two nearly sessile large oblique dilated
crenulate stigmas. Fruit ovoid-oblong, acute and often curved at apex,
2-valved, light brown, about ¼′—⅓′ long, nearly sessile or
short-stalked, ½′—⅛′ in length; seeds oblong-obovoid, pointed at apex,
narrowed and truncate at base, light brown, about 1/12′ long.
A tree, often 100° high, with a tall trunk 6°—7° in diameter, stout
erect branches usually more or less contorted near the end, forming a
comparatively narrow open head, and glabrous or occasionally pubescent
branchlets marked by oblong bright orange-colored lenticels, much
roughened by the thickened leaf-scars, at first red-brown and glabrous
or pubescent, becoming bright and lustrous in their first winter, dark
orange-colored in their second year, and finally gray tinged with
yellow-green; usually much smaller toward the southern limits of its
range. Winter-buds saturated with a yellow balsamic sticky exudation,
ovoid, terete, long-pointed; terminal 1′ long, ⅓′ broad; axillary about
¾′ long, 1/16′ broad, with 5 oblong pointed concave closely imbricated
thick chestnut-brown lustrous scales. Bark light brown tinged with red,
smooth or roughened by dark excrescences, becoming on old trunks ¾′—1′
thick, gray tinged with red, and divided into broad rounded ridges
covered by small closely appressed scales. Wood light brown, with thick
nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. Low often inundated river-bottom lands and swamp borders;
Labrador to latitude 65° north in the valley of the Mackenzie River, and
to the Alaskan coast, south to northern New England and New York,
central Michigan, Minnesota (except in southern and southwestern
counties), Turtle Mountains, Rolette County, North Dakota, the Black
Hills of South Dakota, northwestern Nebraska (basin of Hat Creek), and
in Colorado; the characteristic tree on the streams of the prairie
region of British America, attaining its greatest size on the islands
and banks of the Peace, Athabasca, and other tributaries of the
Mackenzie; common in all the region near the northern boundary of the
United States from Maine to the western limits of the Atlantic forests;
the largest of the sub-Arctic American trees, and in the far north the
most conspicuous feature of vegetation; passing into the variety
_Michauxii_ Farwell, with more cordate leaves, slightly pilose on the
under side of the midrib and veins; common from Aroostook County, Maine,
to the Province of Quebec, Newfoundland, and the shores of Hudson Bay.
Often planted at the north for shelter or ornament.
_Populus candicans_ Ait., the Balm of Gilead of which only the
pistillate tree is known, has often been considered a variety of the
North American Balsam Poplar. This tree has been long cultivated in the
northeastern part of the country and has sometimes escaped from
cultivation and formed groves of considerable extent, as on the banks of
Cullasagee Creek on the western slope of the Blue Ridge in Macon County,
North Carolina. The fact that only one sex is known suggests hybrid
origin but of obscure and possibly partly of foreign origin.
5. Populus trichocarpa Hook. Black Cottonwood. Balsam Cottonwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 120]
Leaves broad-ovate, acute or acuminate at apex, rounded or abruptly
cuneate at base, finely crenately serrate, glabrous, dark green above,
pale and rusty or silvery white and conspicuously reticulate-venulose
below, 3′—4′ long, 2′—2½′ wide; petioles slender, pubescent, puberulous,
pilose or rarely glabrous, 1½′—2′ in length. Flowers: aments stalked,
villose-pubescent, the staminate densely flowered, 1½′—2′ long, ⅓′
thick, the pistillate loosely flowered, 2½′—3′ long, becoming 4′—5′ long
before the fruit ripens; scales dilated at the apex, irregularly cut
into numerous filiform lobes, glabrous or slightly puberulous on the
outer surface; disk of the staminate flower broad, slightly oblique;
stamens 40—60, with slender elongated filaments longer than the large
light purple anthers; disk of the pistillate flower deep cup-shaped,
with irregularly crenate or nearly entire revolute margins; ovary
subglobose, coated with thick hoary tomentum, with 3 nearly sessile
broadly dilated deeply lobed stigmas. Fruit subglobose, nearly sessile,
pubescent, thick-walled, 3-valved; seeds obovoid, apiculate at the
gradually narrowed apex, light brown, puberulous toward the ends, 1/12′
long.
A tree, 30°—100° high, with a trunk 1°—3° in diameter, erect branches
forming an open head, and slender branchlets terete or slightly angled
while young, marked by many orange-colored lenticels, glabrous or when
they first appear coated with deciduous rufous or pale pubescence,
reddish brown during their first year, gradually becoming dark gray, and
roughened by the greatly enlarged and thickened elevated leaf-scars.
Winter-buds resinous, fragrant, ovoid, long-pointed, frequently curved
above the middle, ¾′ long and ¼′ thick, with 6 or 7 light orange-brown
slightly puberulous scales scarious on the margins. Bark ½′—2½′ thick,
ashy gray, deeply divided into broad rounded ridges broken on the
surface into thick closely appressed scales. Wood light, dull brown,
with thin nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. In California in small groves with widely scattered
individuals on the coast ranges, the western slope of the Sierra Nevada
up to elevations of 6000°—8000°, and on the southern mountains to Mt.
Palomar in San Diego County; on the California islands, and on the
western slopes of the San Pedro Mártir Mountains, Lower California.
On the high Sierra Nevada and in northern California passing into the
var. _hastata_ A. Henry, differing in its thicker leaves, usually longer
in proportion to their width, often long-acuminate, rounded or cordate
at base, frequently 5′ or 6′ long and 3′ or 4′ wide, with glabrous
petioles and larger sometimes nearly glabrous capsules on glabrous or
pubescent aments, sometimes 10′—12′ in length, and in its glabrous young
branchlets.
A tree sometimes 200° high, with a trunk 7°—8° in diameter, and the
largest deciduous-leaved tree of northwestern North America. The wood is
largely used in Oregon and Washington for the staves of sugar barrels
and in the manufacture of wooden ware.
Distribution. In open groves on rich bottom lands of streams from
Siskiyou County, California, to southern Alaska; eastward in the United
States through Oregon and Washington to western and southern Idaho; and
to the mountains of western Nevada; in British Columbia to the valley of
the Columbia River; on the banks of the east fork of the Kaweah River,
Tulare County, California, at 10,000° above the sea.
6. Populus angustifolia James. Narrow-leaved Cottonwood.
_Populus fortissima_ A. Nels & Macbr.
[Illustration: Fig. 121]
Leaves lanceolate, ovate-lanceolate, elliptic or rarely obovate,
narrowed to the tapering acute or rounded apex, gradually narrowed and
cuneate or rounded at base, finely or on vigorous shoots coarsely
serrate, thin and firm, bright yellow-green above, glabrous or rarely
puberulous and paler below, 2′—3′ long, ½′—1′ wide, or on vigorous
shoots occasionally 6′—7′ long, and 1½′ wide, with a stout yellow midrib
and numerous slender-oblique primary veins arcuate and often united near
the slightly thickened revolute margins; petioles slender, somewhat
flattened on the upper side, and in falling leaving small nearly oval
obcordate scars. Flowers: aments densely flowered, glabrous,
short-stalked, ½′—2½′ long, the pistillate becoming 2½′—4′ long before
the fruit ripens; scales broadly obovate, glabrous, thin, scarious,
light brown, deeply and irregularly cut into numerous dark red-brown
filiform lobes; disk of the staminate flower cup-shaped, slightly
oblique, short-stalked; stamens 12—20, with short filaments and large
light red anthers; disk of the pistillate flower shallow, cup-shaped,
slightly and irregularly lobed, short-stalked; ovary ovoid, more or less
2-lobed, with a short or elongated style and 2 oblique dilated
irregularly lobed stigmas. Fruit broadly ovoid, often rather abruptly
contracted above the middle, short-pointed, thin-walled, 2-valved;
pedicels often ⅓′ long; seeds ovoid or obovoid, rather obtuse, light
brown, nearly ⅛′ long.
A tree, 50°—60° high, with a trunk rarely more than 18′ in diameter,
slender erect branches forming a narrow and usually pyramidal head, and
slender glabrous or rarely puberulous branchlets marked by pale
lenticels, at first light yellow-green, becoming bright or dark orange
color in their first season, pale yellow in their second winter, and
ultimately ashy gray. Winter-buds very resinous, ovoid, long-pointed,
covered by usually 5 thin concave chestnut-brown scales; terminal ¼′—½′
long and nearly twice as large as the axillary buds. Bark ¾′—1′ thick,
light yellow-green, divided near the base of old trees by shallow
fissures into broad flat ridges, smooth and much thinner above. Wood
light brown, with thin nearly white sapwood of 10—30 layers of annual
growth.
Distribution. Banks of streams usually at altitudes of 5000°—10,000°
above the sea; southern Alberta to the Black Hills of South Dakota and
northwestern Nebraska (basin of Hat Creek) westward through Wyoming,
Montana and Idaho to Yakima County, Washington, and southward to central
Nevada, southwestern New Mexico (Silver City, Grant County) and northern
Arizona; the common Cottonwood of northern Colorado, Utah, Wyoming,
southern Montana, and eastern Idaho; on the mountains of Chihuahua.
7. Populus acuminata Rydb. Cottonwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 122]
Leaves rhombic-lanceolate to ovate, abruptly acuminate, gradually or
abruptly narrowed and cuneate or concave-cuneate, or rarely broad and
rounded at the mostly entire base, coarsely crenately serrate except
near the apex, dark green and lustrous above, dull green below, 2′—4′
long, ¾′—2′ wide, with a slender yellow midrib, thin remote primary
veins and obscure reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, nearly terete,
1′—3′ long. Flowers: aments slender, short-stalked, 2′—3′ long, the
pistillate becoming 4′ or 5′ long before the fruit ripens; scales
scarious, light brown, glabrous, dilated and irregularly divided into
filiform lobes; disk of the staminate flower wide, oblique, and
membranaceous; stamens numerous, with short filaments and dark red
anthers; disk of the pistillate flower deep cup-shaped; ovary
broad-ovoid, gradually narrowed above, with large laciniately lobed
nearly sessile stigmas. Fruit pedicellate, oblong-ovoid, acute,
thin-walled, slightly pitted, about ⅓′ long, 3 or rarely 2-valved; seeds
oblong-obovoid, rounded at the apex, light brown, about 1/12′ in length.
