,illustration3 ,the ,glory of ,autumn ,trees ,trees ,,every ,,child ,,should ,,know ,,easy ,,tree ,,studies ,,for ,,all ,,seasons ,,of ,,the ,,year ,,by ,,julia ,,ellen ,,rogers ,illustrated ,illustration3 ,grosset ,dunlap ,,new ,,york ,,grosset ,,dunlap ,publishers ,,all ,,rights ,,reserved1 ,,including ,,that ,,of ,,translation ,,into ,,foreign ,,languages1 ,,including ,,the ,,scandinavian ,,copyright1 #aiji1 ,,by ,,doubleday1 ,,page ,,company ,,published ,,october1 #aiji ,,printed ,,in ,,the ,,united ,,states ,,at ,,the ,,country ,,life ,,press1 ,,garden ,,city1 ,n4 ,y4 ,,contents ,,page ,how to ,know the ,trees #c ,,autumn ,,studies ,the ,nut ,trees3 ,the ,shagbark ,hickories #i ,the ,disappointing ,hickories #ab ,the ,black ,walnut #af ,the ,butternut #ah ,the ,english ,walnut #ai ,the ,chestnut and ,chinquapin #bb ,the ,beech #bf ,the ,witch ,hazel #bi ,the ,oak ,family #cc ,the ,white ,oak ,group3 ,the ,white ,oak #cg ,the ,bur or ,mossy-cup ,oak #ci ,the ,live ,oak #da ,the ,post ,oak #dd ,the ,swamp ,white ,oak #de ,the ,chestnut ,oak #df ,the ,black ,oak ,group3 ,the ,black ,oak #dg ,the ,red ,oak #ej ,the ,scarlet ,oak #ea ,the ,pin ,oak #eb ,the ,willow ,oak #ed ,trees with ,winged ,seeds #ee ,tree ,seeds that have ,parachutes #fb ,the ,autumn ,berries in the ,woods #fd ,the ,changing ,colour of the ,autumn ,woods #gd ,,winter ,,studies ,trees ,we ,know by ,their ,bark #hc ,trees ,we ,know by ,their ,shapes #ic ,trees ,we ,know by ,their ,thorns #ih ,the ,needle-leaved ,evergreens #aja ,the ,five-leaved ,soft ,pines #ajh ,the ,white ,pine #aji ,the ,great ,sugar ,pine #aab ,the ,nut ,pines #aad ,the ,hard ,pines #aah ,the ,southern ,pitch ,pines #aai ,the ,longleaf ,pine #aai ,the ,shortleaf ,pine #aba ,the ,cuban ,pine #abc ,the ,loblolly ,pine #abd ,the ,northern ,pitch ,pines #abe ,the ,cedars1 ,white and ,red #abg ,two ,conifers ,not ,evergreen #aca ,the ,larches #aca ,the ,bald ,cypress #acd ,the ,hollies #acf ,the ,burning ,bush #aci ,,spring ,,studies ,the ,awakening of the ,trees #adc ,trees that ,bloom in ,early ,spring #adf ,the ,american ,elm and ,its ,kin #aej ,the ,maple ,family #aed ,the ,willow ,family #afc ,why ,trees ,need ,leaves #afi ,leaves of ,all ,shapes and ,sizes #agc ,,summer ,,studies ,trees with the ,largest ,flowers #ahc ,trees ,most ,showy in ,bloom #ahi ,trees that ,bloom in ,midsummer #aib ,the ,early ,berries in the ,woods #aig ,the ,sassafras #bjj ,the ,ash ,family #bjc ,the ,horse-chestnut and the ,buckeyes #bjh ,the ,buckeyes #baa ,the ,locusts and ,other ,pod-bearers #bad ,wild ,apple ,trees and ,their ,kin #bba ,the ,cherries #bbf ,the ,plums #bbi ,the ,serviceberries #bcb ,valuable ,sap of ,trees #bcc ,the ,uses of ,trees #bcg ,identification ,keys to ,tree ,groups and ,families #bea ,index #bfa ,,illustrations ,the ,glory of ,autumn ,trees ,frontispiece ,,facing ,,page ,three ,pignuts1 ,three ,shagbarks1 and ,two ,pecans2 ,flowering ,twig of the ,shagbark ,hickory #af ,black ,walnut and ,butternut2 ,twig of ,butternut #ag ,buds and ,flowers of the ,beech ,tree #cb ,catkins of a ,hornbeam and a ,birch2 ,catkins and ,acorn ,flowers of an ,oak #cc ,leaves1 ,acorns1 and ,twigs of the ,bur ,oak #dh ,the ,horizontal ,limbs of the ,pin ,oak ,form a ,regular ,pyramidal ,head #di ,cone ,fruits of a ,birch1 a ,pine1 a ,magnolia1 and a ,fir #fd ,clusters of the ,winged ,seeds of ,hornbeam and ,white ,ash #fe ,the ,flowering ,dogwood ,covers ,its ,bare ,branches with ,blossoms in ,may #gf ,flowering ,dogwood1 in ,flower and ,fruit1 the ,winter ,flower ,buds1 and ,alligator ,skin ,bark #gg ,we ,recognise ,birches by their ,silky1 ,tattered ,bark #hd ,the ,beech ,trunk ,is ,clothed in ,smooth1 ,pale ,grey ,bark #he ,the ,loose1 ,stripping ,bark ,gives ,its ,name to the ,shagbark ,hickory #hf ,bark of ,hackberry1 ,black ,birch and ,hornbeam #hg ,warty1 ,ridged ,bark of the ,sweet ,gum1 the ,swinging ,seed ,balls1 and ,winged ,seeds #ij ,bark and ,seed ,balls of the ,sycamore #ia ,the ,lombardy ,poplar #ib ,the ,live ,oak of the ,south #ic ,fruiting ,branch of a ,cockspur ,thorn #if ,clustered ,thorns on ,trunk of ,honey ,locust ,tree2 ,flowers and ,foliage of the ,black ,locust #ig ,cones of ,hemlock and ,norway ,spruce #aab ,pine ,twig with ,cones1 and ,clustered ,staminate ,flowers #aac ,thousands of ,little ,balsam ,firs ,supply the ,market with ,christmas ,trees #aad ,nathaniel ,hawthorne's ,outdoor ,study #aae ,the ,spiny-leaved1 ,red-berried ,holly #abf ,what ,would ,christmas ,be ,without ,holly ,branches and ,wreaths for ,decoration6 #abg 8,the ,grizzly ,giant10 a ,sequoia ,over ,three ,hundred ,feet ,high #abh ,scaly-leaved ,evergreens #abi ,the ,opening ,buds of the ,shagbark ,hickory #add ,catkins and ,leaves of the ,trembling ,aspen #ade ,flower ,buds1 ,blossoms1 ,seeds1 and ,leaf of the ,american ,elm #adh ,elm ,tree in ,bloom #adi ,buds and ,flowers of the ,red ,maple #aef ,seeds of the ,red ,maple #aeg ,the ,sugar ,maple #agf ,leaves of the ,black ,willow2 ,pussy ,willow ,twigs #agg ,leaves and ,flowers of the ,ear-leaved ,cucumber ,tree #aib ,the ,orange-yellow ,flower ,cups and ,squared ,leaves of the ,tulip ,tree #aic ,flowers1 ,fruit1 and the ,three ,different ,leaf ,patterns of the ,sassafras ,tree #aid ,waxy ,flowers of the ,evergreen ,magnolia #aie ,fruits1 ,leaves1 and ,flowers of the ,basswood ,tree #bjf ,the ,chestnut ,tree #bjg ,an ,old ,apple ,orchard #bbd ,nothing ,tastes as ,good as ,ripe ,apples ,picked ,right off the ,tree6 #bbe ,flowers and ,fruit of the ,wild ,black ,cherry #bdj ,the ,delicate1 ,white ,flower ,clusters of the ,serviceberry ,tree #bda ,,how ,,to ,,know ,,the ,,trees ,the best time to begin to study the trees is to-day6 ,the place to begin is right where you are1 provided there is a tree near enough1 for a lesson about trees will be very dull unless there is a tree to look at1 to ask questions of1 and to get answers from4 ,but suppose it is winter time1 and the tree is bare4 ,then you have a chance to see the wonderful framework of trunk and branches1 the way the twigs spread apart on the outer limbs1 while the great boughs near the trunk are almost bare4 ,each branch is trying to hold its twigs out into the sunshine1 and each twig is set with buds4 ,when these buds open1 and most of them send out leafy shoots1 the tree will be a shady summerhouse with a thick1 leafy roof that the sun cannot look through4 ,among the big branches near the trunk very few leaves will be found compared with the number the outer twigs bear4 ,how can we tell whether the tree is alive or dead in winter8 ,break off a twig4 ,is there a layer of green just inside the brown bark8 ,this is the sign that the tree is alive4 ,dead twigs are withered1 and their buds are not plump and bright4 ,the green is gone from under the bark of these twigs4 ,under each bud is the scar of last year's leaf1 and if you look on the ground you are pretty sure to find a dead leaf whose stem fits exactly into that scar4 ,if there are a number of these leaves under the tree1 you may feel sure that they fell from the tree last autumn4 ,look carefully among the leaves1 and on the branches for the seeds of this tree4 ,if there is an acorn left on the tree1 you may be sure that you have the tree's name6 ,the name is the thing we wish first to know when we meet a stranger4 ,if an acorn is found growing on a tree1 that tree has given us its name1 for trees that bear acorns are all oaks4 ,an acorn is a kind of nut1 and there are many kinds of oaks1 each with its own acorn pattern1 unlike that of other oaks4 ,yet all acorns sit in their little acorn cups1 and we do not confuse them with nuts of other trees4 ,so we know the family name of all trees whose fruits are acorns4 ,they are all oaks1 and there are fifty kinds in our own country1 growing wild in ,american forests4 ,but if those of all countries are counted1 there are in all more than three hundred kinds4 ,if1 instead of acorns1 pods hang on the twigs1 the tree belongs to the locust family1 related to our garden peas and beans4 ,the signs by which we learn to know trees are not many4 ,the bark of the white birch is so silky white that everybody knows that tree4 ,the sycamore sheds its bark in thin1 irregular sheets1 leaving patches of dirty white streaking the trunk and limbs1 as if the tree had been daubed and spattered with whitewash4 ,this tree is so strikingly different from others that nearly everybody knows it by name4 ,or they call it 8buttonwood40 ,the seed-balls hang on slender stems1 swinging in the winter wind4 ,the winter signs to notice are the bark1 the buds1 and the leaf scars1 the shape of the tree1 and the way it branches4 ,the fruit it bears may be seen in summer1 autumn1 or winter4 ,the flowers come in warm weather1 some kinds early1 some later1 and the leaves are new in spring1 and most trees shed them in autumn4 ,there is no time of year when there are not three or four of the important signs hung out on every tree to guide those who are trying to find out its name1 and learn the story of its interesting life4 ,and the finding out of tree names is not dreary and hard1 but a good game to be played out-of-doors4 ,,tree ,,studies ,,in ,,the ,,autumn ,,the ,,shagbark ,,hickories ,the best hickory nut tree that grows wild in our ,american forests is the shagbark1 or shellbark4 ,who says that the pecan is better than the nut of the little shagbark8 ,southern people insist upon this1 as the pecan is the pride of the ,southern states4 ,as a compromise we may place side by side the pecan of the ,south1 and the little shagbark of the ,north1 and challenge the world to produce a nut that is worthy to rank with these two in quality4 ,the shagbark takes its name from the tree's habit of shedding the bark in long1 narrow strips or flakes1 that curl away from the point of attachment1 but cling for months1 perhaps1 giving the trunk a shaggy appearance1 and making very easy the discovery of these trees in a stretch of mixed woodland4 ,and how it does cut and slash the stoutest of overalls to scramble up and down one of these trees8 ,only boys and their despairing mothers can know just how costly a ,saturday afternoon nutting expedition can be1 and why many a boy finds it expedient to come back with his bag of nuts in the late dusk4 ,otherwise he might be mistaken for a tramp1 so tattered are his clothes4 ,the smooth little nuts are angled and pointed1 and when they are ripe1 the thick1 corky1 green husks part into four equal divisions1 and the nuts fall out4 ,so much less trouble than walnuts1 in their spongy husks1 that never part regularly1 but wait until they are torn off by impatient boys or squirrels1 or until they dry and gradually crumble away4 ,the shagbark hickory is a beautiful tree when covered with its shining foliage in summer4 ,each leaf is made of five leaflets on a wiry leaf stem4 ,the three outer leaflets are larger than the pair set nearest the base of the stem4 ,the whole leaf is often more than a foot long1 and sometimes there are seven leaflets on each4 ,the most wonderful shagbark hickory tree ,i ever saw was one ,i met once at sundown1 after a long walk across country4 ,it stood in a field1 alone1 and so near my home that ,i had noticed it almost every day through a long winter4 ,i had gathered a quantity of nuts as they fell in the frosty autumn days1 and it was a race between me and the squirrels1 often1 to see who should get the bigger share4 ,i think they beat me1 which is perfectly right4 ,i remember now how rich the foliage looked as it slowly turned from green to golden brown1 and fell in a great windrow all about the shaggy trunk1 as the nuts ripened4 ,all winter ,i noticed how strong the lithe limbs were1 and how flexible1 as the wind twisted them about in storms1 and how much of promise there was in the great1 scaly buds that tipped the twigs4 ,it was late ,april when ,i came by4 ,as ,i looked up into that tree top the sunlight was shining through1 and at first ,i thought ,i must be dreaming4 ,instead of buds1 ,i saw what seemed like lighted candles1 each with a silken frill1 like the recurved petals of an iris1 below the tip of flame6 ,i had never seen a tree thus illuminated1 and the sight was enchanting4 ,the warm spring air had brought out the hickory buds1 with those of other trees1 and while ,i was looking for flowers on the ground1 the buds above had swollen1 cast off the winter covers1 revealing the silky inner wrappings of the young shoots4 ,the rich downward-curving 8petals0 were only the inner scales of the great buds1 grown long and wide1 their vivid orange setting off the compact yellow buds that still stood erect4 ,these concealed the tender1 velvety leaves that were soon to be revealed with the falling of the leaf scales4 ,i had never seen a hickory tree opening its iris-like buds before1 but ,i have never missed it since4 ,the big shellbark1 or shagbark1 hickory is the sturdy 8big brother0 of the little shagbark4 ,in every particular it exaggerates the characteristics of the favourite among our nut trees4 ,the bark is more shaggy1 the tree grows larger1 the nuts are bigger4 ,are they better8 ,no4 ,but they are much the same in flavour1 and being so good and so big1 they have the market name of 8king nuts40 ,the best of them are gathered in the woods of ,missouri and ,arkansas4 ,the tree is found from ,pennsylvania westward to ,oklahoma1 but the lumber is valuable for the making of vehicles and tool handles1 and so the trees are now scarce in the states that are oldest4 ,in winter the big shagbark trees show their orange-coloured twigs4 ,they are peculiar to this one hickory4 ,the leaf stems stay on the twigs after the leaves fall1 and give the tree top in winter a ragged1 hairy appearance1 that matches its shaggy trunk4 ,,the ,,disappointing ,,hickories ,the pignut has been given this ugly name because farmers1 in the early days1 turned their pigs into woodland pastures to fatten on the thin-shelled nuts that dropped from this kind of hickory tree4 ,they are not bitter1 but merely tasteless1 and it is only a 8greenhorn0 from town or city who will spend time to gather these poor hickory nuts1 mistaking them for shellbarks4 ,they are not usually angled1 but smoothly rounded1 often pear-shaped1 and the husks are thin4 ,the shagbarks are in husks nearly one-half inch thick1 which split in four divisions1 and fall apart to release the ripe nuts4 ,the husks of pignuts divide but part way down1 and so the nuts are not freed from them promptly4 ,the kernels are yellowish white4 ,a look at the bark of a shagbark hickory1 and then at a pignut fixes in mind one of the chief differences between these trees4 ,the pignut has clean1 smooth1 grey bark1 becoming coarser and rougher with increasing age1 but never shedding its bark in ragged strips as the shagbark begins to do when the trees are still young4 ,smoother foliage and twigs1 smaller buds in winter1 and a more regular round head make the pignut a fine tree to plant on the lawn1 where the shagbark would be out of place1 on account of its shaggy1 untidy trunk4 ,another handsome hickory tree with nuts that are very disappointing to the members of a nutting party is the mockernut1 called also the big bud hickory1 and the white heart hickory4 ,the last name is wrong because the heart wood is brown1 and it is the wood near the bark that is white4 ,the tree has the largest buds and the stoutest1 clumsiest twigs and branches in the whole hickory family4 ,the leaves are correspondingly large1 sometimes nearly two feet long1 of seven to nine leaflets1 on downy1 swollen stalks4 ,the catkins of the staminate flowers are like thick1 chenille fringes1 six inches long1 often longer1 hanging in ,may below the new leaves4 ,the nuts are large and look most promising at first4 ,the big1 four-parted husk is as thick as a shagbark's1 but it does not split all the way down4 ,so the first difficulty is to get the nut out of the husk4 ,the bony shell is the next4 ,it is astonishingly thick and hard to crack4 ,last disappointment of all1 the kernel is at best very small1 and not worth the trouble of getting it out1 though there is no denying that it is better-tasting than a pignut1 and almost as sweet as a little shagbark4 ,very often the shell contains a spongy substance that is tasteless1 instead of the kernel the patient nutter has a right to expect4 ,crumple leaflets of this tree in your hand1 and they smell fruity1 like an apple4 ,they turn to yellow and russet in autumn4 ,the bitternut is a hickory nut whose kernel no squirrel eats4 ,it is as bitter as gall4 ,thin-shelled as a pignut1 and usually less than an inch in length1 the nuts are enclosed in thin husks1 that differ from others in having thin ridges that rise along the four lines where they split at the time the nuts are ripe4 ,two of these clefts run farther down than the other pair4 ,the nut shell is thin1 slightly flattened sometimes1 and marked with dark lines4 ,the kernel is white1 and you will never taste a second one4 ,the sure sign by which to tell the bitternut hickory is the tapering1 flattened1 yellow bud4 ,at any time of year a few1 at least1 of these buds are to be found4 ,they are numerous from midsummer till ,may2 after that1 a few dormant winter buds remain to tell the tree's name until the new buds are showing in the angles between leaf and twig ,no other hickory has little1 yellow buds4 ,in winter the slimness of the twigs1 and in summer the small size of the leaflets make this the most delicately built of the hickories4 ,the buds are the smallest to be found on a hickory tree4 ,yet it is the quickest to grow1 and one of the handsomest trees in the family4 ,because it loves best to grow with its roots in wet soil1 it is called the swamp hickory4 ,,the ,,black ,,walnut ,no boy or girl who has ever gone nutting 8in brown ,october's woods0 can forget the fruits of the black walnut trees that hang like green oranges1 high up on the ends of the branches1 and have to be climbed for and shaken down4 ,and each fellow on the ground looks out for his own head1 as the shower of nuts comes down4 ,oh6 the rich1 walnut smell of those juicy husks1 as we bruised them on the nearest stone1 tore them off1 wiping our damp fingers on the grass1 before cracking the rough-shelled nuts4 ,the brown stains stayed until they wore off1 but the memory of the sweet kernels lasts longer1 and the pungent odour of those nut husks is in every twig1 bud1 and leaf of every walnut tree4 ,bruise any young shoot1 and by the odour of its sap the tree's name may be guessed4 ,there is another test for a walnut tree1 for those who do not know the odour of the sap4 ,cut a twig1 and split it4 ,the pith of walnut trees is not solid1 but is in thin plates1 separated by air spaces4 ,this is a sure sign4 ,illustration3 ,three pignuts1 with husks1 three shagbarks1 and two pecans2 ,flowering twig of the little shagbark hickory ,illustration3 ,black walnut and butternut4 ,twig of butternut1 in winter and in spring ,walnut trees grow rapidly1 and are a valuable tree crop to plant4 ,nuts for seed are packed in gravel1 and left outdoors over winter4 ,the stubborn shells are cracked by ,jack ,frost in such a way as not to injure the seed1 which is the meat of the nut4 ,the nuts are planted in spring just where the trees are to stand1 for it is much better for a walnut tree never to be transplanted4 ,i have heard my grandfather tell how the early settlers in ,ohio cleared the rich bottom land along the rivers4 ,the great trees that had grown1 undisturbed1 for centuries1 were the 8weeds0 that had to be cut down and removed1 before the soil could be ploughed and sowed to oats or wheat4 ,the only way to do this was to burn the trees1 by piling them together and firing the pile1 as soon as it was dry enough to burn4 ,the 8log-rollings0 were the neighbourhood gatherings1 when men brought their teams and log chains1 and worked like ,trojans1 dragging the logs to the places selected for the giant bonfires1 later on4 ,the women and children had a grand time1 watching the men at work1 and preparing the dinner1 which was a feast1 and a great social occasion4 ,the stump of many a noble black walnut tree1 cut down a century ago1 has stood1 undecayed1 until recent years4 ,so valuable is its wood that these stumps have been pulled up with expensive machinery1 for the gnarly-grained roots that are still sound4 ,cut into thin sheets1 the wood is used for veneering furniture4 ,think how many millions of dollars' worth of lumber went up in smoke in those bonfires6 ,black walnut is scarce now1 and can hardly be bought at any price4 ,,the ,,butternut ,the butternut trees are stripped of their fruit in ,october by boys who have visions of long evenings1 such as ,whittier describes in 8,snow ,bound10 with nuts and apples and cider1 by a roaring fire4 ,some boys leave the black walnut trees to others1 and fill their bags entirely from the low1 broad butternut trees1 that have more nuts in each cluster1 and they are not so hard to reach4 ,many will say that they are much sweeter and richer than black walnuts4 ,others do not care for them because they are so oily4 ,indeed1 they are called 8oil-nuts10 and woe to the youngster who has eaten 8all he wanted06 ,the butternuts are oblong and pointed at one end1 and sticky to the touch1 differing in this particular from the globular fruits of the black walnut4 ,the same clammy feeling makes it unpleasant to touch the leaves of butternut tree4 ,the resinous sap seems to ooze out through pores along the hairy leaf veins4 ,in summer time1 when the fuzzy1 green butternuts are scarcely larger than olives1 and their shells are so soft that a knitting-needle goes through without any trouble1 the time for making pickled nuts has come4 ,the gathering of the clustered green fruit is fun1 but as soon as they are scalded1 the 8fur0 has to be rubbed off of each1 before the nuts1 husks and all1 are put down in spiced vinegar1 to be used as a relish for serving with meats the following winter4 ,the 8furring0 usually falls to the children1 and they get very tired1 for it is a slow and monotonous job1 whether one uses a coarse towel or a brush4 ,however1 it would be unpleasant to eat a furry nut1 no matter how carefully the spicing was done4 ,,the ,,english ,,walnut ,the ,english walnut trees are grown in orchards in ,southern ,california4 ,these trees are quick to grow1 and come early into bearing4 ,when you buy a pound of these thin-shelled nuts at the corner grocery store1 you may well wonder where they grew4 ,perhaps little children picked them up under trees that grow in ,italy or in ,greece4 ,fine1 large nuts come from ,france1 but none of them are raised in ,england4 ,many of the best nuts are raised in ,california1 where more and more trees of this kind are planted each year4 ,they grow in the ,southern states1 but have never been planted on a large scale as a commercial nut tree4 ,the ,english walnut tree grows in ,england1 but the nuts never have time to get ripe in that climate4 ,they are gathered green1 and pickled1 husks and all4 ,from ,english grandmothers we learned to pickle our own butternuts while the shells are still soft4 ,the earliest shipments of the walnuts of ,europe came into this country from ,england4 ,probably merchants in ,london sent them to merchants in ,new ,york4 ,the dealers did not ask where these walnuts grew1 but told people who asked that they came from ,england4 ,this explains the name by which everybody now calls them4 ,far back in its history1 this tree grew wild in ,persia1 and on the wooded hillsides of ,asia ,minor4 ,the people gathered the nuts for food4 ,it was the custom of visitors to send presents of these nuts back to their friends in ,europe when they were travelling in the ,orient1 and discovered how very good these unknown nuts tasted4 ,englishmen were among these who were loud in praise of them4 8,walnut10 the name they gave the trees1 means 8a nut that comes from a foreign country40 ,the ,greeks had called it 8,jove's acorn10 for they could not think of any other name good enough4 ,kings sent presents of nuts to each other4 ,then people began to plant nuts1 instead of eating them all1 and gradually all the warmer countries of ,europe found they could grow these walnuts4 ,the size and quality of the nuts improved under cultivation4 ,now there are many varieties1 all larger1 thinner-shelled1 and better-flavoured than the original wild nuts that still grow in the forests of ,asia ,minor4 ,in the centuries when the countries of ,europe were always at war with their neighbours1 another reason for planting walnut trees was discovered4 ,no wood was so good for gunstocks4 ,no young man could marry until he had planted a certain number of walnut trees4 ,this was the law in some countries in the seventeenth century4 ,so multitudes of these trees were set out4 ,besides gunstocks1 walnut wood was much in fashion for handsome furniture4 ,a walnut forest was a very profitable crop to raise1 for lumber alone4 ,a tree that bore such nuts1 while its trunk was growing big enough to go to the saw mill was doubly profitable4 ,the people of the colder countries were ambitious to share in this prosperity4 ,but an occasional winter of extra severity killed the young trees4 ,,the ,,chestnut ,,and ,,chinquapin ,next to the hickory nuts1 we must rank the chestnuts4 ,some may give them first place in the list of ,american nut trees4 ,in ,england the chestnut trees one hears about are never praised for their nuts4 ,english boys and girls do not eagerly plan for half-holidays spent in the jolly sport of chestnutting4 ,their chestnut trees turn out to be very familiar to our eyes4 ,they are the horse chestnuts that we see so often at home4 ,their nuts are handsome enough1 and quite worth gathering for use in some games1 and just to have and to handle4 ,but chestnutting6 ,that is one of the great joys of ,october in our country1 a thing no boy or girl would miss without bitter disappointment4 ,while the leaves turn yellow on the big trees1 children and squirrels have their eyes on the clustered1 spiny balls at the ends of the branches4 8,not yet60 is the sign they read as plain as printed words4 ,warm days come and go1 and the tree holds out its sign1 even after the leaves begin to fall4 ,father and mother say3 8,be patient60 ,but they do not remember how hard that is4 ,it is a long time since they were eight and ten and twelve years old4 ,then a cold night comes1 and in the early morning a hoar frost is disappearing as the sun rises4 ,four seams can be seen on some chestnut burs1 and the impatient boys throw clubs into the tree tops4 ,but their fingers are sore with trying to pry the burs open4 ,the nuts are cheesy and insipid4 8,just you wait a spell40 ,this is the advice of ,john1 the raggedy man1 who does the chores4 8,you can't hurry up chestnuts4 ,when they're ready1 ,i'll take you where you can get a barrel of 'em1 and not kill yourself1 nor ruin your hands gettin' 'em40 ,he sees the rising tide of fear before it is expressed in words1 and answers mysteriously3 8,nobody knows the place but me4 ,let the little fellers an' the town folks hunt for nuts under the trees along the road4 ,they'll get a quart apiece1 mebby1 if they work half a day4 ,the place ,i'm goin' to1 you can scoop 'em up in handfuls40 ,the trees far back from the high road are certainly more generous to the few who find them than are the more accessible1 and therefore more popular trees4 ,nobody 8scoops them up in handfuls10 literally1 for there are the burs1 quite as prickly as before they split their four segments apart1 and let the two or three nuts fall out4 ,careful and quick motions are needed to pick up the pointed nuts among the larger burs4 ,but the game is most absorbing4 ,if the bags fill slowly1 there is the consoling thought that the shells are thin1 and the nuts are almost solid meats4 ,the busy picker stops now and then to sample a few4 ,they certainly are riper and finer tasting than they were a short week ago4 ,unopened or partly opened husks are often gathered4 ,the nuts will ripen and roll out on the attic floor1 or on the roof of the side porch4 ,few parties who go chestnutting content themselves with the loose nuts they gather4 ,the end of the day is a scramble to fill the bags or baskets with hulls not yet fully open4 ,mittens faced with leather or made of canvas are a good protection for the hands4 ,the saddest news from the woods of the ,northeast is that a disease that baffles the tree doctors has attacked and killed all the chestnut trees in the neighbourhood of the city of ,new ,york1 and it is marching steadily westward4 ,it has invaded ,new ,jersey and ,pennsylvania4 ,a fungus attacking the living layer under the bark of a tree is working where no remedy can reach it4 ,the tree loses vitality1 but only when it is far gone does the disease break through the bark1 and show itself as small1 yellow pimples on the smooth bark of the branches4 ,out of these openings the spores escape1--minute germs of the disease4 ,the wind scatters them4 ,so do birds1 insects1 and squirrels4 ,they lodge in cracks in the bark of other trees4 ,only chestnut trees catch the disease1 though the germs fall everywhere4 ,when it progresses far enough to produce a mat of fungus that encircles the trunk1 the tree is girdled1 its food supply is cut off1 and death results4 ,the chinquapin is a ,southern tree1 which closely resembles the chestnut4 ,it is usually shrubby and dwarfed in all of its parts4 ,the nuts are about as large as our little hazel nuts1 and each is alone in a spiny husk that parts into halves when mature4 ,five or six of these little burs are often borne on a single stalk4 ,in ,arkansas the tree reaches medium size1 but in the ,east it is familiar as a scrubby tree that sends up suckers from the roots and forms thickets1 like hazel brush4 ,poor folks in the ,south have time to gather these little nuts1 which appear on market day in their season in some cities and towns4 ,they are sweet1 and some people think they are better than chestnuts4 ,,the ,,beech ,least of all the nuts good to eat that grow in our mixed woods is the fruit of the grey-trunked beeches4 ,in nutting time the beech tree's crown of green is almost as clean and bright as in midsummer4 ,the silky leaves are little torn by the wind4 ,they turn to a beautiful pale yellow1 and become thin and papery as the green pulp is drawn back into the twigs4 ,few people see the spiny green burs on the ends of side twigs in summer1 even though the crop of nuts be heavy4 ,in the autumn the brown spiny husks open4 ,their four divisions flare outward1 and two triangular brown nuts are released4 ,almost unnoticed they drop on the ground under the tree4 ,they are so little that the wind helps to scatter them in the woods around4 ,the shifting leaf carpet sifts them through1 and we shall have to hunt for them1 even under the parent trees4 ,i need not tell any boy or girl how good and sweet these beech nuts are1 and how well they repay the trouble of getting the kernels out of the thin1 triangular shells4 ,yet people gather them less frequently than they do chestnuts1 because it is slow work1 and there is more accomplished under trees whose nuts are larger4 ,the early settlers fattened their pigs in autumn by turning them into the woods4 ,beech trees made the best possible pasture for this purpose4 ,the flavour of beech nut bacon is exceptionally delicate1 and has an extra high market value4 ,squirrels and all of the smaller furry-coats take the time and trouble to gather and hoard quantities of beech nuts among their winter stores4 ,fortunate for the beech tree1 its nuts will grow even in the shade4 ,we shall find a fruiting beech tree surrounded by its children--saplings of all ages1 coming up from seeds of various sowings4 ,by scratching carefully among the dead leaves in spring1 we shall find1 among the gaping burs1 the young trees at the very beginning of their lives4 ,the nuts have slipped down into the damp leaf mould1 and the melting of snow1 and the warm spring air have started them growing4 ,the triangular shell clings to the top of the stem1 while the root is getting a foothold4 ,a pair of broad seed leaves1 totally unlike the leaves of the beech tree1 unfold4 ,the spreading of these seed leaves soon splits the walls of the nut-shell helmet4 ,little beech trees at this age are very weak and helpless1 but patient and struggling4 ,their pale leaves turn green as the root goes deeper down1 and draws food from the soil4 ,a shoot bearing true beech leaves rises from the tip1 between the seed leaves4 ,the stem straightens1 and grows tall1 the seed leaves wither1 and1 unless it has bad luck1 or some accident befalls it1 the little tree is a long1 leafy whip by the end of the season1 and under each green leaf is a long bird's-claw beech bud1 just like those on the parent trees4 ,in these buds are leafy shoots which will be side branches during the following summer4 ,beech nuts are still one of the main foods of many wild animals4 ,in the earlier days they had much greater importance1 for nuts were one of the natural foods upon which the human race subsisted before the days when men became civilised4 ,they depended upon foods which ,nature provided1 and ate them without cooking4 ,acorns served the same important purpose4 ,we cannot go back to the days when men lived in caves1 and dressed in the skins of wild animals1 and lived upon foods like nuts and berries1 and the flesh of wild beasts4 ,but in camping out we return as closely as possible to the simple life of these wild ancestors of ours4 ,it is good to know what foods the forest offers to hungry men and beasts4 ,some day we may be lost in the woods4 ,we may come to an oak tree1 and attempt to eat its acorns1 but find them bitter4 ,it is well to know that the oaks with finger-pointed leaves bear acorns that are sweet and good4 ,it is only the oaks with spiny-lobed leaves whose acorns are bitter and unfit for food4 ,beech trees offer no food to a hungry person1 unless he knows how little the nuts are1 and how they hide by slipping under the leaves when they fall4 ,to know trees is delightful at any time1 and in any place4 ,to know them when one is lost in a forest is often the means of saving one's life4 ,the forest still feeds the hungry1 but only those who know the trees are able to find these stores of food when they need them4 ,,the ,,witch ,,hazel ,the witch hazel is indeed the witch of the woods4 ,it turns the year up-side-down1 by blossoming in ,october1 at the same time that it is ripening its seeds4 ,for this reason every child who lives in a region where this little tree grows should know the witch hazel4 ,the better people know it1 the more wonderful they find it4 ,it has many odd habits and secrets1 which it will reveal only to those who come and ask questions1 and keep their ears and eyes wide open to catch the answers4 ,in spring the witch hazel hides under its green leaves1 and attracts no attention from those who have come out to see the great procession of the spring flowers1 under foot1 and over head4 ,it is simply a part of the undergrowth1 a shrubby little tree4 ,but come in ,october1 to the same place4 ,the acorns are dropping from the oak1 the foliage ablaze with colour1 or faded and falling4 ,there are no flowers overhead1 but a few belated asters and goldenrods under foot4 ,squirrels are busy hiding winter stores1 gathered under the nut trees1 and on the wild hawthorns4 ,a thicket of witch hazel is slowly dropping its yellowing leaves4 ,you might not have noticed it at all1 had not one of the trees suddenly called attention to itself by tweaking your ear6 ,it is such a surprise to feel in the silent woods the sharp sting of a shot from a silent air gun4 ,you stand still1 listening1 and feeling of your ear4 ,it is a fine frosty ,october day1 and still4 ,as you listen1 another shot strikes the dead leaves at your feet4 ,where do they come from8 ,this question you will probably not be able to answer at once2 but while you are looking in the bushes from which the missile seemed to come1 thinking to rout some joker from his ambush1 you discover the blossoms of the witch hazel4 ,each one is waving four little yellow petals1 and among these delicate blossoms the bullet pods are bunched4 ,some of these are yawning wide open1 each showing two empty seed pockets1 but you do not find any seeds4 ,cut a bundle of these things1 and carry them home4 ,put them in a vase of water4 ,the delicate fragrance of the flowers will go through the house1 and every one will marvel that any tree or bush can be found in blossom at the very end of the year4 ,now the strangest thing will happen4 ,above the quiet talk around the evening lamp sounds the sharp click1 as of a bit of metal1 or a bead striking the wall with considerable force4 ,every one sits up to listen4 ,a second click1 this time on the glass covering a picture1 is located1 and a little black object1 smaller than an apple seed1 pointed and tipped with white1 is picked up from the floor4 ,it is this seed which was thrown against the glass2 and it does not require a ,sherlock ,holmes to prove that it came out of one of the witch hazel seed pods4 ,if each person takes a twig1 and keeps an eye upon the pods1 that show a slight opening1 more than one of the pods will be seen when they burst1 and throw their seeds4 ,the warmth of the indoor air springs the trigger1 and the tiny projectiles fly4 ,how surprised the squirrels must be when the witch hazel guns are bombarding the dry leaf carpet of the woods6 ,how much pleasure it gives you to take your friends to the thicket1 and explain to them the meaning of those scattering shots the pods are firing each crisp autumn day6 ,if it is rainy weather the pods will all be closed4 ,but let the sun come out1 and dry them1 and the game begins again4 ,can any one wonder that witch hazel trees grow in companies8 ,each little tree flings its seeds in all directions1 and for each seed planted a little tree may come4 ,twenty feet from the parent tree the pods are able to throw their seeds4 ,extract of witch hazel is obtained by boiling twigs and leaves of this tree in a still with alcohol4 ,the ,indians taught white men that this plant contained a drug which had soothing and curative powers when rubbed upon sprains and bruises4 ,whether there is any truth in this notion or not1 the belief is still strong1 and people continue to rub extract of witch hazel on their bruises1 even though many doctors say there is nothing medicinal in it but the alcohol4 ,illustration3 ,the beech tree opens its two kinds of flowers after the long1 pointed winter buds have opened1 and the lengthening shoot has spread out its leaves4 ,illustration3 ,catkins1 staminate and pistillate1 of a hornbeam and a birch2 catkins and acorn flowers of an oak ,in ,england the witch elm corresponds to our own witch hazel4 ,no one in the mining regions would dare to sink a shaft for coal unless he had warrant for doing so from the actions of a divining rod in the hands of a competent person4 ,in other regions the digging of a well depends upon the same thing1 and this idea prevails in many parts of this country4 ,an old fellow who can 8water witch0 may be found in most old-fashioned communities4 ,if you wish to dig a well1 you must call on him to locate the site4 ,he cuts a y-shaped twig from the witch hazel1 trims it1 and is ready for the ceremony4 ,grasping one of the two tips in each hand1 and holding the main stem erect1 he paces over the ground you have chosen4 ,in his rigid hands the supple twigs waver1 and finally the wand bends downward4 ,this1 according to popular belief1 is the proper place to find good water1 and plenty of it4 ,the water witch moves away1 again holding the stem erect4 ,he comes back finally1 and as he crosses the spot again1 the wand goes down4 ,now every one is sure that this is the spot1 and the well is dug4 ,if the seer's prediction comes true1 his reputation improves1 and scoffers concede that 8there may be something in it1 after all40 ,in regions where the witch hazel does not grow1 a twig of wild plum tree will do4 ,,the ,,oak ,,family ,the fifty kinds of oak trees that are native to ,america are about evenly divided on the two sides of the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,no ,western oaks are found in the ,eastern states1 and none of our ,eastern kinds grows wild on the other side of the mountains4 ,the backbone of the continent is a bar that neither group has been able to pass4 ,to know fifty different kinds of oaks by sight1 so as to call each one by its right name1 is not an easy task2 and yet it is not so difficult as it at first might seem4 ,to begin with1 any tree we meet1 which bears acorns1 we at once recognise as an oak4 ,by this one sign1 we are able to set this great family apart from every other tree4 ,as soon as they are old enough1 all oaks bear acorns4 ,if a tree which we suspect to be an oak has no acorn to show us1 on or under the tree1 a little close looking will usually find some acorn cups still hanging on1 or lying where they fell upon the ground4 ,the leaves of oaks are distinctive4 ,in general1 they are all simple1 and their outline is oval4 ,the borders are variously cut by deep or shallow bays1 between sharp points or rounding finger-like lobes4 ,they are leathery in texture1 compared with leaves of most trees4 ,after a little practice1 we learn to recognise oak leaves1 no matter how variously cut their borders may be4 ,in spring the flowers of oaks come out with the leaves4 ,a fringe of catkins at the base of the new shoot is composed of pollen-bearing flowers4 ,in the angles of the new leaves farther up the stem1 we shall find the little acorn flowers1 usually in twos4 ,this is the flower arrangement of all the oaks2 staminate and pistillate flowers on the new shoots1 separate and very different from each other1 but always close together1 and always both kinds