A tree, usually about 40° high, with a trunk 12′—18′ in diameter, stout
spreading and ascending branches forming a compact round-topped head,
and slender terete or slightly 4-angled pale yellow-brown branchlets
roughened for two or three years by the elevated oval horizontal
leaf-scars. Winter-buds acuminate, resinous, about ⅓′ long, with 6 or 7
light chestnut-brown lustrous scales. Bark on young stems and large
branches smooth, nearly white, becoming on old trunks pale gray-brown,
about ½′ thick, deeply divided into broad flat ridges.
Distribution. Banks of streams in the arid eastern foothill region of
the Rocky Mountains; Assiniboia to the Black Hills of South Dakota,
northwestern Nebraska, eastern Wyoming, southern Colorado, and
southwestern New Mexico (Fort Bayard, Grant County); in Colorado
crossing the Continental Divide to southeastern Utah; passing into the
var. _Rehderi_ Sarg. differing in the larger leaves on longer petioles,
and in the pubescent branchlets and winter-buds. Borders of streams
southeastern New Mexico.
Sometimes planted as a shade-tree in the streets of cities in the Rocky
Mountain region.
× _Populus Andrewsii_ Sarg. intermediate in its character between _P.
acuminata_ and _P. Sargentii_ and believed to be a natural hybrid of
these species has been found growing naturally near Boulder and
Walsenburg, Colorado, and as a street tree in Montrose, Colorado.
8. Populus Fremontii S. Wats. Cottonwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 123]
Leaves deltoid or reniform, generally contracted into broad short entire
points, or rarely rounded or emarginate at apex, truncate, slightly
cordate or abruptly cuneate at the entire base, coarsely and irregularly
serrate, with few or many incurved gland-tipped teeth, coated like the
petioles when they unfold with short spreading caducous pubescence, at
maturity thick and firm, glabrous bright green and lustrous, 2′—2½′
long, 2½′—3′ wide, with a thin yellow midrib and 4 or 5 pairs of slender
veins; petioles flattened, yellow, 1½′—3′ long. Flowers: staminate
aments densely flowered, 1½′—2′ long, nearly ½′ thick, with slender
glabrous stems, the pistillate sparsely flowered, with stout glabrous or
puberulous stems, becoming before the fruit ripens 4′ or 5′ long; scales
light brown, thin and scarious, dilated and irregularly cut at apex into
filiform lobes; disk of the staminate flower broad, oblique, slightly
thickened on the entire revolute margin; stamens 60 or more, with large
dark red anthers; disk of the pistillate flower cup-shaped; ovary ovoid
or ovoid-oblong, with 3 or rarely 4 broad irregularly crenately lobed
stigmas. Fruit ovoid, acute or obtuse, slightly pitted, thick-walled, 3
or rarely 4-valved, ⅓′—½′ long; pedicel stout, from 1/20′—⅙′ long; seeds
ovoid, acute, light brown, nearly ⅛′ in length.
A tree, occasionally 100° high, with a short trunk 5°—6° in diameter,
stout spreading branches pendulous at the ends and forming a broad
rather open graceful head, and slender terete branchlets light green and
glabrous, becoming light yellow before winter, dark or light gray more
or less tinged with yellow in their second year, and only slightly
roughened by the small 3-lobed leaf-scars. Winter-buds ovoid, acute,
with light green lustrous scales, the terminal usually about ⅓′ long and
usually two or three times as large as the lateral buds. Bark on young
stems light gray-brown, thin, smooth or slightly fissured, becoming on
old trees 1½′—2′ thick, dark brown slightly tinged with red, and deeply
and irregularly divided into broad connected rounded ridges covered with
small closely appressed scales. Wood light brown, with thin nearly white
sapwood.
Distribution. Banks of streams; valley of the upper Sacramento River
southward through western California to the San Pedro Mártir Mountains,
Lower California; most abundant in the San Joaquin Valley, and ascending
the western slopes of the southern Sierra Nevada to altitudes of 3000°.
Often planted in southern California as a shade-tree, and for the fuel
produced quickly and abundantly from pollarded trees.
[Illustration: Fig. 124]
In San Bernardino and San Diego Counties, California, generally replaced
by the var. _pubescens_ Sarg., differing in its pubescent branchlets and
ranging eastward to southwestern Nevada and southern Utah. In southern
Arizona and near Silver City, Grant County, New Mexico, represented by
the var. _Thornberii_ Sarg., differing from the typical _P. Fremontii_
in the more numerous serratures of the leaves, in the ellipsoidal not
ovoid capsules with smaller disk and shorter pedicels, and by the var.
_Toumeyi_ Sarg., differing from the type in the shallow cordate base of
the leaves, gradually narrowed and cuneate to the insertion of the
petiole, and in the larger disk of the fruit (Fig. 124). The var.
_macrodisca_ Sarg. with a broad disc nearly inclosing the ellipsoidal
fruit is known only in the neighborhood of Silver City.
× _Populus Parryi_ Sarg., a probable hybrid of _P. Fremontii_ and _P.
trichocarpa_, with characters intermediate between those of its supposed
parents, grows naturally along Cottonwood Creek on the west side of
Owens Lake, Inyo County, and in the neighborhood of Fort Tejon, Kern
County, and as a street tree is not rare in San Bernardino, California.
9. Populus arizonica Sarg. Cottonwood.
_Populus mexicana_ Sarg., not Wesm.
[Illustration: Fig. 125]
Leaves deltoid or reniform, gradually or abruptly long-pointed at the
acuminate entire apex, truncate or broad-cuneate at the wide base,
finely serrate with numerous teeth, as they unfold dark red covered
below with pale pubescence, pubescent above, ciliate on the margins,
thin, glandular with bright red caducous glands, soon becoming glabrous,
at maturity subcoriaceous, bright yellow-green, very lustrous, 1½′—2′
long and broad, with a slender yellow midrib and obscure primary veins;
petioles laterally compressed, sparingly villose when they first appear,
soon glabrous, 1½′—2′ long; leaves on vigorous leading shoots often
rounded at apex, cuneate at base, and often 2′ long and 3′ wide, with
petioles often 3′ in length. Flowers: staminate aments dense, cylindric,
1—1½′ long, the pistillate slender, many-flowered, 1½′—2′ long, becoming
3′—4′ long before the fruit ripens; disk of the staminate flower
broad-oblong; stamens numerous; disk of the pistillate flower deep
cup-shaped, nearly entire; ovary ovoid, rounded at apex, slightly 3 or
4-angled, short-stalked, nearly inclosed in the cup-shaped membranaceous
disk. Fruit on short stout pedicels, round-ovoid, buff color, slightly 3
or 4-lobed, deeply pitted, thin-walled, about ¼′ long.
A tree, 50°—70° high, with a trunk occasionally 3° in diameter,
gracefully spreading and ascending branches forming a broad open head of
wide-spreading branches, and slender often pendulous branchlets, pale
green and glabrous or puberulous when they first appear, soon becoming
glabrous, and light yellow during their first season. Winter-buds
narrow, acute, light orange-brown, puberulous toward the base of the
outer scales, the terminal about ¼′ long, and two or three times as
large as the much-compressed oblong lateral buds. Bark pale gray or
rarely white, and deeply divided into broad flat ridges.
Distribution. Banks of mountain streams; southwestern California (Mill
Creek, above Forest Home, San Bernardino Mountains) and southern and
central Arizona; widely distributed through northern Mexico (_var.
Jonesii_ Sarg.); well distinguished from the other Cottonwoods of the
United States by its small fruit.
Often planted as a street tree in the towns of southern Arizona.
10. Populus texana Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 126]
Leaves thin, glabrous, broadly ovate, gradually narrowed, long-pointed
and acuminate at apex, truncate at base, coarsely crenately serrate
below the middle, entire above, 3′—3¼′ long and 2¼′—2½′ wide; petioles
slender, compressed, 1½′—2½′ in length. Flowers not seen. Fruit: aments
slender, glabrous, 2½′—3′ long; fruit oblong-ovoid, acute, deeply
pitted, glabrous, thin-walled, 3-valved, ⅓′ in length; disk slightly
lobed; pedicel slender, 1/16′—⅛′ in length; seeds ovoid, acuminate,
1/16′ long.
A tree up to 60° high, with a trunk sometimes 3° in diameter, stout more
or less pendulous branches and stout glabrous pale yellow-brown
branchlets. Winter-buds acuminate, glabrous.
In cañons and along the streams of northwestern Texas, where it appears
to be the only Cottonwood.
11. Populus McDougallii Rose.
[Illustration: Fig. 127]
Leaves broadly ovate, abruptly short-pointed or acute at apex, broadly
or acutely cuneate or truncate, or on vigorous shoots rarely slightly
cordate at base, finely or often coarsely crenately serrate, bluish
green, thin, pubescent on the under sides of the midrib and primary
veins early in the season, otherwise glabrous, 1½′—3′ long and broad,
with slender midribs and veins; petioles slender, slightly compressed,
pubescent early in the season, becoming glabrous, 1½′—2′ in length.
Flowers not seen. Fruit: aments glabrous, short-stalked, 2′—2½′ long;
fruit ovoid and acute at apex to ellipsoidal and acute or acuminate at
ends, glabrous, slightly pitted, thin-walled, 3-valved, 5/12′—½′ long;
disk not more than ⅛′ in diameter; pedicels glabrous, ⅛′—⅕′ in length;
seeds oblong-ovoid, acuminate, ⅛′ long.
A tree rarely 90°—110° high, usually much smaller, with erect branches
and slender branchlets pubescent or puberulous when they first appear,
sometimes becoming glabrous during their first season, and sometimes
pubescent during two years.
Distribution. Banks of streams and springs, San Bernardino County,
California (Cottonwood Springs, Meca, etc.), and eastward to the bottoms
of the Colorado River from Clark County, Nevada, to Yuma, Arizona, and
probably the only Cottonwood in this arid region.
Often planted as a street tree in the towns of southwestern California
and of adjacent Nevada and Arizona.
12. Populus Wislizenii Sarg. Cottonwood.
[Illustration: Fig. 128]
Leaves broadly deltoid, abruptly short- or long-pointed at apex,
truncate or sometimes cordate at the broad entire base, coarsely and
irregularly crenately serrate except toward the entire apex, coriaceous,
glabrous, yellow-green and lustrous, 2′—2½′ long, usually about 3′ wide,
with a slender yellow midrib, thin remote primary veins and conspicuous
reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, glabrous, 1½′—2′ long; on
vigorous shoots often 3½′—4′ long and wide with petioles 3½′—4′ in
length. Flowers: aments 2′—4′ long, the pistillate becoming 4′—5′ long
before the fruit ripens; scales scarious, light red, divided at the apex
into elongated filiform lobes; disk of the staminate flower broad and
oblique; stamens numerous, with large oblong anthers and short
filaments; disk of the pistillate flower cup-shaped, irregularly
dentate, inclosing to the middle the long stalked ovary full and rounded
at apex, with 3 broad crenulate lobed stigmas raised on the short
branches of the style. Fruit oblong-ovoid, thick-walled, acute, 3 or
4-valved, slightly ridged, buff color, ¼′ long; pedicels slender, ½′—¾′
in length and placed rather remotely on the slender glabrous rachis of
the ament.
A large tree, with wide-spreading branches, and stout light
orange-colored glabrous branchlets. Winter-buds acute lustrous,
puberulous. Bark pale gray-brown, deeply divided into broad flat ridges.
Wood used as fuel, for fence-posts and the rafters of Mexican houses.
Distribution. Western Texas through New Mexico to the valley of Grand
River, western Colorado (Grand Junction, Mesa County); common in the
valley of the Rio Grande in western Texas and New Mexico, and the
adjacent parts of Mexico.
Often planted as a shade tree in New Mexico.
13. Populus Sargentii Dode.
_Populus deltoides_ var. _occidentalis_ Rydb.
[Illustration: Fig. 129]
Leaves ovate, usually longer than broad, abruptly narrowed into a long
slender entire acuminate point or rarely rounded at apex, truncate or
slightly cordate at base, and coarsely crenately serrate, as they unfold
slightly villose above and tomentose on the margins, soon glabrous,
light green and very lustrous, 3′—3½′ long, 3½′—4′ wide, with a thin
midrib, slender primary veins and reticulate veinlets occasionally
furnished on the upper side at the insertion of the petiole with one or
two small glands; petioles slender, compressed laterally, 2½′—3½′ long.
Flowers: aments short-stalked, glabrous, the staminate 2′—2½′ in length,
the pistillate becoming 4′—8′ long before the fruit ripens; scales
fimbriately divided at apex, scarious, light brown; disk of the
staminate flower broad, oblique, slightly thickened on the margins;
stamens 20 or more, with short filaments and yellow anthers; disk of the
pistillate flower cup-shaped, slightly lobed on the margin; ovary
subglobose, with 3 or 4 sessile dilated or laciniately lobed stigmas.
Fruit oblong-ovoid, gradually or abruptly narrowed to the blunt apex,
thin-walled, about ⅖′ long and three or four times longer than the
pedicel; seeds oblong-obovoid, rounded at apex, about 1/16′ in length.
A tree 60°—90° tall with a trunk often 6° or 7° in diameter, erect and
spreading branches forming a broad open head, and stout glabrous light
yellow often angular branchlets conspicuously roughened by the elevated
scars of fallen leaf-stalks. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, with light
orange-brown puberulous scales. Bark pale, thick, divided by deep
fissures into broad rounded ridges broken into closely appressed scales.
Distribution. The common Cottonwood along the streams in the eastern
foothill region of the Rocky Mountains from Saskatchewan to New Mexico,
and ranging east to the Dakotas, western Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and
Texas.
Often planted as a shade and street tree in the Rocky Mountain states;
hardy in Massachusetts.
14. Populus balsamifera L. Cottonwood.
_Populus angulata_ Michx. f.
[Illustration: Fig. 130]
Leaves ovate, longer than broad, abruptly acuminate and often
long-pointed at apex, subcordate or rarely truncate at the wide base,
finely crenately serrate with glandular teeth, furnished on the upper
surface at the insertion of the petiole with two glands, thick,
glabrous, green and lustrous on the upper surface, paler below, 5′—7′
long and 4′—5′ wide, with stout midribs and conspicuous primary veins
sometimes sparingly pilose below early in the season; petioles much
compressed laterally, often more or less tinged with red, 3′—4′ in
length. Flowers: aments glabrous, short-stalked, the staminate densely
flowered, 1½′—2′ long, ½′—¾′ in diameter, the pistillate slender,
sparsely flowered, 3′—3½′ in length; scales scarious, light brown,
glabrous, dilated and irregularly divided at apex into filiform lobes;
disk of the staminate flower broad, oblique, slightly thickened and
revolute on the margins; stamens 60 or more, with short filaments and
large dark red anthers; disk of the pistillate flower broad, slightly
crenate, inclosing about ⅓′ of the ovoid obtusely pointed ovary, with 3
or 4 sessile dilated laciniately lobed stigmas. Fruit on aments 8′—12′
in length, ellipsoidal, pointed, thin-walled, 3 or 4-valved, ⅓′ long,
the disk little enlarged; pedicels ⅙′—¼′ in length; seeds
oblong-obovoid, rounded at apex, light brown, about 1/12′ long.
A large tree with massive spreading branches and stout yellow-brown
often angular branchlets. Winter-buds resinous, acute, ½′ long with
light chestnut brown lustrous scales.
Distribution. Shores of Lake Champlain (Shelburne Point, Chittenden
County), Vermont; western New York; Island of the Delaware River above
Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania; Baltimore County, and Bare
Hills, Maryland; northern banks of the Potomac River opposite Plummer’s
Island near Washington, D.C.; Artisia, Lowndes County, and Starkville,
Oktibbeha County, Mississippi; rare and local.
Populus balsamifera var. virginiana Sarg. Cottonwood.
_Populus deltoidea_ Marsh. at least in part.
_Populus nigra β virginiana_ Castiglioni.
[Illustration: Fig. 131]
Leaves deltoid to ovate-deltoid, acuminate with entire points, truncate,
slightly cordate or occasionally abruptly cuneate at the entire base,
crenately serrate above, with incurved glandular teeth, fragrant with a
balsamic odor, glabrous, thick and firm, light bright green and
lustrous, paler on the lower than on the upper surface, 3′—5′ long and
broad, with a stout yellow midrib often tinged with red toward the base,
raised and rounded on the upper side, and conspicuous primary veins;
petioles slender, pilose at first, soon glabrous, compressed laterally,
yellow often more or less tinged with red, 2½′—3½′ long. Flowers and
Fruit: as on the type.
A tree, sometimes 100° high, with a trunk occasionally 7°—8° in
diameter, divided often 20°—30° above the ground into several massive
limbs spreading gradually and becoming pendulous toward the ends, and
forming a graceful rather open head frequently 100° across, or on young
trees nearly erect above and spreading below almost at right angles with
the stem, and forming a symmetrical pyramidal head, and stout branchlets
marked with long pale lenticels, terete, or, especially on vigorous
trees, becoming angled in their second year, with thin more or less
prominent wings extending downward from the two sides and from the base
of the large 3-lobed leaf-scars. Winter-buds very resinous, ovoid,
acute, the lateral much flattened, ½′ long, with 6 or 7 light
chestnut-brown lustrous scales. Bark thin, smooth, light yellow tinged
with green on young stems and branches, becoming on old trunks 1½′—2′
thick, ashy gray, and deeply divided into broad rounded ridges broken
into closely appressed scales. Wood dark brown, with thick nearly white
sapwood, warping badly in drying and difficult to season.
Distribution. Banks of streams, often forming extensive open groves, and
toward the western limits of its range occasionally in upland ravines
and on bluffs; Province of Quebec and the shores of Lake Champlain,
through western New England, western New York, Pennsylvania west of the
Allegheny Mountains, and westward to southern Minnesota, North and South
Dakota, eastern Nebraska, eastern Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and
southward through the Atlantic states from Delaware to western Florida,
and through the Gulf states to western Texas (Brown County). In the
south Atlantic states and the valley of the Lower Ohio River and
southward sometimes replaced by a variety with leaves covered above when
they unfold with soft white hairs and below with close pubescence more
or less persistent during the season especially on the midribs and veins
(var. _pilosa_ Sarg.).
Often planted for shelter and ornament on the treeless plains and
prairies between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, and as
an ornamental tree in the eastern United States and largely in western
and northern Europe.
× _Populus canadensis_ Moench, believed to be a hybrid between the
northern glabrous form of _P. balsamifera_ and the European _P. nigra_
L., with several varieties, is cultivated in Europe and occasionally in
the United States. The best known of these varieties, × _P. canadensis_
var. _Eugenie_ Schelle, the Carolina Poplar of American nurseries,
believed to be a hybrid of the northern Cottonwood with the Lombardy
Poplar, has been planted in the United States in immense numbers.
× _Populus Jackii_ Sarg., believed to be a hybrid of the northern
Cottonwood with _P. tacamahacca_, with characters intermediate between
those of its supposed parents, grows spontaneously near the mouth of the
Chateaugay River and at Beauharnois, Province of Quebec, and at South
Haven, Michigan, and is now occasionally cultivated.
15. Populus Palmeri Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 132]
Leaves thin, ovate, gradually or abruptly contracted at apex into a
narrow acuminate entire point, cuneate or rounded at the broad base,
finely serrate with incurved teeth, ciliate on the margins when they
unfold, otherwise glabrous, 2½′—5′ long and 1½′—2¼′ wide; petioles
slender, glabrous, 1½′—2½′ in length. Flowers not seen. Fruit: aments
glabrous, 12—15 cm. long; fruit ovoid, obtuse, slightly pitted,
puberulous, thin-walled, 4-valved, ¼′—⅓′ long, the disk deeply lobed;
pedicel slender, ¼′—⅓′ in length.