on each tree4 ,the fringe of catkins falls as soon as the pollen is shed4 ,little1 red1 forked tongues are thrust out by the pistillate flowers to catch the golden dust when it is flying through the air1 and thus to set seed4 ,all through the summer1 the little acorns are growing4 ,we can find them in their tiny cups in the angles of the leaves4 ,in the autumn the acorns are ripe1 and falling4 ,some trees will show acorns of two sizes1 half-grown ones on the new shoots1 and full-sized ones on the bare twigs1 just back of the new shoots4 ,this peculiarity divides the oak family into two great groups4 ,one group is composed of trees which have light-coloured bark1 bear a crop every year1 and in winter are bare of fruit4 ,this is known as the ,white ,oak ,group4 ,its leaves have rounded margin lobes which do not end in sharp points1 as many of the lobes of oak leaves do4 ,all of the oaks whose leaves have pointed1 spiny lobes on their margin belong to the ,black ,oak ,group4 ,the bark of these trees is usually dark-coloured4 ,the acorns require two years of growth4 ,for this reason1 there are half-grown acorns on the tree all winter1 waiting for the second summer to bring them to maturity4 ,every autumn the acorns which are ripe are found on the twigs just back of the leafy shoots1 which grew during the past summer4 ,these acorns have completed their second year of growth4 ,when we hear any one speak of annual-fruited and biennial-fruited oaks1 we know that the ,white ,oak and ,black ,oak ,groups are meant4 ,if you see an oak tree whose leaves are cut into sharp pointed lobes1 you will find acorns of two sizes on its twigs4 ,if you look across the fence and see a pale-barked oak with finger-lobed leaves1 and not a spiny point on their margins1 you will know that acorns of but one size will be found4 ,fix these three points in mind4 ,then study all the oak trees you can find4 ,trees of the ,white ,oak ,group have3 #a4 ,rounded lobes on their leaf margins4 #b4 ,acorns ripe in a single season4 #c4 ,pale-coloured bark4 ,trees of the ,black ,oak ,group have3 #a4 ,spiny-pointed lobes on their leaves4 #b4 ,acorns requiring two seasons to ripen4 #c4 ,dark-coloured bark ,,the ,,white ,,oak ,those who know trees best agree that there is no nobler broad-leaved tree in the ,american forests than the ,white ,oak4 ,tree lovers in ,england have but one native oak upon which to spend their loyal devotion1 the tree worship inherited from ,druid ancestors1 whose temples were their sacred groves of oaks4 ,the same feeling is in our blood1 and roused at sight of an aged white oak1 with stout1 buttressed trunk1 and great horizontal limbs supporting a rounded dome1 much broader than high4 ,the tree is grey in winter4 ,it stands bare of leaves1 clothed in its pale1 scaly bark4 ,this is the time to study the framework of the dome4 ,the limbs are twisted and gnarled1 and their branches end in dense thickets of twigs4 ,each twig bears the winter buds1 and five buds are clustered at the tip of each4 ,in spring these buds open1 and a leafy shoot comes out of each4 ,at the base are the yellow1 fringed catkins of the sterile flowers1 and above them1 in the angles between leaves and twig1 the fertile flowers thrust out forked tongues for pollen4 ,these will be acorns next autumn1 if the pollen falls upon them1 and thus sets seed4 ,all summer the leaves are green1 with pale linings1 and when summer ends1 they turn to rich shades of purplish red4 ,the sweet acorns are ripe1 and as they fall1 thrifty squirrels are all about1 gathering them into their hidden store-houses for winter use4 ,plenty of the thin1 shallow cups we shall find1 but the kernels are scarce1 unless we come when they are falling in ,october4 ,the ,indians taught the early colonists in ,america to use acorns of this species for food4 ,they boiled them1 like hominy1 and found them not only nourishing1 but good to eat4 ,if you find solitary white oaks growing here and there in a mixed woods1 you may wonder how they were planted thus4 ,the tree cannot scatter its own seeds4 ,it depends upon the work of scampering nut-gatherers1 in fur coats1 that put away more acorns than they can eat during the long winter4 ,an acorn that is left over in one of the dark pockets along a squirrel's run-way sprouts in the spring1 and in a few years it is a sturdy oak sapling4 ,all oaks are dependent on outside help in planting4 ,white oak lumber is very high-priced4 ,the wood of this tree we rarely see nowadays except in the most expensive oak furniture4 ,the beautiful satiny streaks that are the chief ornament of the grain in polished table tops1 are bands of fibres that radiate from the central pith to the bark4 ,when oak is 8quarter-sawed10 these pith rays1 called 8mirrors10 show to best advantage4 ,they are most numerous in the wood of the white oak4 ,,the ,,bur ,,or ,,mossy-,,cup ,,oak ,the largest acorn ,i know is the fruit of the bur oak1 and it is borne in a mossy cup1 indeed4 ,the cup's scales are drawn out into long1 hairy points1 and those near the rim form a loose fringe4 ,once in a while you may find an acorn almost covered up in its husk4 ,but as a rule1 the nut is a little more than half-covered4 ,sometimes these nuts are two inches long1 but this is not usual4 ,they are over an inch long1 and almost as broad1 and the meat is white and sweet4 ,no wonder squirrels harvest the crop1 and young trees spring up wherever an acorn is missed by the hungry creatures4 ,the bur oak is a shaggy tree1 for it sheds its bark in big flakes1 like the sycamore4 ,the small branches are stout1 and their bark is developed into corky wings1 like the sweet gum4 ,the tree is irregular in shape1 too1 its gnarled limbs are thrown out in any direction1 and so the top is often unsymmetrical4 ,but it is a rugged and picturesque tree1 in spite of all its faults1 and it adds beauty of an unusual kind to parks and woodlands4 ,in ,sioux ,city1 ,iowa1 an aged bur oak stands in ,riverside ,park4 ,it is called 8,the ,council ,oak10 for it was a venerable tree in the days when the ,indians lived on the banks of the ,missouri ,river4 ,under this tree their chieftains used to meet the white men1 and talk over the questions that interested both4 ,here treaties were drawn up and signed that kept peace between the red and white men4 ,i promise a great deal of pleasure to any one who plants a mossy-cup acorn4 ,the seedling tree is wonderfully vigorous in growth4 ,the leaves are often a foot long in the first years of the tree's life4 ,the blades are thick1 lustrous above1 and woolly lined1 the finger lobes irregular1 and two opposite1 deep sinuses near the middle of the leaf cut it almost in two6 ,before the tree is more than a sapling it blossoms and bears big acorns in their handsome mossy cups4 ,there is no stage in the life of one of these oaks that is not beautiful and interesting4 ,this tree is found from ,nova ,scotia to ,western ,texas4 ,it forms forests in ,winnipeg1 and 8oak openings0 in ,minnesota and ,dakota4 ,it is as much at home in the hot1 arid stretches of the plains of the ,west and ,southwest as in the raw1 damp air of the ,new ,england coasts4 ,in the rich valley of the ,ohio ,river it reached nearly two hundred feet in height in the virgin forests4 ,unlike many oaks1 it may be safely transplanted while young4 ,,the ,,live ,,oak ,the citizen of ,new ,orleans takes his ,northern visitors to ,audubon ,park1 and points with pride to the giant live oak trees4 ,he does not hesitate1 for he knows that the noble pair called 8,george ,washington10 and 8,martha ,washington10 though crippled now by tornadoes1 are more noted the country over than any monument or building in this famous old city4 ,in ,charleston and other ,southern cities it is the same4 ,famous old live oaks adorn the parks and avenues1 and the same trees are planted year by year to take the places of the veterans when age and storms shall make an end of their long lives4 ,these trees wear a crown of green throughout the year4 ,the leaves last but one year1 but they cling to the twigs and remain green until they are gradually pushed off by the opening of new leafy shoots4 ,in spring the new leaves are much brighter than the darker old ones4 ,everywhere the trees are draped with the sage-green ropes of 8,spanish moss10 which is not a moss at all1 but a flowering plant that steals its living by lodging its roots in crevices in the bark of trees4 ,the live oak acorns are dainty1 dark-brown nuts1 set in hoary1 long-stemmed cups4 ,each year there is a good crop of acorns1 and they are sweet1 and pleasant to the taste4 ,the ,indians depended upon them for food1 roasting or boiling them4 ,they also skimmed the boiling pot to collect the oil1 which the early colonists said was much like oil of almonds4 ,the 8knees of oak0 that early ship-builders used to brace the sides of vessels1 were taken from live oak trees1 where the great boughs spring out from the short1 stout trunks4 ,this natural joint is better than any bolted union of two pieces of timber4 ,the scarcity of these trees makes it impossible now to supply these knees1 but no steel frame serves the purpose quite so well4 ,the wood is as beautiful as white oak for the making of handsome furniture1 though it splits more easily1 and is harder for the cabinet-maker to use4 ,the tree grows throughout the ,south to ,texas2 also in ,mexico1 and ,lower ,california4 ,its ,northern limit is ,virginia4 ,a friend who has for a near neighbour the majestic ,mc,donough ,oak1 patriarch among the noble live oaks of the ,audubon ,park1 ,new ,orleans1 writes interestingly of the habits of this species4 8,the live oak sheds its leaves in the spring1 just before the new leaves open4 ,so1 for a brief time the tree stands leafless4 ,in this period1 however1 the tree puts out catkins in great abundance1 so that the tree does not appear bare4 ,these catkins are light brown1 and have a soft1 velvety appearance1 and a tree has an absolute change of colour4 ,during this blossom time the splendid form of the trunk and the great limbs is revealed4 ,when the new leaves appear1 the framework of branch and bough is concealed by leafage so dense as to be impenetrable to sun or eye4 ,the tree is a symmetrical1 shining green dome4 ,the crown of the ,mc,donough oak is over two hundred feet in diameter40 ,,the ,,post ,,oak ,the post oak1 a small1 rugged tree1 is noticeable in winter1 because its leaves usually hang on until the open buds in spring push them off4 ,the colour of this winter foliage is yellowish brown1 and not at all striking nor beautiful4 ,the bark is brown and deeply furrowed4 ,the twigs wear a yellow fuzz4 ,the leaves are coarse1 stiff and rough1 four to five inches long1 tapering from three broad1 squarish lobes to a narrow base1 and a short leaf stalk4 ,they are lined with brownish wool1 and are dark green and shining above in summer4 ,the acorns of the post oak are borne in a plentiful annual crop4 ,each is dainty and trim1 in a shallow cup of loose1 blunt-pointed scales4 ,the kernel is sweet4 ,in the days when wild game roamed the woods1 wild turkeys fattened on these acorns1 and some people call the tree the 8turkey oak40 ,another name for this tree is 8iron oak10 for its wood is hard1 and heavy1 and close-grained4 ,it makes admirable posts and railroad ties1 because it does not rot in contact with water4 ,it is used in boat-building1 and for barrel staves4 8,knees0 of post oak 7the angles between trunk and branch7 form most admirable timbers to be used in the framework of boats4 ,,the ,,swamp ,,white ,,oak ,the swamp white oak is a rugged and ragged tree1 with drooping branches and crooked twigs1 covered with greyish brown bark which peels in thin flakes from branches and trunk4 ,this habit of shedding its bark in irregular plates reminds us strongly of the sycamore1 which carries this habit to excess4 ,the leaves of this oak are large1 wedge-shaped at the base1 wavy-toothed or lobed1 and broadening towards the tips4 ,they are dark green above1 and lined with white down4 ,the acorns are borne in pairs on long stems4 ,the oval nut is hairy at its tip1 and sits in a rough cup made of scales1 sometimes fringed at the border4 ,the kernel is sweet and eatable1 not only for beasts1 but for man4 ,if one were lost in the woods1 he need not starve nor die of thirst1 if he is near a stream1 and can get the fruit of a swamp white oak1 which stands by the water side4 ,he will do well to make a fire1 and roast the acorns1 which will improve their nutty flavour1 and make them more digestible4 ,this white oak is more beautiful in ,may than at any other season of the year4 ,the young leaves are pale green1 and the tree top is illuminated by the silky hairs that line them4 ,the whiteness of the down is dimmed as summer advances4 ,in the autumn the leaves turn yellow1 but never red4 ,the wood of this oak is not distinguished in the lumber trade from any other white oak4 ,the demand for it for the building of houses and boats1 and for agricultural implements and vehicles1 is greater than the supply4 ,it is too expensive now to be used as it was a few years ago1 for fuel1 railroad ties1 and fence posts4 ,,the ,,chestnut ,,oak ,the chestnut oak has leaves which are much like those of the chestnut tree4 ,they are larger1 and wider1 however1 and have rounded lobes at the ends of the side veins1 making a very regular wavy margin1 compared with that of most oak leaves4 ,the lining is often silky1 and always much paler than the upper surface4 ,this tree is an exception to the rule that the annual-fruited oaks have pale bark4 ,this one has bark so dark in colour that it is often mistaken for one of the ,black ,oak ,group1 although its wavy leaf margins1 and its annual crop of acorns1 prove it to belong to the ,white ,oak ,group4 ,the acorns are very long1 and smooth1 and they sit in thin cups lined with down1 and covered with small swollen scales4 ,they are usually borne alone on short stems4 ,this is one of the largest and sweetest acorns4 ,the squirrels pack them among their winter's stores4 ,the wood of chestnut oak is hard1 and strong1 and durable in contact with the soil4 ,the bark is especially rich in tannic acid4 ,for this reason many of the finest trees yield only tan bark1 because the peelers take the bark1 and leave the log to fall a prey to forest fires4 ,,the ,,black ,,oak ,the black oak1 which gives its name to the large group of biennial-fruited oaks1 is one of our handsome1 sturdy forest trees4 ,it grows from ,maine to ,florida1 and west to ,minnesota1 ,kansas1 and ,eastern ,texas4 ,its bark is very dark grey or brown1 and thick1 with rough1 broken ridges and deep furrows4 ,under this outer layer is a yellow belt1 rich in tannin4 ,this gives the tree the name 8yellow oak10 and since its bark is valuable in tanning leather1 it is some times called the 8tan bark oak40 ,the tree is not graceful nor symmetrical1 but there is a picturesqueness and strength about it that redeems its coarseness and irregularity4 ,this species would be planted oftener for shade1 were there not so many beautiful oaks to choose from4 ,in the wild1 however1 a giant black oak is a noble feature of the landscape4 ,in early spring the large downy winter buds begin to swell1 and soon the leaves push rapidly out4 ,the whole tree top flushes crimson in the sunshine4 ,the red glow is from the crinkly1 half-awake baby leaves1 whose brilliance is softened by a silky covering of white hairs4 ,in a day the leaves turn green1 and most of their silky covering is shed4 ,the bloom of the black oak consists of a fringe of yellow catkins at the base of each shoot1 and pairs of red-tongued acorn flowers in the angles of some of the leaves4 ,back of the new shoot the half-grown acorns of the previous season are seen4 ,in autumn the new crop is well along and the full-grown acorns1 which have taken two seasons to ripen1 are ready to be shed4 ,each kernel sits in a straight-sided cup of loosely shingled scales1 which form a fringe at the margin4 ,the kernel is bitter1 and yellow1 as it is in most of the species of the ,black ,oak ,group4 ,illustration3 ,leaves1 mossy-cup acorns and warty twigs of the bur oak ,illustration3 ,the horizontal limbs of the pin oak form a regular pyramidal head ,the large1 downy1 pointed buds of this oak will often determine its name for us when we are confused by the shapes of the leaves4 ,often the red oak and the black oak 8run together0 in their leaf forms4 ,to determine the tree's name we must call in the buds1 the acorns1 and their cups1 and the general shape of the trees1 and consider all these points together4 ,black oak leaves are thick1 coarse1 and leathery4 ,crumple one in your hand1 and you cringe at the harsh scratching noise it makes4 ,they vary from four to ten inches in length1 and from two to six inches in breadth4 ,the margins are deeply cut into seven or nine broad1 bristly-toothed lobes1 with rounded bays between4 ,the upper surface is dark green in summer1 shining and smooth1 or sometimes hairy4 ,the lining is brownish and a remnant of the scurfy down is found in the neighbourhood of the veins4 ,in autumn these leaves turn brownish-yellow1 but rarely show a tinge of red4 ,the bark of black oak is stripped and carried to the tan-yards4 ,or it furnishes a yellow dye1 used in the printing of calicoes4 ,the wood is used in house-building1 and in the manufacture of furniture4 ,,the ,,red ,,oak ,the red oak is the tree most likely to be mistaken for the black oak4 ,the bark is brown1 with a decided red tinge4 ,the twigs are also reddish1 and the wood is red-brown4 ,the inner bark has the same tinge instead of the orange-coloured lining the black oak bark has4 ,the red oak is a large1 stately tree1 sometimes #aej feet in height1 and far more symmetrical than the black oak4 ,its leaves vary greatly in the depth of their marginal clefts1 but in general they are oval in outline1 and their lobes and sinuses are triangular4 ,these lobes always point forward1 rather than outward1 along the sides of the leaf1 and they always end in the sharp1 spiny points that belong to the leaves of all the trees that fall into the ,black ,oak ,group4 ,red oak leaves are thinner than those of black oak1 and not so harsh when crumpled in the hand4 ,their linings are pale green and smooth in summer4 ,their autumn colour is deep red4 ,the buds of the red oak are pointed1 smooth1 reddish1 and about one-fourth of an inch long4 ,they are much smaller1 and lack the down of the buds of the black oak4 ,red oak acorns are the most distinct feature of this species4 ,they are large1 often over an inch in length1 and broad1 and they sit in saucers1 instead of cups4 ,these saucers are made of close scales1 and they curl in closely at the top as if to tighten their hold on the nut1 which extends two-thirds its height above this rim4 ,the kernel is white1 and extremely bitter4 ,,the ,,scarlet ,,oak ,the scarlet oak need not be confused with either the red or black oaks1 for it is a far more dainty tree than either in its trim trunk1 graceful curving branches1 very slim twigs1 and deeply cut leaves4 ,in form1 these leaves are oval1 but so much of the 8cloth0 is cut away by the four or six deep bays along the sides that a small amount of green is left to do leaf duty4 ,the slender lobes are strengthened by the branching veins1 each of which ends in a spiny point4 ,these almost skeleton leaves are beautifully lustrous and thin1 a trifle paler beneath and sometimes hairy tufted at the veins4 ,they are rarely six inches long1 and the side lobes sometimes measure five inches from tip to tip4 ,the leaf stems are long and flexible1 and the whole tree top is as light and feathery and tremulous in a breeze as that of a honey locust or a willow4 ,in autumn the scarlet oak blazes like a torch above the duller reds and browns of the woods1 and keeps its brilliancy later than any other oak4 ,the acorn differs from the black oak in being smaller and daintier1 and in having its cup drawn in tightly at the rim4 ,the scales are smooth and close-pressed2 the kernel white and bitter4 ,,the ,,pin ,,oak ,the pin oak has foliage much like the scarlet oak1 but coarser and not so lustrous4 ,often a pin oak tree has leaves that approach the red oak in form1 and these lead to confusion1 if leaves alone are consulted in determining the name of the tree4 ,there are better signs in any pin oak that set it apart from its larger-leaved relative4 ,consult the acorns4 ,they are plump little nuts1 as broad as long1 rarely measuring one-half inch either way1 pale brown1 streaked with black in straight lines1 down from the pointed tips1 and they sit in shallow1 saucer-like cups made of close reddish scales4 ,as they fall1 the nuts roll out of the cups1 which are lined with hair4 ,the kernel is white and bitter and yet1 late in winter1 it is very common to find them gnawed open by some hungry little four-foot1 whose winter store threatens to run short4 ,the pin oak takes its name from the