A tree 60° tall, with a straight trunk 3° in diameter, erect smooth pale
branches forming an open pyramidal head, the lower branches smaller,
horizontal or pendulous, and slender glabrous branchlets light reddish
brown early in the season, becoming pale grayish brown in their second
year. Bark pale, 3′—4′ thick, deeply divided by wide fissures into
narrow ridges.
Distribution. In moist fertile soil near springs, at the base of high
chalky bluffs of Nueces Cañon of the upper Nueces River, Uvalde County,
growing with _Salix nigra_ var. _Lindheimeri_, _Carya pecan_, _Morus
rubra_ and _Ulmus crassifolia_, and at Strawn, Palo Pinto County, Texas.
2. SALIX L. Willow.
Trees or shrubs, with watery juice, scaly bark, soft wood, slender
terete tough branchlets often easily separated at the joints, and
winter-buds covered by a single scale of 2 coats, the inner
membranaceous, stipular, rarely separable from the outer, inclosing at
its base 2 minute opposite lateral buds alternate with 2 small
scale-like caducous leaves coated with long pale or rufous hairs. Leaves
variously folded in the bud, alternate, simple, lanceolate, obovate,
rotund or linear, penniveined; petioles sometimes glandular at the apex,
and more or less covering the bud, in falling leaving U-shaped or
arcuate elevated leaf-scars displaying the ends of 3 small equidistant
fibro-vascular bundles; stipules oblique, serrate, small and deciduous,
or foliaceous and often persistent, generally large and conspicuous on
vigorous young branches, leaving in falling minute persistent scars.
Flowers in sessile or stalked aments, terminal and axillary on leafy
branchlets; scales of the ament lanceolate, concave, rotund or obovate,
entire or glandular-dentate, of uniform color or dark-colored toward the
apex, more or less hairy, deciduous or persistent; disk of the flower
nectariferous, composed of an anterior and posterior or of a single
posterior gland-like body; stamens 3—12 or 1 or 2, inserted on the base
of the scale, with slender filaments free or rarely united and usually
light yellow, glabrous, or hairy toward the base, and small ovoid or
oblong anthers generally rose-colored before anthesis, becoming orange
or purple; ovary sessile or stipitate, conic, obtuse to
subulate-rostrate, glandular at the base, glabrous, tomentose or
villose, with an abbreviated style divided into 2 short recurved retuse
or 2-parted stigmas; ovules 4—8 on each of the 2 placentas. Fruit an
acuminate 1-celled capsule separating at maturity into 2 recurved
valves. Seeds minute, narrowed at the ends, dark chestnut-brown or
nearly black; cotyledons oblong.
Salix inhabits the banks of streams and low moist ground, the alpine
summits of mountains, and the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of the
northern hemisphere, ranging south in the New World, with a few species,
through the West Indies and Central America to Brazil, and the Andes of
Chile, and in the Old World to Madagascar, southern Africa, the
Himalayas, Burmah, the Malay peninsula, Java, and Sumatra. Of the 160 or
170 species which are now recognized about seventy are found in North
America. Of these twenty-four attain the size and habit of trees, the
others being small and sometimes prostrate shrubs. Of exotic species,
_Salix alba_ L., and _Salix fragilis_ L., important European
timber-trees, are now generally naturalized in the northeastern states.
The flexible tough branches of several species are used in making
baskets; the bark is rich in tannic acid and is used in tanning leather
and yields salicin, a bitter principle valuable as a tonic. Many of the
species are cultivated as ornamental trees.
_Salix_ is the classical name of the Willow-tree.
CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN ARBORESCENT SPECIES
Scales of the flowers deciduous, pale straw color.
Stamens 3 or more.
Leaves green on both surfaces; petioles without glands at the base
of the leaves; branchlets easily separable.
Branchlets reddish or grayish purple; leaves mostly
narrow-lanceolate; capsule glabrous.
1. S. nigra (A, C, E).
Branchlets yellowish-gray; leaves lanceolate to
elliptic-lanceolate; capsule often more or less pubescent.
2. S. Gooddingii (F, G, H).
Leaves (at least when fully grown) pale or glaucous below.
Petioles without glands.
Branchlets easily separable.
Leaves narrow-lanceolate to lanceolate; petioles less than
½′ long.
3. S. Harbisonii (C).
Leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, caudate; petioles
½′—¾′ long.
4. S. amygdaloides (A, B).
Branchlets not easily separable.
Capsules short-stalked (pedicels hardly more than 1/24′
long), ovoid-conic, up to ⅕′ in length; leaves more or
less narrow-lanceolate, petioles glabrous or nearly
so.
5. S. Bonplandiana (H).
Capsules long-stalked (pedicels 1/12′—⅙′ long), more or less
acuminate.
Petioles puberulous; leaves lanceolate to
ovate-lanceolate; stipules without glands on their
inner surface; capsules hardly more than ¼′ long.
6. S. lævigata (G, F).
Petioles hairy-tomentose; leaves lanceolate; stipules
glandular on their inner surface; capsules ¼′—¾′
long.
7. S. longipes (C, D).
Petioles glandular; leaves lanceolate to broadly ovate, caudate;
branchlets easily separable.
Leaves distinctly pale or glaucous below, lanceolate to
ovate-lanceolate.
8. S. lasiandra (B, G).
Leaves pale green below, ovate to elliptic-lanceolate,
abruptly caudate-acuminate.
9. S. lucida (A).
Stamens 2.
Stigmas linear, 4 or 5 times longer than broad.
Leaves linear, hardly more than ⅓′ long; anthers very small,
globose; aments small, in fruit hardly up to ⅘′ in length.
10. S. taxifolia (H).
Leaves linear-lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate; up to 2′ in
length; anthers ellipsoid; aments longer.
11. S. sessilifolia (B, G).
Stigmas short, hardly 2 or 3 times longer than broad.
Mature leaves covered below with appressed white silky hairs,
those of flowering branchlets entire or barely
denticulate.
12. S. exigua (B, F, G).
Mature leaves glabrous below, those of flowering branchlets more
or less distinctly denticulate.
13. S. longifolia (A, F).
Scales of the flowers persistent, dark brown or fuscous, at least
toward the apex (in _S. Bebbiana_ more or less straw-colored or
tawny).
Stamens 2.
Ovaries glabrous.
Leaves more or less denticulate or serrate; styles short.
Base of leaf cuneate or rounded.
Leaves acute, oblanceolate to narrowly lanceolate; filaments
mostly united below.
14. S. lasiolepis (G).
Leaves mostly acuminate; filaments free.
Branchlets glabrous, lustrous; leaves oblanceolate to
narrowly obovate, up to 2′ in length; pedicels ⅛′—⅙′
long; stipules small.
15. S. Mackenzieana (A, G).
Branchlets pubescent; leaves narrowly lanceolate to
ovate-lanceolate, 4′—6′ long; pedicels 1.5—2.5 mm.
long.
16. S. missouriensis (A).
Base of leaf mostly more or less cordate; leaves glabrous;
filaments free; pedicels long.
17. S. pyrifolia (A).
Leaves entire, oval to broad-obovate; branchlets
villose-pubescent during their first season.
18. S. amplifolia.
Ovaries pubescent (glabrous often in No. 23).
Leaves covered with a soft dense felt-like tomentum,
oblong-lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate.
19. S. alaxensis (B).
Leaves glabrous or more or less villose-pubescent below.
Bracts of the flowers pale or tawny, often reddish at the tip;
pedicels up to ⅕′ in length; leaves elliptic-lanceolate
to obovate, reticulate beneath in age, pubescent or
glabrate.
20. S. Bebbiana.
Bracts of the flowers brown or fuscous.
Stipules more or less distinctly developed; pedicels several
times longer than the short styles.
Leaves elliptic-lanceolate to oblong-elliptic; mostly
glabrous in age.
21. S. discolor (A, B, F).
Leaves oblanceolate to cuneate-obovate, covered beneath
with short hairs or at maturity with a gray
villose-pubescence.
22. S. Scouleriana (A, B).
Stipules usually wanting; pedicels hardly longer than the
distinct styles; leaves broad-elliptic to
obovate-oblong, more or less grayish villose beneath.
23. S. Hookeriana (B, G).
Stamens usually 1; leaves obovate-oblong, densely covered below with
lustrous silvery white silky tomentum.
24. S. sitchensis (B, G).
1. Salix nigra Marsh. Black Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 133]
Leaves lanceolate, long-acuminate, often falcate, gradually cuneate or
rounded at base, finely serrate, thin bright light green, rather
lustrous, with obscure reticulate veins, glabrous or often pubescent on
the under side of the midribs and veins and on the short slender
petioles, 3′—6′ long, ⅛′—¾′ wide; at the north turning light yellow
before falling in the autumn; stipules semicordate, acuminate,
foliaceous, persistent, or ovoid, minute, and deciduous. Flowers: aments
terminal on leafy pubescent branches, narrowly cylindric, 1′—3′ long;
scales yellow, elliptic to obovate, rounded at apex and coated on the
inner surface with pale hairs; stamens 3—5, with filaments hairy toward
the base; ovary ovoid, short-stalked, glabrous, gradually narrowed above
the middle to the apex, with nearly sessile slightly divided stigmatic
lobes. Fruit ovoid-conic, short-stalked, glabrous, about ⅛′ long, light
reddish brown.
A tree, usually 30°—40° high, with usually several clustered stout
stems, thick spreading upright branches forming a broad somewhat
irregular open head, and reddish brown or gray-brown branchlets
pubescent when they first appear, soon glabrous, and easily separated at
the joints. Winter-buds acute, about ⅛′ long. Bark 1′—1¼′ thick, dark
brown or nearly black and deeply divided into broad flat connected
ridges separating freely into thick plate-like scales and becoming
shaggy on old trunks. Wood light, soft, weak, light reddish brown, with
thin nearly white sapwood; now sawed into lumber in the valley of the
lower Mississippi River and largely used for packing cases, cellar and
barn floors, in furniture, and in the manufacture of toys and other
purposes where strength is not important as it does not warp, check or
splinter.