fact that its branches are thickly set with short1 pin-like twigs1 many of which die but do not fall4 ,these stubs stay on for several years4 ,this fact alone will soon enable us to recognise the tree from a distance4 ,no other species is so close-twigged1 and the symmetrical form of this tree is very striking in the winter4 ,it is a pyramid with many small branches thrust out horizontally from the main shaft4 ,below the middle of the tree1 the long branches have a downward thrust1 and the lowest ones often sweep the ground4 ,above the middle of the tree the branches are horizontal1 and they gradually become shorter1 and the tree ends in a pointed tip4 ,there is no oak that ,i know which has so much the pyramidal form of evergreens like the firs1 hemlocks1 and spruces4 ,on the avenues of the city of ,washington1 we shall find superb double rows of ,american trees4 ,on one which leads to the ,navy ,yard1 ,i remember the beautiful pin oaks1 uniform in size1 perfect in symmetry1 that stood in a double row along the sides of the avenue4 ,to the crowds of tourists who visit the capital city every year1 ,i hope that this will be an object lesson4 ,in most towns and cities every owner plants the trees he likes in front of his house1 so our streets and avenues present a mixture of trees of all ages1 sizes1 kinds1 and conditions4 ,the better way is for the city to plant the same tree in double lines1 the whole length of a street1 as has of late years been done in ,washington4 ,one needs only to see these trees coming on1 each year adding beauty and dignity to the city1 to realise that such planting may be done easily anywhere in the country1 where trees as beautiful as the pin oaks grow wild4 ,,the ,,willow ,,oak ,a ,southern tree with slender twigs and narrow leaves like those of a willow1 surprises us by bearing acorns6 ,it is the willow oak1 a beautiful1 graceful tree for shade and for avenue planting4 ,the tree naturally chooses wet ground1 but it thrives where the soil is deep and well drained4 ,i remember a fine large willow oak in ,john ,bartram's garden in ,philadelphia1 and a young tree in the ,arnold ,arboretum in ,boston4 ,this little one grows rapidly1 but the frost nips its twigs in the winter4 ,the species grows wild from ,new ,york southward1 just back from the sea coast1 to ,texas4 ,in swampy land1 it is found from ,missouri southward4 ,willow oak acorns are downy1 yellow-brown1 and set in shallow saucer-shaped cups4 ,the kernel is orange-yellow1 and bitter4 ,half-grown acorns are found with the ripe ones on these trees1 and the dark1 rough bark agrees with others of the ,black ,oak ,group4 ,though the leaves have rarely a side lobe1 but are mostly narrow and plain-margined1 the tip ends in a spine1 as all black oak leaves should4 ,,trees ,,with ,,winged ,,seeds ,why do the trees grow in such mixed groves1 when ,nature does the planting8 ,here and there we find solid groves of beech or oak1 but the forest is1 for the most part1 a gathering together of all kinds of trees4 ,a part of the beauty of any woodland is this variety in the planting4 ,under a tall oak we find a hornbeam1 and under this the witch hazel1 and under the witch hazel1 a carpet of low woodland plants4 ,we may walk in a straight line1 or follow a woodland path a mile1 and find every tree we meet is different from all the rest4 ,many reasons explain the order in which ,nature plants forests4 ,one of the best of these is found in the kind of seeds trees bear4 ,we shall find that trees most widely scattered are those whose seeds are winged4 ,it is not hard to find1 from ,may until far past midwinter1 trees bearing light1 winged seeds4 ,all through the summer1 the wind is busy sowing the seeds of the early-fruiting trees4 ,in autumn1 and all through the winter1 the sowing of the larger crop goes on4 ,let us begin our study with the maples1 whose winged seeds every child knows4 ,from the silver maple1 whose seeds are dry before the first of ,june1 there is a procession of ripening maple seeds that lasts throughout the year4 ,a high wind shakes off the silver maple's keys in showers in late ,may4 ,watch those in the tree-tops4 ,the wind has a better chance up there4 ,each key1 loosening from its twig1 turns round and round in a dizzy whirl1 and sails away still whirling as it falls1 the heavy seed end always pointed downward4 ,a tree is soon stripped1 and the ground littered under it4 ,but a great deal larger area than the tree's shadow has the seeds scattered over it3 the stronger the wind1 the further these seeds go4 ,before the summer is over1 a crop of little maple trees springs up from this sowing4 ,the red maple's scarlet seed clusters turn brown1 and the little winged seeds take flight in ,june4 ,lighter and smaller1 they are carried longer distances than the seeds of the silver maple1 and a crop of little red maples follows this ,june sowing of the trees4 ,i remember walking in a corn field in late ,june2 the corn had been last ploughed a month before4 ,among the weeds that had grown up in this short time was a crop of young red maples1 now six inches high4 ,it was amazing to see these little trees grow so plentifully in a cultivated field4 ,i looked for the seed tree1 and there it stood on the edge of the field1 the only maple tree in sight4 ,a few young trees were growing in the matted grass of the roadside under the tree1 but the great crop was from the seeds that flew out to the mellow ground between the corn rows4 ,the disappointed seeds1 those which fell and did not grow1 were under the tree and in the dusty road4 ,in the autumn the hard maple1 which we call the sugar maple1 ripens its winged seeds4 ,so does the three-leaved box elder 7which is a maple7 and the ,norway maple1 now a very familiar street tree4 ,the wind takes its time1 and the trees stubbornly hang on to their seeds1 so that these maples are busy all winter with the sowing4 ,every day they give up a few1 and many seeds that fall on the snow are picked up1 again and again1 by the wind and thus carried further and further away4 ,the maple seed1 with its curiously one-sided wing1 is the sign by which the maple family is easily recognised4 ,other trees have winged seeds1 but none have the peculiar form of this one4 ,all summer long we may know the trees that belong to the ash family by the clusters of pale green darts that hang among their leaves4 ,these are the ash seeds4 ,each one is a pointed seed case1 containing the embryo plant1 and out behind it extends the thin1 light1 two-edged wing4 ,there is no one-sidedness to this blade4 ,the seed is winged1 but balanced like a dart4 ,when the wind loosens one from the wiry stem1 it goes like an arrow1 seed downward4 ,if there is a gale blowing1 the seed may be caught up and borne far away in the upper air1 before a lull lets it take a downward course1 and drive its point into a snowbank1 or into the ground4 ,this little feathered arrow may be long or short1 depending upon whether it belongs to the red ash1 the white ash1 or the black2 but there is no mistaking an ash tree for any other1 once the form of an ash seed is fixed in the mind4 ,i have said that a maple seed is shaped like that of no other tree4 ,i must describe here the seeds of the needle-leaved evergreens1 which1 though very much smaller1 are somewhat like maple seeds in form4 ,go to a pine tree or a spruce1 and get one of the cones that has begun to spread its scales apart4 ,shake the cone over a piece of paper4 ,if nothing comes out from between the scales1 cut or break the cone open with knife or hatchet4 ,under each scale will be found two seeds1 each with a thin1 one-sided wing4 ,spruces1 hemlocks1 firs1 and arbor vits1 all have this same type of seed1 hid away in the same fashion1 under the protecting scales of their cones4 ,do you understand how the wind1 blowing through the tops of evergreens1 shakes the winged seeds from their places1 and carries them far away8 ,do you understand why the ripe cones of these trees hang on so stubbornly1 and spread their scales to allow the seeds to escape8 ,it is a peculiarity of the firs that they hold their cones erect4 ,it would seem hard for the wind to get at the seeds1 but the fir cones let their scales fall1 and when they loosen1 the seeds are freed4 ,out of the balls of the sweet gum tree1 which dangle on the twigs all winter1 the wind shakes little winged seeds1 not unlike those of the pines4 ,do you know the catalpa's long1 green pods that hang all summer on the top of trees8 ,they are longer than the newest lead pencil1 and show no signs of splitting1 until the autumn4 ,now1 the two halves of the pod spread apart1 and gradually the thin seeds shake out4 ,each one is in the centre of a thin1 fringed wing1 that looks as if made of tissue paper4 ,the wind can carry these ghostly seeds for miles4 ,indeed1 it is strange that they ever come to the ground1 for they seem to have no thickness nor weight at all4 ,the birches all bear their seeds in cones1 some long and pencil-like1 others quite the shape of a pine cone4 ,under each quaintly notched scale of the cone1 a seed is borne2 and each heart-shaped seed has a thin rim1 which acts like a wing1 catching the wind as the seed falls4 ,we shall look far in the woods before we find seeds daintier in form1 or better sailors through the air1 than those of all the birch family4 ,the hop hornbeam has a hop-like cluster of seeds1 each in an inflated papery bag4 ,when the leaves drop in the fall1 the wind has a chance to pick off these little paper seed balloons1 one at a time1 from the clusters4 ,take off one of these little bags1 open it1 and you will find1 set in the bottom1 the shiny1 pointed seed4 ,it is likely to have a long journey1 if there be a good breeze1 before its bag is punctured4 ,back to early ,may again1 when the elm trees are green with their fruit clusters1 before the leaves are fully out4 ,elm trees grow scattered through the woods1 and no wonder3 the seeds have papery rims1 and the wind catches these little falling discs1 and scatters them far from the tree where they were born4 ,the ailanthus tree1 whose long1 fern-like leaves make it look like a tree from the ,tropics1 is sowing its seeds all winter1 with the help of the wind4 ,examine one4 ,in the middle of a slim blade is the little seed4 ,the blade is twisted as it ripens1 and it sails through the air with a tilting1 uncertain flight4 ,after a look at a bunch of these seeds1 and after throwing a handful of them out of an upper window1 and watching them as they sail away1 we shall understand how it is that ailanthus trees spring up in most unexpected places1 year after year4 ,and we shall bless the breeze that plants such trees along the hot pavements1 and in the ugly back alleys of towns and cities1 where few trees are able to grow at all4 ,,tree ,,seeds ,,that ,,have ,,parachutes ,it is a thrilling moment when the man who goes up with the balloon lets go at last1 and drops to the ground4 ,before he drops1 an umbrella-like parachute opens1 and by its aid1 he comes to the ground gracefully1 slowly1 and alights unhurt4 ,should anything go wrong with his parachute he would drop to his death1 so every onlooker is anxious as he comes down1 and breathes a sigh of relief when the wonderful feat is accomplished4 ,seeds with wings sail away on the wind1 and seeds with parachutes descend so slowly and gracefully that the winds carry them far out of their courses4 ,the trees most fortunate in scattering their seeds1 and thus colonising new territory1 have peculiar devices4 ,the seeds of the basswood hang in clusters attached to a narrow1 leaf-like blade4 ,this is a parachute1 by which the whole cluster is able to sail away on a good breeze4 ,there is no seed parachute like this among our forest trees4 ,by this sign alone we may know the basswood trees4 ,the balls of the sycamore bump against the branches1 and tiny seeds with hairy parachutes are loosened and scattered4 ,each is a minute spike1 which might drop to the ground1 but for the umbrella-like parachute made of a brush of fine hairs4 ,by this1 the wind lifts the seed1 and carries it away4 ,willow seeds1 and those of the poplar1 are almost too small to be seen4 ,each seed is hid in a dainty fluff of white cotton1 and in this the seed rides4 ,we may miss seeing these trees in fruit1 unless we look at the down which accumulates in ,june on the screens of windows and doors4 ,the air is full of the fluffy stuff when the pods open4 ,in a few days this harvest is over1 and we may find the empty pods on the ground under our neighbour poplars1 cottonwoods1 and willows4 ,the blue beech1 or hornbeam1 has a parachute which is leafy1 and crinkled so as to look almost like a little boat4 ,the shiny seed sits in one end1 and when it gets free1 it has a fine long sail through the air before it settles to the earth4 ,there are wings and parachutes on the seeds of other trees4 ,when you find them you may know that the wind is the partner of the tree1 by robbing it of its children4 ,the wind is saving those children from death1 which would have been their fate1 if they fell on the ground under the shadow of the parent tree4 ,if all the fields that adjoin the woods were left uncultivated for a few years they would grow up to forests4 ,we know the name of the sower1 who gathers seeds in the woods1 and plants them2 who is busy all the year at the endless work of the harvest and the sowing4 ,,the ,,autumn ,,berries ,,in ,,the ,,woods ,in the roadside thickets1 as the summer wanes1 the berry clusters of the shrubby viburnums turn red1 and soften1 and in ,september change to a vivid1 or a dark blue4 ,they are very pretty on their coral red stems1 and look like little plums4 ,indeed1 they are not unpleasant to taste1 but it is the birds who delight in these sweetish1 juicy berries1 and we are willing that they should have them all4 ,the names1 sheepberry and nannyberry1 are given to these little trees1 because sheep are said to browse on the foliage and shoots in spring4 ,the blue berries of the sassafras1 also on coral red stems1 are not unlike those of the viburnums in appearance1 but fewer in a cluster4 ,the birds take them eagerly before they are fully ripe4 ,to leave them until they ripen would be to lose them to other birds4 ,illustration3 ,cone fruits of 7#a7 a birch1 7#b7 a pine1 7#c7 a magnolia1 and 7#d7 a fir ,illustration3 ,clusters of the winged seeds of hornbeam and white ash ,the dogwood berries are redder than the whorl of leaves that surround the fruit clusters in early ,october4 ,these waxy berries have taken the place of the central cluster of small flowers1 which were surrounded in spring by the four large1 white bracts4 ,it is the birds who first accept the invitation of these little trees4 ,the migrating hosts turn southward in ,september1 and in ,october the bird procession is in full swing4 ,we hear them overhead1 often so high in air that we cannot see them4 ,tired of the long flight1 they descend for food and water1 and if the neighbourhood has many fruiting dogwood trees1 the joy of the winged voyagers is correspondingly great4 ,in a surprisingly short time the hungry birds have taken the last one4 ,far in the winter we shall find red berries glowing in clusters on the mountain ash trees1 among the evergreen holly leaves1 and in conical spikes on the sumachs4 ,the winter birds ignore these dry1 insipid seeds1 until everything else is gone4 ,frequently1 when winter snows cover up all other foods1 the berries of these two trees stand between the birds and actual starvation4 ,so it happens that many a mountain ash is stripped of its fruit during the early days of ,march1 and the holly berries which have glowed red all winter disappear for the same reason4 ,the sumachs are rarely stripped as closely as the other two4 ,in ,september the hackberry hangs full of its sugary fruits4 ,it is surprising to find a tree which looks like an elm1 yet bearing soft1 purple berries4 ,but this1 we shall learn1 is the hackberry's way4 ,under each leaf a long thread grows1 on the end of which is a single1 oblong berry1 the size of a pea1 but not the same shape4 ,the fruit hangs on late into the winter1 if the birds will permit such a thing1 and it is a grateful supply of food to birds that winter in the ,north4 ,if there were no other reason for planting hackberry trees1 they are worth having as fruit trees for the refreshment of birds4 ,the autumn colour of hackberry leaves is yellow4 ,the purple fruits make little show1 until the leaves fall4 ,the bark of the tree is its chief peculiarity4 ,on the trunk it is deeply checked into small1 thick1 warty plates4 ,the branches are often ridged and broken into warty excrescences that stand close together4 ,the leaves are peculiar4 ,there is no other tree that has not a main vein1 or a rib1 which prolongs the leaf stem straight to the tip4 ,the hackberry leaf stem divides into three equal branches at the base4 ,the two side branches are shorter than the middle one1 but their size is unusual4 ,it is in autumn1 of course1 that the hackberry earns its name1 sugarberry4 ,the bark will guide us to the tree at any season4 ,the leaves fix in mind another important family trait4 ,the berries we may safely taste to find out if they are as sugary as we are led to expect4 ,nettle tree is the common name of the ,european hackberry4 ,you may have read of the lotus-eaters1 who1 tasting the sweet fruit of this little tree1 straightway forgot their native land1 and could not be persuaded to return4 ,the wood is tough and peculiarly adapted to make the handles of hayforks1 and similar agricultural implements4 ,young trees are grown for these uses4 ,the roots remain alive and send up suckers1 slender but tall4 ,these are cut for walking sticks1 whipstocks1 and ramrods for guns4 ,older trees furnish wood1 as hard as box or holly1 and beautiful as satinwood when polished4 ,this is a material which the wood-carvers delight to use4 ,the tree is widely planted for shade1 and its leaves are used as fodder for cattle4 ,bad as its reputation is1 according to the tradition that its fruit had power to rob men of their patriotism1 yet this is one of the most useful little trees4 ,it grows easily1 and is contented on land that is worthless for other purposes4 ,besides the hackberry1 another big tree in our woods bears a crop of purple berries in ,september4 ,that is the wild black cherry4 ,the bark of this tree is dark brown and shining1 and satiny smooth on the branches4 ,it breaks on the trunk into rough1 squarish plates1 which curl horizontally at the edges4 ,the plates still retain the silky outer bark1 whose fibres run crosswise1 and whose surface has many slit-like1 horizontal breathing holes4 ,we are strongly reminded of the birches1 especially the cherry birch1 which has dark-coloured bark1 and has its name from its resemblance to this tree4 ,the thin young bark of the black cherry curls in a very birch-like fashion4 ,one difference is very marked4 ,the bark of the cherry is bitter1 with the flavour of the pit of a peach or cherry4 ,birch bark is pleasantly aromatic in flavour4 ,the fruit of the black cherry is more plentiful than that of the hackberry4 ,the close-set side shoots on the new twigs end in fruit clusters two or three inches long1 and often containing a dozen berries each4 ,the sweet pulp is flavoured with the bitter taste of cherry pits1 a flavour found in the sap of this tree4 ,nibble the bark1 or a bit of cherry wood1 a leaf1 or the tip of the root1 and you get the same ,prussic acid taste4 ,i do not like wild black cherries1 but many people do4 ,children and birds seem not to notice the bitter with the sweet4 ,they eat the berries as soon as they change colour1 with evident enjoyment4 ,cherry brandies and cordials are made from the fruit by people who rely upon old-fashioned home remedies4 ,these are the people who chew the bitter opening buds of the wild cherry in spring1 as they drink sassafras tea1 believing that spring is the time to clear the blood1 and that ,nature offers free remedies far better than they can buy in bottles4 ,we cannot wonder that wild cherry trees spring up in the woods1 in fence corners1 and along roadsides4 ,the birds are feasting in the trees each autumn1 and until the last berry is taken4 ,they are the sowers of the seed4 ,our greatest objection to the wild cherry is the fact that its shining young leaves are regarded by the apple tree tent caterpillars as particularly good4 ,when the white blossom clusters deck this tree in ,may1 we often see a web of white silk wrapping together some of the upper branches4 ,day by day the web is extended1 and the twigs are stripped of their leaves by the host of caterpillars which return at night to the tent1 and range more widely in the day time4 ,when the tent is as large as a peach basket1 it is found empty1 for the caterpillars have descended to the ground1 spun their cocoons1 and will soon emerge as winged moths1 to lay their eggs1 from which