Distribution. Low moist alluvial banks of streams and lakes; southern
New Brunswick through southern Quebec and Ontario to the region north of
Lake Superior, southward to northern and western North Carolina, through
the Piedmont region of South Carolina and Georgia to eastern and central
Alabama, and westward to southeastern North Dakota, eastern South
Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, the valley of Wichita River, Oklahoma, and
central and western Texas to Valverde County.
In southern Arkansas, in Louisiana and in eastern Texas _Salix nigra_ is
often replaced by var. _altissima_ Sarg., differing from the type in the
more pubescent young branchlets, leaves and petioles, in the more acute
base of the leaves and longer petioles, and in its later flowering. A
tree sometimes 120 feet high and the tallest of American Willows.
Salix nigra var. Lindheimeri Schn.
_Salix Wrightii_ Sarg., not Anders.
[Illustration: Fig. 134]
Leaves lanceolate, often slightly falcate, long-pointed and acuminate at
apex, cuneate at base, finely glandular-serrate, glabrous, light green
on the upper surface, paler below, 4′—5′ long, ⅓′—½′ wide; petioles
pubescent early in the season, becoming glabrous, ½′—¾′ in length.
Flowers: aments slender, densely villose, 2′—3′ long; scales ovate,
acute or rarely rounded at apex, covered with matted white hairs, more
abundant on the inner surface; stamens 4 or 5; filaments villose below
the middle; ovary ovoid, gradually narrowed to the apex, the 2-lobed
stigmas nearly sessile. Fruit ovoid-conic; pedicels about ¼′ long.
A tree, 50°—70° high with a trunk often 3° in diameter, large erect
spreading branches forming an open irregular head, and slender
branchlets light green and slightly pubescent when they first appear,
becoming light orange or yellow-brown and lustrous. Bark thick, pale
yellow-brown, deeply furrowed, the surface sometimes separating into
long plate-like scales.
Distribution. River banks, central and western Texas from Grayson and
Dallas Counties and the lower valley of the Brazos River to the valleys
of the San Antonio and upper Guadalupe Rivers; in Coahuila, Nuevo Leon
and Tamaulipas.
2. Salix Gooddingii Ball.
_Salix vallicola_ Britt.
[Illustration: Fig. 135]
Leaves lanceolate to narrow elliptic-lanceolate, acute or acuminate,
acutely cuneate at base, finely glandular-serrate, often slightly
falcate, silky pubescent when they unfold especially below, glabrous and
dull green at maturity, 1½′—3′ long, ¼′—½′ wide, or on vigorous shoots
5′ or 6′ long and ¾′ wide; petioles pubescent, usually becoming
glabrous, ⅙′—¼′ in length; stipules orbicular-cordate, coarsely
glandular-serrate, pubescent. Flowers: aments pubescent terminal on
leafy pubescent branchlets, narrow-cylindric, 1′—2′ long; scales
linear-oblanceolate, acute, yellow, hoary tomentose; stamens 3—5;
filaments villose toward the base; ovary ovoid-conic, gradually narrowed
to the acuminate apex, pubescent or glabrous; style distinct, 2-lobed.
Fruit ovoid, acute, light reddish brown, glabrous or pubescent, ¼′ long;
pedicels glabrous or rarely pubescent, 1/16′—⅛′ in length.
A tree, 25°—50° high, with slender light orange-colored or grayish
glabrous or pubescent easily separable branchlets. Bark rough, thick,
deeply furrowed, sometimes nearly black.
Distribution. River banks; Reed Creek, Shasta County, and Red Bluff,
Tehama County, California, southward in the interior valleys and on the
western foothills of the Sierra Nevada to the mountain valleys in the
southern part of the state, and to northern Lower California; eastward
through central and southern Arizona; in southeastern Nevada; through
southern New Mexico to western Texas (El Paso, El Paso County, and Fort
Davis, Jeff Davis County); and southward into northern Mexico.
3. Salix Harbisonii Schn.
[Illustration: Fig. 136]
Leaves linear-lanceolate, narrow-elliptic or rarely obovate-lanceolate,
acute or short-acuminate, obtusely or acutely cuneate at the base, and
finely glandular dentate; when the flowers open more or less pubescent
especially below or glabrous, and at maturity green on the upper
surface, pale on the lower surface, glabrous, 4′ or 5′ long, ¾′ broad;
petioles villose early in the season, becoming glabrous, ¼′ in length,
minutely glandular at apex; stipules wanting or minute, semicordate,
acute, pubescent on vigorous leading branches and sometimes ¼′ long.
Flowers: aments terminal on leafy branchlets, 2½′—3′ in length, their
rachis villose-pubescent; scales ovate or ovate-oblong, obtuse or acute;
stamens usually 5—7, rarely 3—9; filaments densely villose; ovary ovoid,
long-acuminate, glabrous, long-stalked; style short, distinct, 2-lobed.
Fruit acuminate and long-pointed, acute at base, ¼′ long and about as
long as its pedicel.
A tree, 30°—50° high, with a trunk 10′ or 12′ in diameter, with often
pendulous branches, and slender branchlets more or less densely
pubescent or tomentose or nearly glabrous when they first appear,
becoming glabrous and dark reddish purple in their second season, and
easily separable at the joints; often only a large shrub. Bark thick,
deeply furrowed, dark red-brown, separating on the surface into small
appressed scales.
Distribution. River banks and the borders of swamps; Dismal Swamp,
Norfolk County, Virginia; near Goldsboro, Wayne County, North Carolina;
common in the coast region of South Carolina and Georgia, extending up
the Savannah River at least as far as Augusta, Richmond County, and
through southern Georgia to the valley of the Flint River; swamps near
Jacksonville, Duval County, and in the neighborhood of Apalachicola,
Florida.
4. Salix amygdaloides Anders. Peach Willow. Almond Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 137]
Leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, frequently falcate, gradually or
abruptly narrowed into a long slender point, cuneate or gradually
rounded and often unequal at base, finely serrate, slightly puberulous
when they unfold, becoming at maturity thin and firm in texture, light
green and lustrous above, pale and glaucous below, 2½′—4′ long, ¾′—1¼′
wide, with a stout yellow or orange-colored midrib, prominent veins and
reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, nearly terete ½′—¾′ in length;
stipules reniform, serrate, often ½′ broad on vigorous shoots, usually
caducous. Flowers: aments on leafy branchlets, elongated, cylindric,
slender, arcuate, stalked, pubescent or tomentose, 2′—3′ long; scales
yellow, sparingly villose on the outer, densely villose on the inner
face, the staminate broadly ovate, rounded at the apex, the pistillate
oblong-obovate, narrower, caducous; stamens 5—9, with free filaments
slightly hairy at the base; ovary oblong-conic, long-stalked, glabrous,
with a short style and emarginate stigmas. Fruit globose-conic, light
reddish yellow, about ¼′ in length.
A tree, sometimes 60°—70° high, with a single straight or slightly
inclining trunk rarely more than 2° in diameter, straight ascending
branches, and slender glabrous or rarely pilose (f. _pilosiuscula_
Schn.) branchlets marked with scattered pale lenticels, dark orange
color or red-brown and lustrous, becoming in their first winter light
orange-brown. Winter-buds broadly ovoid, gibbous, dark chestnut-brown,
very lustrous above the middle, light orange-brown below, ⅛′ long. Bark
½′—¾′ thick, brown somewhat tinged with red, and divided by irregular
fissures into flat connected ridges separating on the surface into thick
plate-like scales. Wood light, soft, close-grained, light brown, with
thick nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. Banks of streams; Province of Quebec from the neighborhood
of Montreal to Winnipeg, and along the fiftieth degree of north latitude
to southeastern British Columbia, and to central New York, along the
southern shores of Lake Erie, and through northern Ohio to northern
Indiana, southwestern Illinois, northern and central Missouri, and to
Kansas, northwestern Oklahoma and northwestern Texas; in Colorado, Utah
and Nevada to central Oregon and southeastern Washington.
Salix amygdaloides var. Wrightii Schn.
_Salix Wrightii_ Anders.
[Illustration: Fig. 138]
Leaves lanceolate, gradually acuminate and long-pointed at apex, cuneate
at base, finely serrate, occasionally slightly falcate, glabrous,
yellow-green on the upper surface, pale on the lower surface, 1½′—2′
long, ¼′—⅓′ wide, and on vigorous summer shoots sometimes 4′ or 5′ long
and ½′ wide; petioles slender, glabrous, ¼′—⅓′ in length. Flowers and
Fruit as in the species.
A small or large tree best distinguished from _S. amygdaloides_ by the
distinctly yellow or yellowish brown glabrous branchlets.
Distribution. Barstow, Ward County, common along the Rio Grande near El
Paso and at Belon, El Paso County, and on Amarillo Creek, Potter County,
western Texas; through southern New Mexico to the Sacramento Mountains,
Otero County.
5. Salix Bonplandiana var. Toumeyi Schn.
_Salix Toumeyi._ Britt.
[Illustration: Fig. 139]
Leaves 4′—6′ long, ½′—¾′ wide, linear-lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate,
acuminate with a long slender point at apex, gradually narrowed and
often unequal at the cuneate base, obscurely serrate with glandular
teeth, or entire with revolute margins, thick and firm,
reticulate-venulose, yellow-green and lustrous above, silvery white
below, with a broad yellow midrib; falling irregularly during the
winter; petioles stout, grooved, reddish; stipules ovate, rounded,
slightly undulate, thin and scarious, ⅛′—¼′ broad, often persistent
during the summer. Flowers: aments on leafy branchlets, cylindric,
erect, slender, short-stalked, the staminate 1′—1½′ long and somewhat
longer than the pistillate; scales broadly obovate, rounded at the apex,
light yellow, villose on the outer surface and glabrous or slightly
hairy above the middle on the inner surface; stamens usually 3, with
free filaments slightly hairy at the base; ovary slender, oblong-conic,
short-stalked, glabrous, with nearly sessile much-thickened club-shaped
stigmas, sometimes nearly encircled below by the large broad ventral
gland. Fruit ovoid-conic, rounded at base, light reddish yellow.