later broods of caterpillars come4 ,the winged females are very likely to seek the nearest orchard1 and lay their eggs in bands around apple twigs4 ,many an otherwise harmless roadside wild cherry is a deadly menace to an orchard because it breeds the insects1 which1 in a second generation1 become a serious pest among the apple trees4 ,in the forest the lumberman is glad to find wild black cherry trees of large size4 ,the lumber is very valuable for interior finish of houses1 and for furniture4 ,it is hard1 and close-grained1 and dark reddish-brown in colour1 with a lustre1 when polished1 that puts it in the class with mahogany and rosewood4 ,it is more often used nowadays as a veneer on cheaper woods4 ,parlour cars and steamships1 and fine houses are very often finished in cherry4 ,the small limbs and other bits of the lumber are utilised for tool handles and for inlay work4 ,the wood is too valuable to waste4 ,the largest berry that grows on a tree in the woods of the ,united ,states is the persimmon4 ,we should mistake this berry for an apple1 perhaps1 when we see it for the first time--a little1 orange-brown apple1 one to two inches in diameter4 ,but there is no core such as apples have1 though there are from one to a dozen seeds in each fruit4 ,the persimmon tree is tall1 with a handsome round head1 and zig-zag1 twisted branches4 ,it grows from ,rhode ,island west to ,kansas and south to ,florida and ,texas4 ,it is found scattered in mixed woods1 and comes up in fence rows and in abandoned fields wherever the seeds have been dropped4 ,light1 sandy soil is this tree's preference4 ,although it is a relative of the ebony of ,ceylon1 our persimmon is not an important lumber tree4 ,its wood is hard1 dark-brown in colour1 and is used for shoe lasts1 tool handles1 and various other small articles4 ,in the ,south the persimmon ranks among the choicest of fruit trees4 ,the negro and the possum await the ripening of the 'simmons with eager eyes1 and the ,southerner1 born and bred1 confesses an equal interest in this native fruit4 ,there is a long waiting period between the time when the persimmons change colour from green to reddish-yellow and the time when the frost mellows and sweetens the pulp1 and takes away the harsh1 puckery taste which draws the lips and chokes the throat as if the fruit were a lump of alum4 ,the ,northerner who judges by its appearance only1 dares to taste this fruit before it is ripe4 ,he cannot be persuaded to try it again4 ,and he cannot understand the enthusiasm for persimmons that all people in the ,south feel4 ,a 'simmon tree1 when the fruit is ripe1 belongs to the first comer4 ,the negro and the opossum come into direct competition for the fruit of this tree4 ,you might think the negro would kill the opossum1 and be rid of his rival4 ,he knows too much for that4 8',possum an' 'simmons come together1 and bofe is good fruit40 ,better divide the 'simmons with the 'possum and his family4 ,then get the fat 'possum for the ,christmas dinner4 ,there is no 'possum like the one that is fattened on persimmons1 so it pays to be patient and leave the beast his share of the fruit4 ,in a hollow tree1 or a woodpile1 the opossums sleep by day1 and trail out in companies to climb the persimmon trees at night to feast4 ,they hang by their tails on the branches1 or prop themselves in crotches of the limbs within easy reach of the soft1 sugary berries4 ,the fatter they get1 the lazier they are2 and as the season advances1 and the fruit falls1 the opossums are likely to satisfy their appetites with the persimmons they can pick up under the trees4 ,along about ,thanksgiving day1 or ,christmas1 the day of reckoning arrives1 when the negro hunter comes home with the opossums which have stolen his persimmons4 ,the whole score is wiped out by the opossum feast1 which suitably closes the season4 ,persimmons improve1 the longer they hang upon the trees4 ,as late as ,january or ,february1 little trees scarcely a dozen feet high1 which have been overlooked in the 'simmon harvest1 are found to be still hung with fruits exceptionally large and fine4 ,to the hungry and thirsty hunter1 prowling for quail in the underbrush1 these unexpected fruits are a delightful surprise4 ,they are delicious1 sugary lumps1 rich in flavour1 and juicy1 taking away both hunger and thirst1 and leaving no after-taste that is bitter or puckery1 suggesting their unripe stage4 ,japanese persimmon trees1 whose fruit is larger and better in every respect than our native species1 have been successfully introduced into ,california and the ,southern states4 ,these persimmons look like great ripe tomatoes as we see them on the fruit stands1 but these1 too1 must wait until they are thoroughly ripe before they are fit to eat4 ,,the ,,changing ,,colour ,,of ,,the ,,autumn ,,woods ,all through the autumn1 when the wonderful colours come in the forest leaves1 we shall see the green of these leaves creeping back along the veins4 ,the horse chestnut leaves tell a very interesting story4 ,they turn brown first upon the edges4 ,if we watch a single leaf for a whole week in ,september1 we may see the green gradually draw in towards the central stem1 and the brown papery borders widen1 just as if something were squeezing and crowding the pulp of the leaf1 inch by inch1 back through the leaf stem into the twig4 ,the last traces of green linger along the sides of the veins1 and before it falls1 even these leaf channels will be drained dry4 ,when the leaves of a sugar maple give up their pulp there are wonderful changes inside each leaf4 ,a yellow liquid fills the cells where the green pulp used to be4 ,chemical changes in the mineral substances deposited in the leaf cells produce wonderful shades of red and yellow1 which glow where once the leaf was solid green4 ,iron is one of the minerals brought up in the soil water1 left in the leaf1 and changed to produce the bright red when the leaf mask of green is taken away4 ,the scarlet maple remembers its name in the autumn days4 ,it puts on a cloak more brilliant perhaps than the sugar maple1 which has a good deal of orange as well as red in its autumn foliage4 ,the scarlet oak is amazingly brilliant2 so is the sassafras and the sweet gum4 ,the tupelo1 or sour gum1 also called the pepperidge1 has foliage that is splashed and streaked with various shades of red and yellow4 ,each little leaf is so brilliantly polished that the tree's beauty and colour seem to be doubled by reflection4 ,the sumachs of the roadside thickets wear foliage of scarlet1 each leaf drooping away from the fruit pyramid which rises1 a deeper crimson1 on the end of each upright shoot4 ,the foliage and the fruit together make a colour harmony that is dazzling1 indeed4 ,in contrast with its umbrellas of red leaves are the scarlet berry clusters of the flowering dogwood4 ,this tree has the habit of snuggling up against the trunk of large forest trees and reaching its white flowery arms out to us in spring4 ,how wonderful they are1 on the edge of the woods1 with the green leaves of the larger trees making a background for their flowers6 ,in the autumn the same surprise awaits us1 when under a towering tree with yellow or russet foliage1 the dogwood leaps up like a scarlet flame1 against its dark background1 holding straight out its platformed branches of red leaves1 tipped with berries1 like rubies1 set on the upturned twigs4 ,often the trees are stripped by birds before the berries are ripe4 ,it is in woods where the trees are numerous that we shall find the fruit reaching its perfection of ripeness and colour4 ,among the trees that turn to purple in the autumn we may name the white oak and the ashes4 ,many oaks turn from green to russet1 without showing any red or yellow4 ,the lindens and the tulip trees and the beeches turn yellow2 so do the poplars and willows1 the hickories1 and walnuts4 ,up and down the street you may see the yellow crowns of the silver and the ,norway maples1 and on the lawns the white birches have also turned to gold4 ,the deepest red is on the black and red oaks4 ,the brightest red is on the scarlet oak4 ,illustration3 ,the flowering dogwood covers its bare branches with blossoms in ,may ,illustration3 ,flowering dogwood1 in flower and fruit1 the winter flower buds and alligator-skin bark ,it is not fair to charge ,jack ,frost with all the gay colours of the autumn woods4 ,perhaps ,i should say1 rather1 that he does not deserve all the credit people give him for painting the landscape with the sunset glories of the dying leaves4 ,the cause is the ripening of the leaves themselves1 as ,i have already explained4 ,frost may hasten the process1 but if a heavy freeze comes in ,september1 before the leaves have coloured1 we lose our chance for autumn colouring that year4 ,the leaves drop as if scalded1 and the trees lose their leaf pulp1 which they had expected to withdraw and save for future use4 ,a long dry autumn of warm days and mildly frosty nights produces the finest succession of colours4 ,countries that have a more moist1 warm climate than ours1 do not have the vivid autumn colours that we enjoy4 ,england1 and the countries of ,western ,europe1 are like our ,west coast in lacking the colour changes that make ,october for us the most glorious month of the year4 ,our ,new ,england woodlands and the forests of ,canada are matched in brilliancy by the wooded slopes of the ,swiss ,alps1 and the forests along the ,rhine and the ,danube4 ,in our ,southern states there is little or no change that comes to the foliage towards the end of the year4 ,the leaves on the trees of ,florida are lazy in falling4 ,they wait until pushed off by the swelling buds in early spring4 ,many trees that shed their leaves promptly each autumn in the ,northern states1 gradually become evergreen in the ,southern parts of their range4 ,the longer a tree carries its leaves1 the more battered and worn they become4 ,a tree with fresh1 new leaves mingling with old ones is not a pleasant object1 at least to ,northern eyes4 ,this is the way most trees in the ,south look in spring4 ,if we should travel the world over1 and see the trees of many lands1 in spring1 in summer1 in autumn1 and in winter1 ,i believe we should all come back to the clean1 beautiful mixed woods of our north temperate zone1 and declare that these woods are the most beautiful in the world4 ,in the dead of winter1 they are budded full of promise4 ,we learn to love them as well in this period of rest as we do in the beauty of their spring flowers1 or in the glory of their autumn colouring1 or in the steady growth of summer4 ,each leaf is nurse to a bud that is growing between its base and the twig4 ,find these little buds on any tree with broad leaves4 ,a part of all the food that passes that way stops to feed this growing bud2 and in the late summer the twig provides for the future welfare of all its buds4 ,the thrifty tree withdraws the green pulp from its leaves1 before it lets them fall4 ,a store of starch is put away in the twig1 close to each bud4 ,this is the food supply which will be used in the spring to enable the bud to open and spread its young leaves1 or its flowers1 in a surprisingly short time4 ,when the worn-out leaf has been drained of all of its pulp1 the tree lets it go4 ,it has done its work1 and given up its pulp to be stored in the twig for future use4 ,it seems as if the tree knows that1 with the coming of cooler weather1 growth must stop2 that the tender leaves must die when frost overtakes them4 ,so it is a frugal habit to save all of the good green leaf pulp1 and to cast off only the dry leaf skin4 ,,tree ,,studies ,,in ,,the ,,winter ,,trees ,,we ,,know ,,by ,,their ,,bark ,hunters and foresters who spend much of their time in the woods learn to know trees by name through long acquaintance4 ,in the dead of winter1 the framework of a tree may be enough to recognise it by4 ,where trees are crowded1 this sign is not to be depended upon4 ,the bark is often a guide to the tree's name4 ,the forester will tell you that the bud is the surest sign of all4 ,the bark is one of the best signs4 ,it is not the easiest thing in the world to learn to know trees by the bark alone4 ,to the beginner1 so many trees with dark1 furrowed bark look strangely alike1 although the trees are not even related to each other4 ,the foresters began with trees that have peculiar and easily recognised bark4 ,so we shall begin here1 and hope that the hard cases will gradually become easier4 ,every tree wears a garment of bark from the ground up to the utmost twigs4 ,the thinnest bark is on the youngest branches4 ,the thickest is on the trunk4 ,begin with the white birch upon the lawn4 ,the bark of this tree is made of thin layers2 the outer one shining like white satin4 ,it breaks and tatters1 and peels off around the trunk4 ,three-cornered patches of black are found under each branch1 and others on the trunk show where branches once came out1 but were broken or cut off4 ,do you notice narrow1 horizontal slits of different lengths on the birch bark8 ,these are breathing holes that let the air in to the layer under the bark4 ,spongy1 porous substance fills these slits1 but allows the air to pass through4 ,at the lower part of the trunk the satiny outer bark is shed1 leaving dark under layers1 rough and checked into irregular blocks4 ,as the tree grows older1 the trunk becomes rougher and darker1 but the branches always show the kind of bark that the little tree wore4 ,in the ,northern woods the white bark of the canoe birch is stripped from the trees in layers as thick as sole leather4 ,out of these the ,indians once made their bark canoes4 ,now the same material is used for making all manner of trifling souvenirs to sell to tourists4 ,a square of this thick bark1 cut on the smooth side of a trunk1 may be split into a great number of thin sheets4 ,this the camper uses to write letters upon1 and it is a beautiful and fitting substitute for note paper1 when one is camping out4 ,illustration3 ,we recognize birches by their silky1 tattered bark ,illustration3 ,the beech trunk is clothed in smooth1 pale grey bark ,it is a great pity that so many beautiful trees are girdled and killed to supply the needs of camping parties4 ,if the bark were stripped but part way around it would not kill the tree4 ,the yellow birch has a silvery yellow tint in the outer bark1 which curls back in ragged ribbons until the tree gets old4 ,the red birch writes its name in the rusty red colour of its papery bark1 which splits into tatters in true birch fashion1 and flutters the ragged ends from each branch throughout the year4 ,the black birch has no tattered ribbons flying1 but wears a close1 smooth1 black bark1 with the narrow slits that all birches show4 ,as the trunks grow larger the surface checks into irregular plates1 separated by furrows4 ,it is called the cherry birch1 for the bark is like that of cherry trees4 ,the sycamore has bark which is different from that of every other tree4 ,indeed1 it is by the bark that we recognise this tree4 ,the tall trunk looks as if it were blotched and streaked and spattered with whitewash1 from the trunk to the topmost limb4 ,the bark is continually dropping off in thin1 irregular plates1 leaving smooth whitish patches of an under layer exposed4 ,after sycamore trees grow older1 the bark of the lower portion of the trunk stops shedding4 ,fine-checked plates of rusty brown cover this oldest portion4 ,but even on the oldest and largest trees1 the pale blotches are seen in the branches and we shall never mistake the name of the tree4 ,the shagbark is one of the rugged and shaggy trees that boys find hard to climb without tearing their clothes into tatters4 ,the bark gives the tree its name4 ,thin1 narrow plates1 close-woven and tough as sole leather1 seem to be attached very loosely to the body of the tree1 but if you try to pull off these narrow strips1 you find their hold is very firm4 ,often they are attached at the middle1 and spring out at both ends4 ,an old shagbark tree is a picturesque figure1 as it lifts its bare arms up toward the wintry sky4 ,the trunk is straight1 but the branches are full of angles4 ,yet1 with all their rigidity1 these limbs have an expression of strength1 if not of grace1 and the tree's head is usually symmetrical1 and always full of character4 ,a young hickory has smooth1 close-knit bark like that on the branches of the older trees4 ,gradually the growing trunk becomes furrowed1 and the peculiar splintering and splitting of the bark is seen only in trees six inches or more in diameter4 ,by the time the tree is old enough to bear nuts1 it has built itself a formidable fence that boys must climb over with much hard work and many a scratch1 to get up among the branches and shake down the nuts4 ,illustration3 ,the loose1 stripping bark gives its name to the shagbark hickory ,illustration3 ,warty bark of hackberry2 ,silky bark of black birch2 ,close1 sinewy bark of hornbeam ,the tasteless pignuts grow on a smooth-barked hickory tree1 very easy to climb1 but the bark of the little shellbark hickory is the guide-post that leads to the trees where the sweet-flavoured hickory nuts grow4 ,the close-knit1 grey bark of beech trees hardly needs to be described4 ,the temptation to cut initials on beech trunks is more than folks with pocket-knives can resist4 ,no matter how many fine trees there are in a beech grove near town1 they are scarred all over with letters and hieroglyphics as far as hand can reach4 ,the tree never covers these wounds4 ,though they do not cripple it1 they mar its beauty painfully4 ,a little further from the haunts of picnic parties1 we shall come upon beech woods that have not thus been abused by thoughtless jack-knives4 ,from the ground1 far up into the high tops1 a close1 beautiful garment of ashy grey bark clothes the tree4 ,saplings of all ages grow up among the big trees1 for beeches grow in colonies4 ,a soft radiance from these many pale tree trunks seems to lighten the woods paths1 overshadowed by the dense foliage of the tree tops4 ,it is said that beech trees die when they come into contact with civilisation4 ,fine beech woods are included in additions to towns2 you will see the great trees die when lawns and gardens are made about their roots4 ,in the outskirts of ,indianapolis there are noble beech trees1 but they are dying1 as the city grows around them4 ,the copper beeches and the cut-leaved and weeping beeches have the same close-knit bark as our native tree1 but it is not grey1 but dark brown4 ,these fancy forms are varieties of the ,european beech1 one of the principal lumber trees of the ,old ,world4 ,the bark of this tree played an interesting part in the early history of the human race4 ,long before the ,european tribes had written languages1 they sent messages from one to another4 ,these messages between tribes1 friendly or warlike1 were written in hieroglyphics1 cut into the smooth surface of beech bark1 and messengers carried them back and forth4 ,sheets of beech bark1 as well as birch1 made the walls and roofs of the huts in which people lived4 ,their boats and various household utensils were made out of beech wood1 which is so close-grained that vessels made of it hold water without leaking4 ,another ,american tree with bark like the beech1 but darker grey1 grows always1 by preference1 with its roots in wet soil4 ,it is a little tree1 with rigid1 horizontal twigs1 that form a flat tree top4 ,this is called the blue beech1 and its trunk does often have a bluish cast4 ,it is also called hornbeam1 for its wood is so hard that it was used in the early days to make the beams which went across the horns of the oxen4 ,this is the part of the ox yoke which is the most subject to wear4 ,ironwood is another name that describes the hard wood4 ,we shall notice that this tree has not a regular cylindrical trunk like that of a beech4 ,strong swellings1 that look like muscles1 are seen1 especially where the trunk branches into the main limbs4 ,have you ever noticed the arms of a blacksmith1 or of an athlete8 ,how the veins and muscles stand out when the arm is in use6 ,just like them are the irregular swellings that course up the trunk of the hornbeam1 and out into the limbs4 ,the hackberry is a handsome shade tree1 which might1 at first glance1 be mistaken for an elm4 ,the bark is different from that of any other tree4 ,once we see a hackberry1 and learn its name1 we will never mistake it again4 ,the bark is light brown or grey1 and finely checked by deep furrows4 ,the ridges between bear strange1 warty outgrowths4 ,look for these warts among the small branches4 ,the twigs are smooth1 but back a little way the warty eruptions begin1 and become more prominent as the limbs thicken and approach the trunk4 ,sometimes the limbs have these warts so close together as to form continuous ridges4 ,another tree with warty bark is the sweet gum4 ,the negroes of the ,south call the tree 8alligator wood10 because the lower part of