A tree, rarely more than 30° high, with a trunk 12′—15′ in diameter,
slender erect and spreading branches often pendulous at the ends,
forming a broad round-topped head, and slender glabrous branchlets
marked with occasional pale lenticels, light yellow, becoming light or
dark red-brown and lustrous, and paler orange-brown in their second
year. Winter-buds narrowly ovoid, long-pointed, more or less falcate,
bright red-brown, lustrous, ¼′ long. Bark ½′—¾′ thick, dark brown or
nearly black, and deeply divided by narrow fissures into broad flat
ridges separating on the surface into closely appressed scales.
Distribution. Banks of streams in the cañons of the mountains of central
and southern Arizona (Sicamore Cañon near Flagstaff and Sabino Cañon,
Santa Catalina Mountains); and southwestern New Mexico (cañon, Saint
Louis Mountains, Grant County); in Chihuahua, Sonora and Lower
California.
The typical _S. Bonplandiana_ H. B. K. with broader and more coarsely
serrate leaves, and flower-aments appearing from July to January from
the axils of mature leaves is widely distributed in Mexico and ranges to
Guatemala.
6. Salix lævigata Bebb. Red Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 140]
Leaves obovate, narrowed and rounded or acute and mucronate at apex,
cuneate at base, with slightly revolute obscurely serrate margins, on
sterile branches lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, acute or acuminate,
when they unfold light blue-green and coated on the lower surface with
long pale or tawny deciduous hairs, at maturity glabrous, dark
blue-green and lustrous above, paler and glaucous below, 3′—7′ long,
¾′—1½′ wide, with a broad flat yellow midrib; petioles broad, grooved,
puberulous, rarely ½′ long; stipules ovate, acute, finely serrate,
usually small and caducous. Flowers: aments cylindric, slender, lax,
elongated, 2′—4′ long, on leafy branchlets; scales peltate, dentate at
apex, covered with long pale hairs, the staminate obovate, rounded, the
pistillate narrower and more or less truncate; stamens usually 5 or 6,
with free filaments hairy at the base; ovary conic, acute, rounded
below, short-stalked, glabrous, with broad spreading emarginate
stigmatic lobes. Fruit elongated, conic, long-stalked, nearly ¼′ in
length.
A tree, 40°—50° high, with a straight trunk 2° in diameter, slender
spreading branches, and slender light or dark orange-colored or bright
red-brown glabrous, or in one form tomentose or villose (f. _araquipa_
Jeps.) branchlets; often much smaller, with an average height of
20°—30°. Winter-buds ovoid, somewhat obtuse, pale chestnut-brown, ⅛′—¼′
long. Bark ¾′—1′ thick, dark brown slightly tinged with red and deeply
divided into irregular connected flat ridges broken on the surface into
thick closely appressed scales. Wood light, soft, light brown tinged
with red, with thick nearly white sapwood.
Distribution. Banks of streams; western California from the Oregon
boundary to the southern borders of the state, ascending to altitudes of
4500° on the western slopes of the southern Sierra Nevada, and eastward
to Mohave and Yavapai Counties, Arizona, southeastern Nevada and
southwestern Utah.
7. Salix longipes Shuttl.
_Salix amphibia_ Small.
[Illustration: Fig. 141]
Leaves lanceolate, acuminate or on fertile branches occasionally rounded
at the apex, rounded or cuneate at the base, finely serrate,
hoary-tomentose early in the season, becoming glabrous above, and pale
and glabrous or pubescent below, 2′—4′ long, ½′—¾′ wide; petioles
hoary-tomentose, ¼′—½′ long; stipules minute, ovate, acute,
hoary-tomentose, caducous, on vigorous shoots foliaceous, reniform,
serrate above the middle, often ¾′ in diameter. Flowers: aments terminal
on leafy tomentose or glabrous branchlets, narrow-cylindric, 3′ or 4′
long; scales ovate, rounded at the apex, yellow, densely
villose-pubescent; stamens 3—7, usually 5 or 6, the filaments hairy
toward the base; ovary ovoid-conic, acute, cuneate at the base with a
short 2-lobed style, and pedicels up to ¼′ in length. Fruit ovoid, often
rather abruptly contracted above the middle, ¼′ in length.
A tree, 20°—30°, high with a trunk occasionally 12′—18′ in diameter,
spreading branches, and glabrous or pubescent red-brown or gray-brown
branchlets; or more often a shrub. Bark dark, sometimes nearly black,
deeply divided into broad ridges covered by small closely appressed
scales.
Distribution. Borders of swamps and streams; coast of North Carolina
southward to the Everglade Keys of Florida, ranging westward in Florida
to the valley of the Saint Marks River, Wakulla County; in Cuba.
A variety with narrower summer leaves and longer petioles is var.
_venulosa_ Schn.
Distribution. Newbern, Craven County, North Carolina, southward near the
coast to northern and western Florida, ranging inland in Georgia to the
banks of the Savannah River near Augusta, Richmond County, and to
Traders Hill, Charlton County; in the neighborhood of New Orleans,
Louisiana (_Drummond_); in southwestern Oklahoma and in western Texas
(Blanco, Kendall, Kerr, Bandera and Uvalde Counties).
A variety with obtuse stipules, usually glabrous branchlets and
lanceolate or narrow elliptic-lanceolate leaves is distinguished as var.
_Wardii_ Schn.
A shrub or small tree.
Distribution. Banks of the Potomac River, District of Columbia, and
Alleghany County, Maryland to Natural, Rockbridge, Fairfax and Elizabeth
Counties, Virginia; northern Kentucky; northern Tennessee; northeastern
Mississippi (near Iuka, Tishamingo County); St. Clair and Madison
Counties, Illinois; more abundant in Missouri from Pike County southward
to southwestern Kansas, western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma.
8. Salix lasiandra Benth. Yellow Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 142]
Leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, acuminate and long-pointed at
apex, cuneate or rounded at base, often slightly falcate, finely
serrate, glabrous, dark green and lustrous above, pale or glaucous
below, 1½′—3′ long, about ½′ wide, on vigorous summer shoots often 6′ or
7′ long and 1½′ wide; petioles slender, glabrous, glandular at apex, ¼′
in length, or on summer shoots stout and 1′—1½′ long; stipules reniform,
caducous. Flowers: aments terminal on leafy puberulous branchlets,
narrow-cylindric, 2½′—3′ in length; scales pale pubescent, those of the
staminate ament lanceolate-acuminate to obovate and rounded at apex and
entire, those of the pistillate ament obovate and usually dentate near
the apex; stamens 5—9; filaments hairy below the middle; ovary rather
abruptly narrowed above the middle and acuminate, long-stalked; style
short with slightly emarginate lobes. Fruit light red-brown, ¼′ long;
pedicels about 1/16′ in length.
Distribution. Valley of the Yukon River near Dawson, Yukon, Vancouver
Island, and southward near the coast of Washington and Oregon, and on
the western slope of the Sierra Nevada and on the coast ranges to
southern California, ranging from the sea-level to altitudes of 8500° on
the southern Sierra Nevada; in New Mexico (Glenwood, Soccoro County, and
Santa Fé, Santa Fé County); in Colorado (Buena Vista, Chaffee County,
_Alice Eastwood_). Passing into var. _caudata_ Sudw., distinguished by
its caudate-acuminate leaves green on both surfaces, and by its bright
yellow or orange-yellow branchlets, and ranging from northeastern Oregon
and eastern Washington through Idaho, and from northern Wyoming to
southern Colorado, Utah and Nevada.
A variety (var. _lancifolia_ Bebb), differing from the typical _S.
lasiandra_ in the gray or rusty villose pubescence covering the
branchlets during their first and sometimes their second season and the
lower surface of the young leaves, is distributed from Dawson in the
valley of the Yukon River southward to the valley of the upper Nesqually
River, Washington, to the valley of the Willamette River (Salem,
Oregon), to Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County, and to the San Bernardino
Mountains, California.
9. Salix lucida Muehl. Shining Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 143]
Leaves ovate-lanceolate, or narrow lanceolate (f. _angustifolia_
Anders.), acuminate and long-pointed at apex, cuneate or rounded at
base, finely serrate, 3′—5′ long, 1′—1½′ wide, covered when they unfold
with scattered pale caducous hairs, at maturity coriaceous, smooth and
lustrous, dark green above, paler below, with a broad yellow midrib, and
slender primary veins arcuate and united near the margins; petioles
stout, yellow, puberulous, glandular at the apex, with several dark or
yellow conspicuous glands, ¼′—½′ long; stipules nearly semicircular,
glandular-serrate, membranaceous, ⅛′—¼′ wide, often persistent during
the summer. Flowers: aments erect, tomentose, on stout puberulous
peduncles terminal on short leafy branchlets, the staminate
oblong-cylindric, densely flowered, about 1½′ in length, the pistillate
slender, elongated, 1½′—2′ long, often persistent until late in the
season; scales oblong or obovate, rounded, entire, erose or dentate at
apex, light yellow, nearly glabrous or coated on the outer surface with
pale hairs, often ciliate on the margins; stamens usually 5, with
elongated free filaments slightly hairy at base; ovary narrowly
cylindric, long-stalked, elongated, glabrous, with nearly sessile
emarginate stigmas. Fruit: cylindric, lustrous, about ⅓′ long.
A tree, occasionally 25° high, with a short trunk 6′—8′ in diameter,
erect branches forming a broad round-topped symmetrical head, and stout
glabrous branchlets dark orange color and lustrous in their first
season, becoming darker and more or less tinged with red the following
year; usually smaller and shrubby in habit. Winter-buds narrowly ovoid,
acute, light orange-brown, lustrous, about ¼′ long. Bark thin, smooth,
dark brown slightly tinged with red.
Distribution. Banks of streams and swamps; Newfoundland to the shores of
Hudson’s Bay and northwestward to the valley of the Mackenzie River and
the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains, southward to southern
Pennsylvania, northeastern Iowa, the Turtle Mountains, North Dakota, and
eastern Nebraska; very abundant at the north, rare southward; a variety
from extreme northeastern New England and adjacent New Brunswick and
Quebec (var. _intonsa_ Fernald) is distinguished by its often linear
leaves rufous pubescent during the season on the under side of the veins
and by its pubescent branchlets; a shrub or tree up to 25°.