the trunk is broken by furrows and cross-furrows into horny plates like the skin of an alligator4 ,from the red-brown trunk up into the grey branches1 there is a change in the character of the bark4 ,the fissures usually run lengthwise1 and the bark rises in thin ridges on each side of the fissure4 ,these ridges become thin as knife blades on the smaller twigs1 which also have a sprinkling of small warts4 ,a sweet gum is very rugged looking in the dead of winter1 with its warts and ridges breaking out on each limb4 ,we know it by this sign alone1 but are doubly sure when we see the seed balls dangling from the twigs4 ,the sycamore1 blotched with white on trunk and limb1 also carries a load of dangling seed balls throughout the winter4 ,there is no danger of confusing these two trees1 for the bark of each is so distinct4 ,illustration3 ,warty1 ridged bark of the sweet gum1 the swinging seed balls and winged seeds ,illustration3 ,blotched bark of sycamore1 and its seed balls that hang all winter ,a little tree with alligator skin bark grows ,north and ,south1 and chiefly in the eastern half of the country4 ,this is the flowering dogwood1 whose grey bark breaks into small squarish plates4 ,there is no such ruggedness in its trunk as there is in the sweet gum's1 for it is always a little tree1 and the bark corresponds in its checking to the tree's size4 ,when we see this peculiar type of bark in the winter woods we may look also for little flattened1 box-like flower buds1 each enclosed in four scales4 ,we shall also find the twigs set opposite1 and with these three signs be sure we know the tree4 ,a little tree1 no larger in girth than the dogwood1 but often taller1 has bark that strips and loosens somewhat as the bark of the shagbark hickory does4 ,this is the hop hornbeam1 one of the ironwoods4 ,its bark strips are always thin and narrow1 no matter how old the tree becomes4 ,it is never as loose upon the trunk as the shagbark's4 ,the great buds and stout twigs of the hickory are entirely different from the slender spray and the very small buds this ironwood wears in winter4 ,we may find on these twigs some remnant of the hop-like seed clusters which give this little tree its name1 hop hornbeam4 ,inside its shaggy bark the lumbermen find wood so hard that it is very difficult to work1 and when made into tools it lasts almost forever4 ,when we have learned to know at sight a dozen trees by their bark alone1 we are ready to go further4 ,a great many trees with furrowed bark like chestnuts and elms and maples1 are not so distinct as those already learned1 and we must study the tree's form1 its winter buds1 the arrangement of these buds1 and the shape of the leaf scars in connection with the bark1 in order to be sure we know the tree's name4 ,the chestnut from which we gathered so many nuts last fall1 and whose furrowed trunk we saw at every visit1 we come to know through this familiarity4 ,the trunks of other chestnut trees look like this one1 and though we may not know just how we do it1 we have added the chestnut to the list of trees we recognise by their bark alone4 ,the sugar maples which we tap in spring for their sugary sap1 have dark1 furrowed bark1 not very distinctive4 ,and yet1 by going from tree to tree1 emptying the sap pails1 we gradually learn to recognise the bark of the sugar maple1 and add it to our growing list4 ,illustration3 ,the ,lombardy poplar stands like an exclamation point in the landscape ,illustration3 ,the live oak of the ,south is usually hung with long skeins of the weird1 grey ,spanish moss ,trees do not change their clothes1 and they do not move away4 ,day after day1 if we use our eyes and notice what is going on in the tree tops1 as the seasons follow each other1 we come to know our trees by name2 we recognise them in winter by their bark1 and by the framework of their tops1 in summer by leaves and flowers1 in autumn by their changing colour and by their fruits4 ,it is not hard work for those who love trees4 ,it is like getting acquainted with other neighbours whom we are glad to count among our friends4 ,,trees ,,we ,,know ,,by ,,their ,,shapes ,the life of every tree depends upon its success in holding its leaves out into the sunlight4 ,the tree which exposes the greatest amount of leaf surface to the sun makes the greatest growth4 ,the shape of their tops is a character in which trees differ widely4 ,we shall come to know many of them in winter time better than in summer1 by the distinct shapes revealed when the foliage is gone4 ,in any bare tree1 the purpose of all of the branching and branching again1 is plainly seen4 ,each twig and branch reaches out toward the outer surface of the dome1 or pyramid4 ,here the buds in winter are waiting to open1 when spring comes1 into leafy shoots4 ,these will cover the tree top with a dome of green greater than the one of the previous summer4 ,their work through the growing season will lengthen every branch and every root1 and add a layer of wood under the bark of trunks and branches and roots4 ,the most remarkable tree shape is that of the ,lombardy poplar4 ,the tall trunk is clothed with many short1 close-branched limbs1 which do not spread1 as in ordinary tree forms1 but grow upright1 so as to lie almost against the main trunk4 ,the upper branches are overlapped and crowded by those below them1 and so on down the trunk4 ,the result is a tree shaped like a capital ,i4 ,in summer time1 the heart-shaped leaves cover the twigs on the outside of this spire1 but the beauty of the tree top is marred by the dead branches which have been smothered by the crowding4 ,a young ,lombardy poplar is handsome as it stands covered with its twinkling leaves4 ,it grows rapidly1 and is especially striking and effective in clumps of round-headed trees4 ,it is like an exclamation point4 ,architects always like to have a few of these trees dotted about the grounds to keep company with tall chimneys and distant church spires4 ,there is no shade under trees of this form1 though miles of them are planted along roadsides where they stand like tin soldiers1 all alike4 ,the older trees look very ragged1 for they are unable to shed their dead limbs1 and as old age comes on they send up suckers from the roots that form a little forest around the parent tree4 ,scattered over fallow fields of worthless ground1 the red cedars are allowed to grow4 ,they are the evergreen counterparts of the slim ,lombardy poplars4 ,sometimes the red cedar broadens into a pyramid1 wide at the base1 but we are all familiar with the green exclamation points1 dotted over the hillsides1 wherever birds have dropped the blue berries full of seeds4 ,the pointed firs with their horizontal branches becoming longer and longer towards the ground1 are good examples of the pyramid form so common among evergreens4 ,this is the shape of the spruces1 and the pines1 and the hemlocks1 until storms have broken their branches1 and taken away the symmetry of the top4 ,the pin oak and the honey locust send out horizontal branches of graduated lengths from the central shaft1 imitating the evergreens in shape4 ,the evergreen magnolia of the ,south has a dome like an old-fashioned beehive1 pyramidal1 and regular when it grows in sheltered places4 ,such a dome is the hard maple's in the ,north4 ,some trees branch low1 and their short trunks break into great limbs whose ample spread forms a dome much broader than its height4 ,the white oak in the ,north and its evergreen counterpart1 the live oak of the ,south1 illustrate this noble form4 ,somewhat like them1 but with its dome elevated upon a tall trunk1 is the ,american elm with the fan top4 ,the lines of the elm branches are all curves from the arching limbs that rise out of the trunk to the flexible twigs which droop at the extremities of the branches4 ,the dome of a white oak is made of angular limbs4 ,even the twigs are likely to be crooked4 ,no one would confuse the elm with an oak4 ,round-headed trees are many4 ,go from the apple tree in the orchard to the red and ,norway maples along our streets4 ,a great many trees find this form best adapted to spreading their leaves out towards the sun4 ,many oaks and ash trees1 the hickories and birches1 and the beeches have widely spreading limbs forming tops that are oblong in shape4 ,there are trees so irregular in habits of growth that we shall never know them by their forms alone4 ,the winter is the best time to study tree shapes1 for then the framework is revealed4 ,the trees to study are those which stand apart from others1 so that they have been able to take their natural shapes4 ,these we shall find growing on the streets1 and in yards1 and parks1 and in open spaces in the woods4 ,where trees crowd each other in growing1 their branches chafe and clash in storms1 destroying the buds and leaves1 and bruising the tender bark4 ,such limbs die of these injuries1 and the whole shape of the tree top is changed by its losses4 ,illustration3 ,fruiting branch of the cockspur thorn ,illustration3 ,clustered thorns on trunk of honey locust tree2 ,flowers and foliage of the black locust ,it is hopeless for lower limbs to live in a dense pine forest4 ,the top branches form so thick a wall of shade that lower branches die from lack of sun4 ,it is the same with broad-leaved trees4 ,in any dense woods1 the trees stand bare as telegraph poles1 lifting small heads of foliage at the top1 and competing there with their neighbour trees for sun and air4 ,it is only when set apart from other trees that a trunk can keep its lower branches hale and strong as those at the top4 ,the weeping habit gives us some strange tree forms4 ,the ,camperdown elm forms a shady summer-house on many a lawn by arching limbs which droop to the ground on all sides of the main trunk4 ,the weeping mulberry has the same habit4 ,weeping birches and willows have such light foliage1 and such fine1 flexible twigs1 that they look like fountains of green as they stand among the other trees4 ,all weeping trees are made by grafting in the nursery rows4 ,they are not grown from seeds1 and it is not true that they 8weep0 because of being planted up-side-down6 ,this preposterous notion is not uncommon4 ,,trees ,,we ,,know ,,by ,,their ,,thorns ,in winter time1 the bare limbs of trees reveal many strange secrets1 which the leaves cover up in summer4 ,some trees we may know by the thorns they wear4 ,the honey locust scarcely conceals in summer the three-branched thorns1 for which it is famous4 ,these thorns are twigs1 but they rarely bear leaves4 ,each is sharpened to a needle point1 and highly polished4 ,sometimes it is single1 oftener with a main thorn and two side branches2 sometimes short1 but often reaching over a foot in length1 and growing stronger and more wicked-looking with age4 ,sometimes a honey locust has a crowded group of these thorns growing out of the trunk and large limbs4 ,once in a great while a honey locust is thornless1 growing wild4 ,from such trees a thornless variety has been developed4 ,it is1 therefore1 possible to obtain from nurserymen trees of this variety4 ,the unbranched spines of the osage orange trees make it a formidable hedge plant1 and no fences are needed where green barriers of these trees grow4 ,each shining leaf has a spike at its base1 stout and sharp as a needle1 and strong as steel4 ,two spines stand guard at the base of each leaf of the yellow or black locust1 and each leaflet has two little spines of the same type4 ,the basal spines remain after the leaves fall1 so that in winter we shall find these pairs of sentinels guarding the leaf scars up and down the ridged twigs4 ,on the thicker stems the thorns are larger1 and the tree is thus well-armed and able to do duty as a hedge plant1 when thickly planted4 ,these thorns come off with the bark1 hence they are more properly called prickles4 ,they are not rooted in the wood of the branch as the thorns of the honey locust are1 but they belong in the class with rose and raspberry prickles1 which are mere outgrowths of the bark4 ,the hawthorn trees have single spines1 some long and curved1 some short1 some branched4 ,all are rooted in the pith of the twig that bears them2 therefore1 they are not prickles1 but true thorns4 ,the wild plum trees have a strange habit of ending their shoots with thorny tips1 as if the branches needed such defence against browsing cattle4 ,certainly these stunted1 sharp-pointed twigs are useful as weapons of defence to the little trees that grow slowly in poor soil1 and are sufferers from poverty and abuse4 ,perhaps it is their hard luck that makes them crabbed and thorny4 ,wild apple trees show the same tendency to have thorny twigs4 ,the same little trees1 transplanted to mellow soil1 grow soft and leafy twigs1 and abandon the carrying of weapons4 ,hercules' club is a tree which beats the ailanthus at its own game4 ,stems ten feet high and two inches in diameter at the base sometimes shoot up in a single season4 ,these clubs of ,hercules are covered with spines as thickly set as on a gooseberry bush1 formidable and vicious1 though only skin deep4 ,on account of its tropical growth1 this tree is planted for ornament in gardens where there is room4 ,its leaves are wonderful4 ,they come out with a rich1 silky1 bronze sheen in spring1 and when they reach full size are often four feet long1 and more than half as wide4 ,each one is branched and branched again1 and ends in a multitude of small oval leaflets4 ,these giant leaves sway in the summer winds1 giving the tree the grace of a tree fern4 ,in late summer a great pyramid of bloom rises above the foliage4 ,purplish berries1 which succeed the flowers1 make a fine showing in fall and winter1 when the leaves have turned to red and gold4 ,we dare not touch this spiny tree1 but we may come close and admire its wonderful crown of umbrella leaves1 the biggest by far borne on any tree outside of the ,tropics4 ,,the ,,needle-,,leaved ,,evergreens ,in our town and in our neighbourhood most of the trees drop their leaves before winter comes1 and stand with bare limbs for several months4 ,here and there1 however1 a single tree stands1 wearing the same green leaves it wore all summer4 ,everybody knows this tree as an evergreen4 ,it belongs to a group of trees strangely different from those around it which have shed their leaves4 ,let us see how it differs from them4 ,take the one that is nearest to you1 and pull down one of its leafy1 green branches4 ,the leaves are like green needles1 stiff1 sharp-pointed1 with waxy resin on the brown twigs1 that makes your fingers sticky4 ,up in the tree tops strange oval1 brown cones are hanging4 ,underfoot1 a carpet of dead needles lies thick upon the grass1 and cones1 with their overlapping scales spread much wider than those upon the tree1 lie about4 ,squirrels have gnawed some of these scales away1 leaving a central spike like a cob from which the corn has been shelled4 ,little green cones1 fat and waxy1 no larger than your thumb1 are seen near the tips of some branches4 ,you can see the scales overlapping each other in these1 even though they seem to be grown solidly together4 ,if we walk through the village or the city in which we live1 and stop under each evergreen tree we come to1 we shall find nearly all alike in these two points3 they have needle-like leaves1 and they have cones4 ,the evergreens with needle-like leaves1 and cones on and under them1 belong to four evergreen tree families1 whose names every one would like to know4 ,these four evergreen families are named pine1 spruce1 fir1 and hemlock1 and they are planted everywhere4 ,but few people are very sure they know one from another4 ,it is perfectly right to call them all evergreens1 or conifers1 which means cone-bearers4 ,these names include all the four families4 ,but it is common for people to call a spruce1 a pine1 or a hemlock1 a spruce1 when the truth is that one may very easily know these trees apart4 ,let us begin with the first needle-leaved cone-bearing evergreen we meet4 ,to find out whether this tree is a pine1 a spruce1 a fir1 or a hemlock1 we must ask the tree some questions4 ,it will answer them4 ,first3 8,are your needles set one in a place on the twig1 or are they in groups1 or bundles1 of more than one at a place80 ,pull down a twig and look sharply for the answer4 ,suppose there are the leaves in pairs1 or in threes1 or in fives1 each bundle or group growing out of a single point on the twig4 ,the answer is3 8,not single1 but in bundles1 more than one at a place40 ,towards the end of the shoot you will find a brownish or silvery sheath binding the leaves into bundles4 ,further back1 this sheath may be missing1 but the number of leaves in the bundle remains the same for some distance back from the end of the shoot4 ,the leaves begin to fall from the bundles farthest from the tips1 and therefore old4 ,if two leaves is the number in a bundle1 there are never more than two1 young and old4 ,if three is the number1 you will find only threes4 ,if five is the number1 then you will rarely find fewer than this in any bundle4 ,all the trees with more than one leaf in a bundle are pines4 ,all of the rest of the needle-leaved evergreens have a single leaf at a place upon the twig4 ,they are the spruces1 firs1 and hemlocks4 ,let us go and look for them4 ,the very next evergreen we come to we must put the same question to3 8,are your leaves single1 or are there more than one in a bundle80 ,suppose 8three in a bundle0 is the answer2 we recognise the tree as a pine1 and pass it by4 ,across the street is a tree of different shape1 though an evergreen and a conifer4 ,we see the long cones hanging from its drooping branches1 especially near the top of the tree4 ,cross over and examine a twig2 the needles are short and sharp-pointed1 and they are set singly in spiral lines on the twigs4 ,every leaf sits on a little shelf1 or bracket1 that stands out from the twig4 ,pick up a dead twig under the tree4 ,the leaves are gone1 but these little brackets in spiral rows wind around the twig4 ,they are horny and sharp1 and would tear your fingers if you drew the twig quickly between them4 ,notice that the little brackets are angled at the top4 ,pick up a dead leaf and notice the shape of its base4 ,the leaf itself has angled sides4 ,roll it between your thumb and finger4 ,it has three or four sides1 and at least three sharp angles4 ,this is a spruce1 and the signs by which we know it are the brackets on the twig1 the thick1 sharp1 three- or four-angled leaf1 and the stout twigs1 to match the stout leaves4 ,the next needle-leaved evergreen with cones we meet we may hope will turn out to be a fir or hemlock1 but the chances are that its twigs will show two1 three1 or five needles in a bundle4 ,what shall we call the tree8 ,a pine1 of course1 and pass it by4 ,we need ask no further question4 ,the next tree has stiff twigs with brackets1 and stout1 stiff1 angled and pointed leaves4 ,cones hang down upon its branches4 ,we recognise a spruce1 and go on4 ,over yonder is an evergreen which waves a featherly spray of very slender twigs4 ,there is scarcely a breeze stirring1 and yet the tree is all a-tremble1 and its drooping branches carry a load of pretty little brown cones4 ,turn up a branch1 and you notice that the leaves are all silvery underneath4 ,they are single on the twigs1 so this is not a pine4 ,they part and lie flat1 a row on each side of the twig4 ,this is very different from a spruce whose leaves stand out all around the twigs4 ,these sprays are flat1 each like a feather4 ,the leaves are soft1 not stiff4 ,they are blunt1 flat1 and each has a tiny stem4 ,the twigs are like fine wire1 they are so slender4 ,the leaves are mounted on brackets1 just as the spruce leaves are1 but the brackets are much smaller1 to match the daintier twigs and leaves4 ,it is a hemlock tree4 ,the tiny leaf stem is the thing which sets it apart from all other needle-leaved evergreens4 ,take a good look before you go1 at the leaf itself1 at the slender twigs1 with their little brackets1 at the shining upper surface of the flat leaf and the silvery lining that makes this tree so lovely as the wind lifts the flexible branches4 ,pick up a handful of dead leaves1 and notice that though dead and brown1 they show the flat surface with a middle ridge on the under side1 prolonged into the short leaf stem4 ,the pale lining is not so distinct now4 ,one tree family remains of the needle-leaved1 cone-bearing evergreen4 ,that is the fir1 the ,christmas tree1 and its close relatives4 ,not often do we plant our native fir1 because the trees are not as handsome1 nor as useful as pines1 spruces1 and hemlocks4 ,we may walk far before we find an evergreen which does not turn out to be a pine1 a spruce1 or a hemlock4 ,however1 it is near ,christmas time4 ,the little firs will be brought into market in sufficient numbers to supply a ,christmas tree to every house4 ,this is our chance4 ,we will go to market1 and look at these little trees that stand together1 with their limbs trussed like fowls1 ready to be baked4 ,this is for economy of space in shipping4 ,the clean1 pungent odour of balsam comes from the bleeding stub1 and we see tears of the whitish wax wherever the bark of a twig or branch is bruised4 ,these are balsam firs4 ,they have their name from this fragrant1 sticky resin that leaks from their veins4 ,first1 as to the leaves4 ,we find them single and spirally arranged1 as in the spruce1 but there are no brackets on the twigs4 ,pull off a leaf and the twig is smooth4 ,the leaves are blunt1 but flattened1 and on most of the twigs they spread1 feather-like1 on two sides4 ,there are more of them1 however1 than on the hemlock spray4 ,they are white-lined1 like the hemlock leaves1 but there are no little leaf stems4 ,the twigs are stouter than those of the hemlock1 resembling the spruce twigs in size1 but they lack horny little leaf brackets which are so prominent on spruce twigs4 ,one reason that spruce trees make poor ,christmas trees is that the leaves fall so soon4 ,almost the day after ,christmas the floor is scattered with them4 ,the fir trees keep their leaves for weeks4 ,this little bracket makes all the difference4 ,fir leaves seem to be fastened right into the twig itself1 and made thus more secure4 ,if it chances that you find a fir old enough to bear cones1 you will see another very distinct trait of this family4 ,the cones are held erect on the twigs2 the cones of pines1 and spruces1 and hemlocks hang down4 ,if you are fortunate enough to find a fir tree growing1 and old enough to bear its fruit1 these upright cones will tell you the tree's name before you come near enough to look at the leaves1 and to see if the twigs are smooth4 ,,the ,,five-,,leaved ,,soft ,,pines ,an evergreen with needle-like leaves in bundles1 two to five leaves in a bundle1 is a pine4 ,these bundles are usually bound with a thin1 papery sheath at the base1 and set in spiral rows that wind around the twig4 ,the leaves in the newest sheaths are nearest the growing tip of the shoot4 ,here we shall find the leaves shorter1 some so short that they have not yet got outside of their sheaths4 ,the silky covering hides them1 as the bud scales on other trees covered the undeveloped shoot with its flowers and leaves1 wrapped in the winter buds4 ,the kind of pine depends upon the number of leaves in a bundle4 ,this is the first thing to find out when we undertake to determine the name of a pine tree4 ,all of the vigorous young shoots have bundles that do not vary in number of needles4 ,further back on the limb are leaves more than a year old4 ,the sheaths are shorter1 or have fallen away entirely4 ,now the number of needles in a bundle begins to be uncertain4 ,we find bundles that have fewer needles than those on the younger wood4 ,this is because the older leaves are falling4 ,finally we reach a point where the twigs are bare4 ,on white pine shoots it is easy to find leaves that are five to seven years old4 8,soft pine0 is a lumberman's term4 ,carpenters use it1 so do all people who work in wood4 ,it means that the wood of a certain group of pines is soft and light1 and the sap is not gummy4 ,any boy who has cut kindling wood knows what a joy it is to whittle soft pine4 ,until a few years ago1 this was the wood out of which boxes of all sorts were made1 and it was the only kindling wood we had4 ,now things are changed4 ,much box lumber is made of poplar and other soft woods1 which do not split as easily as pine4 ,this means that soft pine is getting scarce1 and is too valuable to use where cheaper woods will serve4 ,,the ,,white ,,pine ,the white pine has the softest1 most hair-like leaves in the whole pine family4 ,five needles are in each bundle1 and each is delicate and flexible4 ,when the wind blows through the top of one of these five-needled trees1 the end shoots nod like plumes4 ,the tree sends up a straight shaft sometimes to the height of nearly two hundred feet1 and whorls of branches1 five in a place1 form regular platforms extending horizontally from the trunk4 ,each of these sets of branches counts a year of the tree's life2 for the end bud lengthens the trunk1 and at the same time1 five buds that surround it grow out into horizontal branches4 ,it is easy to count the age of a young white pine1 by beginning at the tip1 and counting downward4 ,we could do it with large trees1 except that the lower branches die1 and at length are lost4 ,the bark heals over the scars left where they fell1 so the count is lost when we reach the point where the branches stop4 ,the white pine is slow to shed its dead branches4 ,in the woods of the ,eastern half of the ,united ,states any five-leaved pine that we meet is a white pine4 ,before we are near enough to count the needles in a bundle1 we may count five branches at a whorl around the trunk1 and this determines the name4 ,beautifully regular pyramids1 the little trees are4 ,in old age these pines lose symmetry by the loss of limbs1 and become very rugged and picturesque4 ,a white pine tree1 crippled by two or three centuries of struggle with winds and lightnings1 is a noble figure4 ,the plume-like branches soften its rugged outlines1 and the sombre blue-green of the older leaves is brightened by the fresher colour of the new ones4 ,the upper half of the tree is hung with slim cones whose smooth1 thin scales spread wide in the autumn of their second year to let the winged seeds go4 ,in spring the clustering catkins of staminate flowers look like yellow cones on the ends of the pale yellow-green shoots4 ,the wind shakes an abundant supply of golden dust out of these pollen flowers1 then lets the fading catkins fall4 ,the pistillate flowers are pinkish-purple and almost hidden1 just back of the tips of the upper twigs4 ,they are cone-shaped1 and they part their scales and stand erect to catch the pollen as it drifts through the tree tops4 ,the flowers on each scale require a grain of pollen each1 in order to set seed4 ,when its flowers are fertilised the cone closes its scales tight1 but they stand erect all summer4 ,in the autumn they are green and fleshy1 and they turn downward4 ,in winter we shall see among the swaying branches of these pines1 the green1 half-grown fruits1 and further back1 on wood a year older1 the brown1 full-grown cones with their scales spread4 ,these cones often curve slightly4 ,the largest of them may be ten inches long1 but the average cone is little over half that length4 ,the lumbermen have stripped the white pine from the ,eastern forests until there is very little left4 ,many states are planting this valuable timber tree1 to restore the forests that wasteful lumbering1 and forest fires have destroyed4 ,thousands of young trees grown in nursery rows are transplanted to beautify home grounds and parks4 ,we shall find no difficulty in discovering white pine trees1 even though no forest near us has a specimen left4 ,it is one of the commonest pines to be planted in cities and villages4 ,it is the only five-leaved pine that will grow successfully on this side of the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,,the ,,great ,,sugar ,,pine ,all along the coast mountains from ,oregon to ,lower ,california1 a five-leaved soft pine grows whose size makes our ,eastern white pine seem like a dwarf4 ,in that far country of big trees1 it is one of the giants4 ,i had read of these trees which grow to be over #bjj feet in height1 with trunks six to ten feet in diameter at the ground1 but figures do not give much idea of the truth4 ,i first saw the groves of sugar pines miles ahead of us1 as the stage climbed the foot hills of the ,sierra ,nevada mountains4 ,we were on the way into the wonderful ,yosemite ,valley4 ,the scrawny1 grey1 digger pines1 with cones as big as a man's head1 grew on the lower foot hills4 ,next came the great yellow pines1 and still higher up1 the grand sugar pines1 along the highest level of the stage road4 ,they stood oftenest in close ranks so that their tops were small1 because of the crowding4 ,and here they had stood for centuries4 ,the road was no wider than the broad stumps of some that had been cut down1 and their prostrate trunks were longer than any log ,i have ever seen before4 ,i remember calculating that the round dining table at home could be set upon this stump1 and all the family seated round it with no danger of their chairs being too near the edge4 ,the standing trunks seemed like great builded columns1 too large for real trees to grow4 ,their feathery1 dark green tips reached nearer to the sky than any trees in ,eastern forests4 ,illustration3 ,hemlock cones are small2 those of ,norway spruce are four or five inches long ,illustration3 ,pine twig with cones1 young and old1 and clustered staminate flowers ,under these pines old cones were lying4 ,they were big1 to match the trees4 ,twenty inches the longest one measured1 with scales two inches long1 and plump seeds as big as navy beans4 ,far off in the tree top the hanging cones looked moderate in size4 ,we could just see the green1 half-grown cones nearer the ends of the branches1 for this ,western white pine1 like our ,eastern species1 requires two years to mature its fruit4 8,why call them sugar pines80 ,i asked the stage driver4 ,he pointed to some drops of resin-like substance on the scales of the cone ,i held in my lap4 8,taste it10 he said4 ,i did1 and it was sweet1 with somewhat the flavour of maple sugar4 ,crystals of this sugar come from wounds in the bark1 and from the ends of green sticks when burning4 ,the sap is quite as sweet as that of maple trees1 but one is soon surfeited in eating the candy-like substance4 ,the stage driver told me that a lumberman could cut #e1jjj worth of lumber from one of these sugar pine trees4 ,no wonder they think that it is a burning shame for the government to reserve these noble woods of the ,yosemite tract 8just to be looked at40 ,fortunately for us1 and for the people of the whole country1 some thousands of acres of magnificent forest are reserved on those ,western-mountain slopes1 where they are safe from the lumberman's axe4 ,if we cannot go to see them this year1 perhaps we can fifty years hence4 ,they will still be standing1 still growing1 these noble remnants of the grandest forests of any country4 ,specimens of what ,mr4 ,john ,muir calls 8the largest1 noblest1 and most beautiful of all the seventy or eighty species of pine trees in the world40 ,illustration3 ,thousands of little balsam firs supply the market with ,christmas trees ,illustration3 ,in these tall white pine trees ,nathaniel ,hawthorne built an out-door study1 where he wrote undisturbed ,,the ,,nut ,,pines ,a group of soft pines1 with fewer needles than five in a bundle1 grows on the ,western mountain slopes4 ,small trees they are1 which have to struggle hard against the winds and storms1 and with the scant moisture of the desert air and soil for a bare living4 ,they are very interesting because of the fact that they have nuts1 rich1 sweet1 and nutritious1 under the scales of their cones1 and these nuts are important items in the food of many ,indian tribes of the ,west4 ,the first is the four-leaved nut pine that grows on the barren mountain slopes of ,southern and ,lower ,california4 ,it is a desert tree1 rarely reaching forty feet in height1 and this only in the most favourable situations4 ,the foliage is pale sage green4 ,no other pine has four leaves in a bundle4 ,its nut-like seeds are rich in oil1 starch1 and sugar4 ,without them the ,indians of ,lower ,california would probably starve4 ,in ,riverside ,county the tree is common at #e1jjj feet above sea level4 ,it has a regular pyramidal head1 when young1 becoming low1 round-topped and irregular when very old4 ,another pion1 but this one with a bushy1 broad top1 and often considerably taller1 grows with the four-leaved pine on the mountains of ,lower ,california1 and northward along the canyons and mountain slopes of ,arizona4 ,the short leaves are dark green1 and there are but two or three in a bundle4 ,the seeds are plump1 and rounded1 or angular4 ,the upper side is brown1 the lower side black1 and each has a pale brown wing4 ,a third nut pine1 or pion1 two- or three-leaved1 grows on the eastern foot hills of the outer ranges of the ,rocky ,mountains1 on both sides of the system4 ,forests of it are found on the high plains of ,colorado and ,arizona4 ,it sometimes grows large enough to be used for lumber4 ,the nuts are half an inch long1 and have thin1 brittle shells4 ,they are gathered by ,indians and ,mexicans1 and may often be bought in the markets of ,colorado and ,new ,mexico4 ,the one-leaved nut pine seems to belong with the spruces and firs1 and other single-leaved evergreens1 but there are frequently two leaves in the bundle1 and there is a little scaly sheath at the base4 ,the grey-green leaves often hang on for ten or twelve years4 ,the winged nuts are over half an inch long4 ,the wood furnished fuel and charcoal to the smelters in the mining regions1 and the ,indians of ,nevada and ,california harvest the nut crop4 ,every autumn when we are going for chestnuts and hickory nuts in our ,eastern woods1 we may think of the ,indian families who leave their homes in the lowlands1 and climb the mountain slopes to gather their nuts which are their staff of life4 ,if we should miss our nutting excursion1 it would make no vital difference in our lives during the coming winter4 ,our nuts are not a serious part of the provisions of the household4 ,but with the ,indians1 to miss the nut pine harvest1 means to have no bread for the winter that is coming4 ,mr4 ,john ,muir1 who has often lived among these stunted upland forests1 and seen the ,indians gathering the nuts and using them later as food1 tells us many interesting things4 ,the trees of the one-leaved nut pine are low1 like old apple trees1 and full of cones4 ,the ,indians get long poles1 and beat the cones off the trees1 then roast them on hot stones1 until the scales open4 ,then they shake out the nuts1 and gather them in baskets and bags to carry home4 ,these nuts are eaten raw or parched on hot stones4 ,these are the easiest and simplest ways4 ,but the best and most palatable form in which they are prepared costs much more time and labour4 ,the nuts are parched1 then ground or pounded into meal4 ,this is stirred up with water1 into a kind of mush1 which is formed into cakes and baked4 ,this is1 in general1 the way in which all pine nuts are made into bread4 ,the time of the nut harvest is1 for the ,indians1 the merriest time of the year4 ,if the crop is heavy1 the spirits of the party are light4 ,a single family1 if it is fairly industrious1 can gather fifty or sixty bushels of these rich1 thin-shelled nuts in a single autumn month2 and with this quantity to carry home1 can go down the mountains1 tired but happy1 knowing that their bread for the winter1 and plenty of it1 is assured4 ,,the ,,hard ,,pines ,the hard pines are a group of needle-leaved evergreens1 whose leaf bundles contain two or three needles1 as a rule4 ,the wood is heavy1 usually dark in colour1 and saturated with a resinous1 gummy sap4 ,the common name1 8pitch pine10 refers to the resinous wood2 it is much harder to work with than that of soft pines4 ,the most valuable hard pine forests grow in the ,southern states4 ,these are now the chief sources of pine lumber in the ,eastern half of the continent4 ,they furnish also quantities of turpentine1 pitch1 tar1 and oil1 products of the resinous sap which saturates the wood of these trees while they are growing4 ,one trait of the pitch pines is that they retain the leaf sheath4 ,the soft pines shed the sheath as soon as the leaf bundle has attained its full length4 ,,the ,,southern ,,pitch ,,pines ,the woodwork and floors of a great many houses of moderate cost are done to-day in ,southern pine1 sometimes called 8yellow pine10 sometimes 8curly pine40 ,the alternating bands of dark and light yellowish brown1 often very much waved1 give the wood an ornamental grain that is much admired4 ,it is common and most desirable that this wood should not be stained nor painted1 but given the 8natural finish0 which brings out the rich orange colour1 and shows at their full value the wavy bands and intricate patterns that are the chief beauty of the wood4 ,the arching timbers that support the roof of a church are often made of stiff timbers cut from ,southern pines1 and dressed only with a coat of oil1 under which time deepens and enriches the wood's natural colours4 ,,the ,,longleaf ,,pine ,the longleaf pine is one of four hard pines whose lumber is not distinguished by ordinary carpenters1 but is generally called 8yellow pine40 8,georgia pine0 ranks a little higher than the rest4 ,that is the longleaf1 which grows over a territory much greater than the state of ,georgia4 ,this is the chief source of turpentine1 pitch1 and tar1 as well as one of the very best lumber trees of the pitch pine group4 ,the most ornamental wood is that with the curliest grain1 and the narrowest bands of alternating dark and light colour4 ,it grows slowly in hard1 sandy soils on the damp coast plains near the ,gulf of ,mexico4 ,we shall know this tree from all other pines by the length of its needles4 ,they are twelve to eighteen inches long1 flexible1 dark green1 shining1 three in a bundle1 enclosed at the base in long1 pale1 silvery sheaths4 ,they remain on the tree but two years1 therefore the tree top is bare except for thick tufts of these drooping leaves on the ends of the branches4 ,if you have never seen these trees growing in their natural forest belt1 that ranges from ,virginia to ,florida1 and west to the ,mississippi ,river1 or in small scattered forest patches in ,northern ,alabama1 ,louisiana1 or ,texas1 you may have seen branches or small trees shipped north to be used for ,christmas decorations4 ,in the waste land that the lumbermen have cut over1 in the neighbourhood of these longleaf forests1 men go in early ,december1 and cut the little trees4 ,saplings two or three feet high bring good prices in the ,northern markets1 where holly branches1 ropes of ground pine1 sprigs of mistletoe1 and leaves of ,southern palms are sold4 ,a little two-foot longleaf pine1 standing erect1 with all its long flexible leaves bending outward like a fountain of shining green1 is handsomer than any palm of the same size4 ,the popularity of these pine shoots is growing1 and those who cut them seem not to realise that they are killing the forests of the future4 ,trees grow from seeds which fall in the territory cleared by the lumbermen4 ,if these little trees that ,nature plants are cut as fast as they show themselves above the forest floor1 how are the longleaf pine forests to be restored8 ,it is a great problem1 for a great part of the natural wealth of the ,south is in these lumber tracts1 now being cleared at a terrific rate of speed1 and the land left practically worthless when stripped4 ,the cones of the longleaf pine are narrow and tapering4 ,the scales are thick1 and each bears a small spine4 ,the leaves are the distinguishing trait1 and the tall1 slender trunk crowned by a long open head of short1 twisted branches4 ,,the ,,shortleaf ,,pine ,the shortleaf pine ranks second only to the longleaf among the forest pines of the ,south4 ,it is the common 8yellow pine10 and 8,north ,carolina pine0 that is commonly sold from lumber yards in the ,north and ,middle ,west4 ,its wood is almost as beautiful in the natural finish4 ,its leaves are short in comparison with those of the longleaf1 and scarcely longer than any pines of the ,north4 ,they are found in clusters of twos and threes1 and they have the dark blue-green colour of the white pine1 lightened by the silvery sheaths at the bases of the clusters4 ,the leaves are soft and flexible1 slender1 and sharp-pointed4 ,they vary from three to five inches in length4 ,the cones are two to three inches long1 and half as broad2 the thickened scales have small spines4 ,it takes two years to bring cones to maturity1 and the old ones hang on several years4 ,in this they differ from our ,northern pitch pine4 ,forests of this timber pine are scattered from ,connecticut to ,florida1 and west to ,illinois1 ,kansas1 and ,texas4 ,they are being slaughtered by lumbermen as fast as those of the longleaf4 ,the young trees are tapped for turpentine4 ,in the ,south and ,east1 these forests are practically gone4 ,the lumber mills are busy in the great tracts west of the ,mississippi1 and below the ,arkansas ,river1 in the forests of shortleaf pine1 which until recently were untouched1 and too far from the markets to be profitably cut4 ,the shortleaf pine will reforest the old areas1 and spread over a widening territory1 if only it is given a chance4 ,one hundred years is enough time to restore a forest1--to grow a crop of these trees4 ,young ones spring from the roots of old trees1 a habit not at all common among pines4 ,let us hope that before the ,southwestern forests