10. Salix taxifolia H. B. K.
[Illustration: Fig. 144]
Leaves linear-lanceolate, narrowed at the ends, acute, slightly falcate,
mucronate at the apex, entire or rarely obscurely dentate above the
middle, coated as they unfold with long soft white hairs, at maturity
pale gray-green, slightly puberulous, ⅓′—1⅓′ long, 1/12′—⅛′ wide, with a
slender midrib, thin arcuate veins, and thickened slightly revolute
margins; petioles stout, puberulous, rarely 1/12′ long; stipules ovate,
acute, scarious, minute, caducous. Flowers: aments densely flowered,
oblong-cylindric or subglobose, ¼′—½′ long, terminal, or terminal and
axillary on the staminate plant, on short leafy branchlets; scales
oblong or obovate, rounded or acute and sometimes apiculate at apex,
coated on the outer surface with hoary tomentum and pubescent or
glabrous on the inner; stamens 2, with free filaments hairy below the
middle; ovary ovoid-conic, short-stalked or subsessile, villose, with
nearly sessile deeply emarginate stigmas. Fruit cylindric, long-pointed,
bright red-brown, more or less villose, short-stalked, about ¼′ long.
A tree, often 40°—50° high, with a trunk 18′ in diameter, erect and
drooping branches forming a broad open head, and slender branchlets
covered during their first season with hoary tomentum, becoming light
reddish or purplish brown and much roughened by the elevated persistent
leaf-scars. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, dark chestnut-brown, puberulous,
about 1/16′ long and nearly as broad as long. Bark of the trunk ¾′—1′
thick, light gray-brown, and divided by deep fissures into broad flat
ridges covered by minute closely appressed scales.
Distribution. Near El Paso, Texas; southwestern New Mexico, and along
mountain streams in southern Arizona; southward through Mexico to
Guatemala, and on the Sierra de la Victoria, Lower California.
11. Salix sessilifolia Nutt.
[Illustration: Fig. 145]
Leaves linear-lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, acute or acuminate at
apex, cuneate at base, entire or furnished above the middle with a few
remote apiculate glandular teeth, bluish green and thickly covered with
silky white hairs most abundant on the lower side of the midrib, 1′—2′
long, ½′—¾′ wide, or on vigorous summer shoots often 4′ long and 1¼′
wide; petioles densely villose-pubescent, 1/16′—⅛′ in length; stipules
ovate to lanceolate, acute, entire or denticulate. Flowers: aments
appearing after the leaves, terminal on leafy branchlets, densely
hoary-tomentose, 1½′—2½′ long; scales broadly elliptic, acute or rounded
at apex, cuneate at base, densely villose-tomentose; stamens 2;
filaments villose below the middle; ovary sessile, villose, the stigmas
sessile, deeply 2-lobed. Fruit ovoid-acuminate, densely villose,
pubescent.
A shrub or small tree occasionally 20° high, with short hairy tomentose
branchlets.
Distribution. River banks, southwestern British Columbia; Whitcomb
County, Washington, and on the Umpqua and Willamette Rivers, western
Oregon. Southward passing into
Var. _Hindsiana_ Anders., a large shrub with numerous stems often 20°
high, differing in its more linear or narrow lanceolate usually entire
leaves on longer petioles, smaller aments and pubescent, not tomentose,
branchlets; and distributed from the valleys of central California to
southwestern Oregon. A shrubby form of _S. sessilifolia_ (var.
_leucodendroides_ Schn.) with longer and broader leaves is common on the
banks of streams in southern California.
12. Salix exigua Nutt.
[Illustration: Fig. 146]
Leaves lanceolate to oblanceolate, acuminate at the ends, often slightly
falcate, minutely glandular-serrate above the middle, bluish green and
glabrous above, covered below with appressed silky white hairs, 1½′—3′
long, ⅛′—¼′ wide, or on summer shoots sometimes 4½′ long and 1½′ wide;
petioles glabrous, 1/16′ long or less; stipules minute or wanting.
Flowers: aments terminal and solitary or terminal and axillary, on leafy
glabrous branchlets, 1′—2′ in length; scales hoary pubescent, lanceolate
and acute on staminate aments, often wider, obovate and rounded at the
apex on pistillate aments; stamens, 2, filaments hairy below the middle;
ovary sessile, villose, the stigmatic lobes sessile. Fruit ovoid,
acuminate, glabrous.
A shrub with stems 10° or 12° tall, or rarely a tree 25° high, with a
trunk 5′ or 6′ in diameter, thin spreading branches forming a
round-topped head, and slender glabrous red-brown branchlets. Bark of
the trunk thin, longitudinally fissured, grayish brown.
Distribution. Southern Alberta and valley of the Fraser River (Clinton),
British Columbia, southward through western Washington and Oregon to San
Diego County, California, and southeastern Nevada, and eastward to
southern Idaho, central Nevada and western Wyoming (Yellowstone National
Park).
Apparently only truly a tree on the banks of the Palouse and other
streams of eastern Washington.
Several shrubby forms of _S. exigua_ found in Nevada, Arizona, Colorado,
western Nebraska and in Lower California are distinguished.
13. Salix longifolia Muehl. Sand Bar Willow.
_Salix fluviatalis_ Sarg., not Nutt.
[Illustration: Fig. 147]
Leaves linear-lanceolate, often somewhat falcate, gradually narrowed at
the ends, long-pointed, dentate with small remote spreading callous
glandular teeth, 2′—6′ long, ⅛′—⅓′ wide, when they unfold coated below
with soft lustrous silky hairs, at maturity thin, glabrous, light
yellow-green, darker on the upper than on the lower surface, with a
yellow midrib, slender arcuate primary veins, and slender reticulate
veinlets; petioles grooved, ⅛′—¼′ long; stipules ovate-lanceolate,
foliaceous, about ¼′ long, deciduous. Flowers: aments cylindric on leafy
branchlets, pubescent, the staminate about 1′ long, ⅓′ broad, terminal
and axillary, the pistillate elongated, 2′ or 3′ long, about ¼′ broad;
scales obovate-oblong, entire, erose or dentate above the middle, light
yellow-green, densely villose on the outer surface, slightly hairy on
the inner; stamens 2, with free filaments slightly hairy at the base;
ovary oblong-cylindric, acute, short-stalked, glabrous or pubescent,
with large sessile deeply lobed stigmas. Fruit light brown, glabrous or
villose, about ¼′ long.
A tree, usually about 20° high, with a trunk only a few inches in
diameter, spreading by stoloniferous roots into broad thickets, short
slender erect branches, and slender glabrous light or dark
orange-colored or purplish red branchlets, growing darker after their
first season; occasionally 60°—70° high, with a trunk 2° in diameter;
often a shrub not more than 5°—6° tall. Winter-buds narrowly ovoid,
acute, chestnut-brown, about ⅛′ long. Bark ⅛′—¼′ thick, smooth, dark
brown slightly tinged with red and covered with small closely appressed
irregularly shaped scales. Wood light, soft, light brown tinged with
red, with thin light brown sapwood.
Distribution. River banks, sand bars and alluvial flats; shores of Lake
St. John, Quebec to Manitoba, and southward through western New England
to northeastern Virginia, southern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, western
Kentucky, south Tennessee, to the mouth of the Mississippi River, and
westward to southwestern South Dakota, southwestern Wyoming,
northeastern Colorado, western Kansas and Oklahoma, and northern Texas.
From central and northwestern Texas to northeastern Mexico and southern
New Mexico represented by var. _angustissima_ Anders., differing in the
absence of a dorsal gland in the male flowers and in the silky
pubescence of the young ovary.
In the northern Rocky Mountains region replaced by var. _pedunculata_
Anders., differing from the type in its narrower linear leaves, glabrous
ovaries and longer pedicels of the fruit, and ranging from western South
Dakota and northwestern Wyoming, through eastern Montana, Saskatchewan,
and Alberta, to the valley of the Yukon River in the neighborhood of
Dawson.
A shrubby form with leaves densely covered with silky pubescence (var.
_Wheeleri_ Schn.) is distributed from New Brunswick to North Dakota,
Nebraska and Beckham County, Oklahoma.
14. Salix lasiolepis Benth. Arroyo Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 148]
Leaves oblanceolate to lanceolate-oblong, often inequilateral and
occasionally falcate, acute or acuminate or rarely rounded at apex,
gradually or abruptly cuneate or rounded at base, entire or remotely
serrate, pilose above and coated below with thick hoary tomentum when
they unfold, at maturity thick and subcoriaceous, conspicuously
reticulate-venulose, dark green and glabrous above, pale or glaucous and
pubescent or puberulous below, 3′—6′ long, ½′—1′ wide, with a broad
yellow midrib and slender arcuate veins forked and united within the
slightly thickened and revolute margins; petioles slender, ⅛′—½′ long;
stipules ovate, acute, coated with hoary tomentum, minute and caducous,
or sometimes foliaceous, semilunar, acute or acuminate, entire or
denticulate, dark green above, pale below, persistent. Flowers: aments
erect, cylindric, slightly flexuose, densely flowered, nearly sessile on
short tomentose branchlets, 1½′ long, the staminate ½′ thick, and nearly
twice as thick as the pistillate; scales oblong-obovate, rounded or
acute at the apex, dark-colored, clothed with long crisp white hairs,
persistent under the fruit; stamens 2, with elongated glabrous filaments
more or less united below the middle; ovary narrow, cylindric acute and
long-pointed, dark green, glabrous, with a short style and broad nearly
sessile stigmas. Fruit oblong-cylindric, light reddish brown, about ¼′
long.
A tree, 20°—35° high, with a trunk 3′—7′ in diameter, slender erect
branches forming a loose open head, and stout branchlets coated at first
with hoary tomentum, bright yellow or dark reddish brown and puberulous
or pubescent during their first year, becoming darker and glabrous in
their second season; or often at the north and at high altitudes a low
shrub. Winter-buds ovoid, acute, compressed, contracted laterally into
thin wing-like margins, light brownish yellow, glabrous or puberulous.
Bark on young stems and on the branches thin, smooth, light gray-brown,
becoming on old trunks dark, about ⅓′ thick, roughened by small
lenticels and broken into broad flat irregularly connected ridges. Wood
light, soft, close-grained, light brown, with thick nearly white
sapwood; in southern California often used as fuel.
Distribution. Banks of streams in low moist ground; valley of the
Klamath River, California, southward along the foothills of the Sierra
Nevada, the central valley, and on the Coast Ranges to southern
California; on Santa Catalina Island and on the mountains of southern
Arizona; on the Sierra de Laguna, Lower California; occasionally
ascending to altitudes of 4000° above the sea.
15. Salix Mackenzieana Barr.
[Illustration: Fig. 149]
Leaves lanceolate to oblanceolate, or elliptic, long-pointed at apex,
cuneate or rounded at base, finely crenately serrate, reddish and pilose
with caducous pale hairs when they unfold, at maturity thin and firm in
texture, light green above, pale below, 1½′—2′ long, about ½′—¾′ wide,
on summer shoots, often 4′ long and 1½′ wide, with a slender yellow
midrib, arcuate veins, and obscure reticulate veinlets; petioles thin,
yellow, about ⅓′ long; stipules reniform, conspicuously veined, about
1/16′ broad. Flowers: aments densely flowered, glabrous, erect, often
more or less curved, about 1½′ long, terminal on short leafy branchlets;
scales oblanceolate, acute, dark-colored; stamens 2, with elongated free
glabrous filaments; ovary cylindric, long-stalked, elongated, gradually
narrowed into a short style, with spreading emarginate stigmas. Fruit
ovoid, acuminate, light brown, about ⅛′ long; pedicels about ⅙′ in
length.
A small tree, with a slender trunk, upright branches forming a narrow
shapely head, and slender branchlets marked with scattered lenticels,
glabrous or slightly puberulous and often tinged with red when they
first appear, soon becoming yellow and lustrous, growing lighter colored
in their second year. Winter-buds ovoid, rounded on the back, compressed
and acute at the apex, bright orange color, about ⅛′ long.
Distribution. Borders of streams and swamps; shores of Great Slave Lake
southward through the region at the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains
to Saskatchewan, northern Idaho, and northwestern Wyoming, and to
western Nevada (Lake County; _M. S. Bebb_), and on the high Sierra
Nevada in Calaveras and Mariposa Counties, California (_W. L. Jepson_).
16. Salix missouriensis Bebb.
[Illustration: Fig. 150]
Leaves lanceolate or oblanceolate, acuminate and long-pointed at apex,
gradually narrowed from above the middle to the cuneate or rounded base,
finely glandular-serrate, coated with pale hairs on the lower surface
and pilose on the upper surface when they unfold, soon becoming nearly
glabrous, at maturity thin and firm, dark green above, pale and often
silvery white below, 4′—6′ long, 1′—1½′ wide, with slender veins often
united near the margins and connected by coarse reticulate veinlets;
petioles stout, pubescent or tomentose, ½′—¾′ long; stipules foliaceous,
semicordate, pointed or rarely reniform and obtuse, serrate with
incurved teeth, dark green and glabrous on the upper side, coated on the
lower with hoary tomentum, reticulate-venulose, often ½′ long, deciduous
or persistent during the season. Flowers: aments oblong-cylindric,
densely flowered, appearing early in February on short leafy branchlets,
the staminate 1½′ long and nearly ½′ wide and rather longer than the
more slender pistillate aments becoming at maturity lax and 3′—4′ long;
scales oblong-obovate, light green, and covered on the outer surface
with long straight white hairs; stamens 2, with elongated free glabrous
filaments; ovary cylindric, short-stalked, beaked, glabrous, with a
short style and spreading entire or slightly emarginate stigmas. Fruit
narrow, long-pointed, light reddish brown, ⅓′ in length; pedicels about
half the length of the scales.
A tree, 40°—50° high, with a tall straight trunk 10′—12′ or rarely 18′
in diameter, rather slender upright slightly spreading branches forming
a narrow open symmetrical head, and slender branchlets marked by small
scattered orange-colored lenticels, light green and coated during their
first year with thick pale pubescence, becoming reddish brown and
glabrous or puberulous in their second winter. Winter-buds ovoid, round,
or flattened, acute at the apex, reddish brown, hoary-tomentose, nearly
1′ long. Bark thin, smooth, light gray, slightly tinged with red, and
covered with minute closely appressed plate-like scales. Wood dark
red-brown, with thin pale sapwood; durable, used for fence-posts.
Distribution. Deep sandy alluvial bottom-lands of the Missouri River in
southwestern Nebraska to western Missouri; through northeastern Kansas
and eastern Oklahoma to Cache Creek, Comanche County (_G. W. Stevens_);
and from the neighborhood of St. Louis to southeastern and western Iowa.
17. Salix pyrifolia Anders.
_Salix balsamifera_ Barr.
[Illustration: Fig. 151]
Leaves ovate to oblong-lanceolate, acute at apex, broad and rounded and
usually subcordate at base, finely glandular serrulate, balsamic
particularly while young, when they unfold thin, pellucid, red and
coated below with long slender caducous hairs, at maturity thin and
firm, dark green above, pale and glaucous below, 2′—4′ long, 1′—1½′
wide, with a yellow midrib and conspicuous reticulate veinlets; petioles
reddish or yellow, ⅓′—½′ long; stipules often wanting or on vigorous
shoots foliaceous, broadly ovate and acute. Flowers: aments cylindric,
1′—1½′ long, on short leafy branchlets, the staminate 1′—1¼′ long and ¾′
in diameter and shorter and broader than the pistillate ament; scales
obovate, rose-colored, coated with long white hairs; stamens 2, with
free filaments and reddish ultimately yellow anthers; ovary
narrow-ovoid, long-stalked, gradually contracted above the middle, with
a short style and emarginate stigmas. Fruit ovoid-conic, ¼′ long, dark
orange color; pedicels ⅙′ in length.
Usually a shrub, often making clumps of crowded slender erect stems
generally destitute of branches except near the top, rarely arborescent,
with a height of 25°, a trunk 12′—14′ in diameter, erect branches, and
comparatively stout reddish brown branchlets becoming olive-green in
their second year and marked with narrow slightly raised leaf-scars.
Winter-buds acute, much-compressed, bright scarlet, very lustrous, about
¼′ long. Bark thin, smooth, dull gray.
Distribution. Cold wet bogs; Newfoundland and the coast of Labrador to
the valley of the Saskatchewan and the Mackenzie, and British Columbia,
and to northern Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Michigan, and
northeastern South Dakota; reported to become arborescent only near Fort
Kent on the St. John River, Aroostook, Maine.
18. Salix amplifolia Cov.
[Illustration: Fig. 152]
Leaves oval to broadly obovate, rounded or broadly pointed at apex,
gradually or abruptly narrowed at the cuneate base, dentate-serrulate or
entire, densely villose when they unfold, with long matted white hairs,
at maturity nearly glabrous, pale yellow-green above, slightly glaucous
below, 2′—2½′ long, 1′—1½′ wide, with a midrib broad and hoary-tomentose
toward the base of the leaf and thin and glabrous above the middle;
petioles slender, tomentose. Flowers: aments appearing about the middle
of June, stout, pedunculate, tomentose, on leafy branchlets, the
staminate 1½′—2′ long and shorter than the pistillate; scales
oblanceolate or lanceolate, dark brown or nearly black, covered with
long pale hairs; stamens 2, with slender elongated glabrous filaments;
ovary ovoid-lanceolate, short-stalked, glabrous or slightly pubescent,
gradually narrowed into the elongated slender style crowned with a
2-lobed slender stigma. Fruit ovoid-lanceolate, glabrous, short-stalked,
¼′ long.
A tree, occasionally 25° high, with a trunk a foot in diameter, and
stout branchlets conspicuously roughened by the large elevated U-shaped
leaf-scars, and marked by occasional pale lenticels, coated at first
with thick villose pubescence, becoming during their second and third
years dark dull reddish purple.
Distribution. Sand dunes on the shores of Yakutat Bay and Disenchantment
Bay, Alaska.
19. Salix alaxensis Cov. Feltleaf Willow.
[Illustration: Fig. 153]
Leaves elliptic-lanceolate to obovate, acute, acuminate or occasionally
rounded at apex, gradually narrowed into a short thick petiole, coated
above as they unfold with thin pale deciduous tomentum and covered below
with a thick mass of snowy white lustrous hairs persistent on the mature
leaves, entire, often somewhat wrinkled, dull yellow-green above, 2′—4′
long, 1′—1½′ wide, with a broad yellow midrib; stipules
linear-lanceolate to filiform, entire, ½′—¾′ long, usually persistent
until midsummer. Flowers: aments appearing in June when the leaves are
nearly fully grown, stout, erect, tomentose, stalked, on leafy
branchlets, the staminate 1′—1½′ long, much shorter than the pistillate;
scales oblong-ovate, rounded at apex, dark-colored, and coated with long
silvery white soft hairs; stamens 2, with slender elongated filaments;
ovary acuminate, short-stalked, covered with soft pale hairs, gradually
narrowed into the elongated slender style, with 2-lobed stigmas. Fruit
nearly sessile, ovoid, acuminate covered with close dense pale tomentum,
¼′ long.
A tree, sometimes 30° high, with a trunk 4′—6′ in diameter, and stout
branchlets thickly coated at first with matted white hairs, becoming in
their second year glabrous, dark purple, lustrous, marked by large
elevated pale scattered lenticels and much roughened by large U-shaped
leaf-scars; often shrubby, and in the most exposed situations frequently
only a foot or two high, with semiprostrate stems.
Distribution. Coast of Alaska from the Alexander Archipelago to Cape
Lisbourne, and eastward to the valley of the Mackenzie River and to the
shores of Coronation Gulf; the only arborescent Willow in the coast
region west and north of Kadiak Island; attaining its largest size from
the Shumagin Islands eastward.
20. Salix Bebbiana Sarg.
[Illustration: Fig. 154]