are gone1 new ones east of the ,mississippi ,river will take their places1 so that the shortleaf shall not disappear from the lumber markets as the white pine of the ,northeastern states has done4 ,,the ,,cuban ,,pine ,the ,cuban pine or swamp pine of the ,south1 with stout green leaves eight to twelve inches long1 in twos and threes1 is not confused with the longleaf nor the shortleaf1 for its leaves are intermediate in length between the two4 ,this beautiful pine grows in forests that skirt swampy coast land4 ,its leaves are carried two years1 so the trees have dense1 luxuriant crowns of green1 and are more beautiful as a part of the landscape than any other forest pine of the ,south4 ,the wood of the ,cuban pine is not distinguished in the lumber trade1 as it is much the same in quality and appearance as longleaf pine4 ,,the ,,loblolly ,,pine ,the fourth of the yellow pines of the ,south is the loblolly or old field pine1 whose lumber is saturated with pitch4 ,the trees grow in marshy regions along the coast1 and for the most part occupy land that is sterile and worthless4 ,these tide water pine forests follow the swamps from ,new ,jersey around to ,texas4 ,in early days this was the building pine of the ,south4 ,the virgin forests are gone1 and the new generation is inferior in quality1 because the trees are not allowed to attain their full growth4 ,though rich in resin1 there is little flow of turpentine from these trees1 but the wood catches fire easily1 and is one of the best of fuels4 ,we shall know this pine by its pale green1 twisted leaves1 always in bundles of three1 six to ten inches long1 enclosed at the base in sheaths that are not shed4 ,the cones are three to five inches long1 with ridged scales set with prickles4 ,this tree bears a great crop of cones yearly1 and its seeds are remarkable for their vitality4 ,so are the seedlings1 which grow on land so wet or so poor that few other trees compete with them4 ,the first ten years in the life of a seedling pine is a period of tremendous growth4 ,fire rarely sweeps these young forests1 for the trees are well protected by the marshy character of the land in which they grow4 ,left for a century or two1 these trees produce masts for the largest vessels1 equal in quality to the finest in the world4 ,,the ,,northern ,,pitch ,,pines ,we have nothing in the ,northeastern states that compares in importance with the pitch pine of ,southern forests1 but we have pitch pines which everybody knows4 ,the first is the gnarled and picturesque pitch pine that grows on worthless land1 and thrives in patches along the sea coast1 where other evergreens are unsuccessful4 ,the rough1 rigid branches which spring from the short trunks of these trees carry a burden of blackening cones which give them a very untidy look when the trees are small4 ,when they reach fifty or seventy-five feet in height1 a certain nobility and picturesqueness of expression challenge our admiration1 and the clusters of cones are not at all objectionable2 indeed they heighten the tree's beauty4 ,the needle-like leaves of pitch pines are always in threes1 rigid1 stout1 and three to five inches long1 dark yellow-green1 the bundles in black sheaths that are never shed4 ,the cones require two years to ripen4 ,they are from one to three inches long1 pointed1 with sharp backward-pointed beaks4 ,the wood of this tree is used for fuel1 and locally for lumber1 but it does not interest the lumbermen4 ,the wood is not good enough1 and the trees are too small and scattered4 ,the tree does a good work by growing on worthless land1 and near the sea coast4 ,its picturesqueness is becoming to be more appreciated by landscape gardeners who are bringing it into cultivation4 ,the handsomest of our pitch pines is the red pine1 whose dark green leaves are six inches long1 and cluster in twos upon the twigs4 ,the bark1 the wood1 and the bud scales are all red4 ,the cones are from one to three inches long1 with thickened scales which have no spines4 ,the tree grows into a broad pyramid1 branched to the ground1 with stout twigs1 and luxuriant foliage4 ,the symmetry and vigour of growth makes this red pine a handsomer tree than the ragged1 discouraged-looking pitch pines4 ,it is well for the landscape that its wood is very disappointing4 ,so many beautiful groves are allowed to reach great age1 and size1 where white pines would have fallen to a lumberman's axe4 ,the home that has a beautiful red pine within sight of its windows1 or a double row of these trees serving as a wind-break to ward off the storms of winter1 is truly well planted4 ,without one or more of these trees1 there is a decided lack4 ,any nurseryman can furnish handsome young red pines1 so no one need hesitate to plant this native tree4 ,illustration3 ,the spiny-leaved1 red-berried holly is a handsome evergreen tree for the lawn ,illustration3 ,what would ,christmas be without holly branches and wreaths for decoration6 ,the ,jersey pine is a twisted1 low tree1 with dark1 discouraged-looking branches1 covered with grey-green leaves that have a sickly yellowish tinge when the new shoots appear in spring4 ,the leaves are always in twos1 and they range from one to three inches long4 ,the small cones are dark red1 oval1 with thickened scales spiny-tipped4 ,these trees cover waste land where there is a meagre living for any tree4 ,what wonder that they look stunted8 ,their chief merit is that they clothe the desert places1 and furnish wood for fuel and fences1 and thus save the great lumber pines for higher uses4 ,,the ,,cedars1 ,,white ,,and ,,red ,beside the needle-leaved evergreens just described1 there are some trees we all know1 that bear cones1 and are evergreens1 but their leaves are strangely different from those of pines1 spruces1 firs1 and hemlocks4 ,one of these is the familiar arbor vit1 a conical tree1 with flat leaf spray4 ,looking closely1 one can make out the tiny1 scale-like leaves1 arranged in opposite pairs1 clasping the wiry stems1 and covering them completely4 ,these stems are flat1 so that one pair of leaves has a sharp keel on the middle4 ,the next pair is spread out flat4 ,the keeled pair covers the edge of the stem4 ,the flat pair covers the broader surface4 ,these pairs alternate through the length of the stem1 and an aromatic resin seals them close4 ,the cones of the arbor vit are small1 and they have few scales1 compared with the cones of the needle-leaved evergreens4 ,each year a crop is borne1 with two seeds under each scale4 ,few of us see the little red cone flowers in ,may1 nor the pellets of yellow on other twigs1 which are the pollen flowers4 ,we watch the hedge clipper at work1 trimming the thick green fronds that make a solid wall of green4 ,look carefully hereafter for the flowers and the ripe cones1 in the proper season for each4 ,illustration3 ,this big tree1 8,the ,grizzly ,giant10 is over three hundred feet high4 ,it is a sequoia1 one of the cone-bearing evergreens ,illustration3 ,,scaly-,,leaved ,,evergreens3 ,upper3 two branches from the same red cedar tree2 ,lower3 flat sprays of arbor vit ,the white cedar grows1 a fine1 conical evergreen tree1 in the coast states1 from ,maine to ,mississippi4 ,it loves best the deep swamps1 but grows well in wet1 sandy soil farther inland4 ,here we see again the flat spray of minute1 pointed1 and keeled leaves1 but the cones are different4 ,these are pale grey1 and globular2 the few scales are thick and horny1 and curiously sculptured1 each with a beak projecting from the centre4 ,the foliage mass is a peculiar blue-green1 and the bark1 thin1 and rusty red1 parts into strings and shreds4 ,lumbermen call this tree a cedar4 ,so they do the arbor vit4 ,the wood of each is pale-coloured1 and notable for its durability when exposed to weather and water4 ,fence posts of white cedar1 and cedar pails1 shingles1 and the like1 have a great reputation for durability4 ,the peculiarity of a red cedar is its fruit4 ,instead of a cone1 a blue1 juicy1 sweet berry follows the blossoming of this tree4 ,the foliage1 too1 is erratic4 ,minute leaves of the scale form1 discovered in the other cedars1 are found here on most twigs4 ,they are still smaller1 and the twigs are much smaller4 ,but on new shoots1 and often on a whole branch1 the leaves are needle-like1 one-half to three-quarters of an inch long1 and spreading as the leaves of a spruce4 ,the mass of the foliage is blue-green2 these new ones are yellow-green4 ,among the branches hang these surprising berries6 ,the truth is that the scales of the cone thicken1 and become soft when ripe4 ,they grow together1 and the berry is1 therefore1 a cone1 but much changed in its development from the cone on which the fruits of other evergreen trees are patterned4 ,we all know a red cedar tree by its tall1 slim shape4 ,the birds eat the berries1 and scatter the seeds far and wide4 ,the trees come up in irregular clumps in pastures and fence-rows1 and in rough1 uncultivated land4 ,they are pretty widely distributed in the eastern half of the ,united ,states4 ,the true name for this tree is juniper4 ,that is the name by which all its related species are known4 ,red cedar is the lumberman's name for its wood1 and this name1 though not right1 will probably stick to it always4 ,red cedar chests and closets are believed to be moth-proof4 ,the aromatic resin in the wood is supposed to be distasteful to the insects which are the pests of housekeepers4 ,to put furs and woollen blankets and clothing into these chests does not always prevent their being moth-eaten4 ,this many people have learned by sorrowful experience4 ,we know the fragrance of this wood in pencils4 ,thousands of trees are cut every year to supply pencil factories4 ,with the scarcity of these trees1 other woods are being substituted4 ,but who will be quite satisfied1 or be persuaded that cedar pencils are not the best8 ,,two ,,conifers ,,not ,,evergreen ,two cone-bearing trees have the astonishing habit of letting go their leaves in the fall1 and thus setting themselves apart from the evergreens1 to which they are otherwise closely related4 ,their cones are like those of pines and spruces4 ,their leaves are needle-like1 and their flowers are the cone flowers like the rest4 ,although they stand bare in winter time1 their fruits declare their kinships with the evergreen4 ,their forms also suggest this kinship1 for each is a spire-like shaft1 from which short branches stand out horizontally like those of the pointed firs and spruces4 ,,the ,,larches ,in the ,northern states1 and ,canada1 long stretches of cold marsh land are covered with solid growths of tamarack1 our ,american larch tree4 ,in summer the branches are covered with long1 drooping twigs1 each set with many blunt side spurs1 from which a tuft of soft1 needle-like leaves forms a green rosette or pompom4 ,the end twigs have needle leaves scattered their whole length1 after the fashion of the spruces4 ,purplish cone flowers1 and yellow staminate cones appear in spring1 and in autumn among the leaves that are turning yellow a crop of cones is ripening4 ,they stand erect and solitary on the twigs between the rosettes of leaves4 ,in winter the long1 flexible twigs are bare except for these cones4 ,the little knobs along the twigs are the stubs which bore leaves4 ,in the spring new leaves come out1 pale lettuce green1 feathery1 transforming the tree top into a thing of beauty4 ,this larch tree of ours is more sparsely branched than the larch of ,europe4 ,it looks ragged and unhappy when planted on our lawns4 ,it is at its best in the cold ,north1 where it grows in dense crowds1 and the tall trunks are stripped free from limbs well towards the tops4 ,these straight shafts are cut for telegraph poles1 railroad ties1 and posts4 ,the heavy1 resinous wood lasts a long time in the ground4 ,the larches planted for shade and ornament are of the ,european species1 which thrives in any soil4 ,it has a denser head of branches1 and much more luxuriant crown of foliage than our native species4 ,it is a beautiful feathery pyramid of green1 distinctly different from other trees4 ,in ,europe large forests are grown on the mountain sides1 and from these the tallest masts for vessels are obtained4 ,the heavy1 resinous wood does not easily take fire as do the pitch pines4 ,the old wooden battle ships were faced with larch wood because of this1 and because larch wood is so durable in contact with water4 ,indeed it has the reputation of outlasting oak1 and the wood of all other conifers4 ,in the woods of the far ,northwest1 and inland to ,montana1 the ,western larch is one of the mighty forest trees4 ,six feet in diameter1 and #bjj feet in height are not uncommon dimensions among these giant larches4 ,these trees are of slow growth1 and they stand with their roots in water or in wet soil1 though on the mountain side4 ,this is an important lumber tree with wood that has all the good qualities of its family4 ,in ,europe the tree is planted for forests1 and as an ornamental tree4 ,we cannot grow it in the ,eastern ,united ,states4 ,it is worth a journey across the continent to see it growing1 one of the most magnificent trees in the world4 ,,the ,,bald ,,cypress ,travellers in the ,south pass forests of dark pines1 and along the edges of swamps the pines often give way to solid stretches of trees with pale grey trunks1 and lettuce green foliage1 whose lightness contrasts strangely and beautifully with the solid bank of dark green that roofs the forests of pines4 ,a closer look at these strange trees1 which often stand knee-deep in water1 is not so easy4 ,at certain seasons of the year1 however1 these swamps are dry enough so that one may walk dry-shod among them1 and so learn to know the bald cypress of the ,south1 one of the most beautiful and interesting of native ,american trees4 ,this is the second of the cone-bearing trees which is not an evergreen4 ,the leaves on the new shoots are two-ranked1 soft and pale sage green in colour4 ,the stems that bear these plumy leaves bear also scattered single blades4 ,among them are older twigs1 tipped with cones1 and bearing branchlets with scale-like leaves scarcely spreading at the tips4 ,these are much smaller than the leaves arranged in two ranks1 forming feather-like1 leafy branchlets4 ,it is these which are shed1 branchlets1 and all1 in the autumn1 and fresh in spring renew the feathery grace of the long1 narrow tree top4 ,the most surprising thing about the bald cypress is the flaring base of the trunk1 and the root system which seems too large for the tall but usually narrow top4 ,knees of cypress rising out of the water from the main roots1 are distinguished from stumps by their smooth1 conical tops4 ,the base of a great tree often spreads into wide flying buttresses1 each hollowed on the inside1 but serving with the others to support the hollow-trunked tree4 ,many a giant of great age stands thus on stilts whose submerged ends are the gnarled roots of the tree4 ,from these rise many smooth1 knobbed knees above the surface of the water in the rainy season4 ,by some foresters1 humps on the roots are supposed to be necessary to the proper breathing of the roots1 submerged under water so large a part of the year4 ,the question of what causes these growths1 and of what use they are1 is not fully determined4 ,the cones of the bald cypress are globular1 and about the size of an olive4 ,by them the tree declares its relationship to the needle-leaved evergreens4 ,the wood is light and easy to work1 but not noticeably resinous4 ,it is used for buildings1 and for special parts1 such as doors1 shingles4 ,it is beautiful when stained1 and would be more valuable for interior finish of houses did it not keep the record of each bump and dent1 as all soft woods do4 ,buckets and barrels to contain liquids are largely made of this wood4 ,in railroad ties it proves very durable4 ,the best and strangest fact about this tree is that though it belongs to the ,south1 and is a swamp tree by preference1 it grows large and beautiful in the ,north1 and in soil that is only moderately moist4 ,the parks of ,brooklyn have some noble specimens of this bald cypress of the ,south4 ,they stand1 tall1 handsome shafts1 feathered lightly with their short1 drooping side branches1 clothed with pale green leaves4 ,there is no peculiarity of spreading trunk or knees to disturb the sod that comes up around the base of the tree4 ,in the autumn the foliage turns yellow1 and drops with the larch leaves4 ,through the winter the globular cones are present to prove this bald cypress a relative of the evergreens1 which are its neighbours4 ,,the ,,hollies ,no ,christmas is ,christmas truly without at least a few branches of the evergreen holly of the ,south1 whose leathery1 spiny-pointed leaves are brightened by clusters of red berries4 ,every year1 hundreds of crates and boxes of these holly branches are shipped north from the woods of ,alabama1 and other ,southern states4 ,many people make their living by cutting loads of these branches1 and hauling them to the shipping sheds where they are packed and put onto the railroad4 ,the business has grown so rapidly within the past twenty-five years that holly trees are becoming very scarce4 ,it has never occurred to those who cut down and strip the trees that it takes years to grow new ones1 and that nobody is planting for the future4 ,holly wood is white1 and very close-grained4 ,it is admirable for tool handles1 whipstocks1 walking sticks1 and for the blocks on which wood engravings are made4 ,the living trees are planted for hedges1 and for ornament4 ,the leaves are evergreen1 and the berries add brightness and warmth to the shrubbery border when snow covers the ground4 ,although it reaches its greatest size1 and is most commonly found in ,southern woods1 this little tree follows the coast as far north as ,long ,island4 ,i have found it much higher than my head1 growing wild on the sand bar that separates ,great ,south ,bay from the ocean1 east of ,new ,york ,harbour4 ,further north1 it is occasionally found1 but in stunted sizes1 and it is easily winter-killed4 ,the holly of ,europe1 which has brightened the ,english ,christmas for centuries1 has a far more deeply cleft and spiny leaf than ours4 ,beside it1 our holly leaves and berries are dull1 and dark-coloured4 ,the whole tree lacks the brightness of the ,european species4 ,hedges of this lustrous-leaved holly shut in many an ,english garden1 and their bright berries glow cheerfully through the grey1 sunless1 winter days4 ,no wonder the gardeners frown upon the little thrushes that feed upon these berries1 thus robbing the garden of one of its chief winter charms4 ,three other ,american hollies are found as shrubby trees in our ,eastern woods1 but none of them is evergreen1 and the trees are not numerous in any locality4 ,we shall oftenest see the species known as the winterberry1 whose abundant red berries remain untouched by the birds1 until late in the spring4 ,many of these fruit-laden branches are gathered in the wild1 and sold in cities for ,christmas decorations4 ,sprays of these berries are often added to the evergreen holly branches when their own berries are scarce4 ,christmas holly is something we cannot do without4 ,as the supply grows less1 the price will mount higher4 ,then will come a time when it is profitable to raise these trees in quantities1 and holly farming will be practised in favourable localities in the ,southern states4 ,but that time has not yet come4 ,,the ,,burning ,,bush ,a little tree1 not at all related to the holly1 but truly a cousin of the bitter-sweet1 has a rather surprising name4 ,in summer it looks like a wild plum tree1 except for its fluted1 ash-grey bark4 ,the flowers have purple petals1 and look somewhat like potato blossoms4 ,they would never attract your attention as you pass the tree4 ,in the autumn the leaves turn yellow1 and gradually the purple husks that cover the scarlet berries split open1 and curl back4 ,watch the gradual opening of these husks1 and notice1 from some little distance1 the gradual reddening of the tree top1 as the yellow leaves fall1 and more and more of the scarlet berries are revealed1 as the husks curl and shrink away from them4 ,it is in this seed and its husk that the resemblance and relationship of the burning bush and the bitter-sweet vine is revealed4 ,the ,european spindle tree1 and a number of ,japanese and ,chinese species1 are now planted in ,american gardens1 and called by their genus name1 ,evonymus4 ,the red-fruited sorts all come under the common name1 burning bush1 and they do burn with a steady flame when winter has robbed the gardens of colour4 ,evergreens form a beautiful background for these ruddy little trees4 ,,tree ,,studies ,,in ,,the ,,spring ,,the ,,awakening ,,of ,,the ,,trees ,all winter the grey beech trunks look almost white among the dark trunks of neighbouring trees4 ,their branches are dark at the tips1 and the buds are long1 slim1 and sharp-pointed4 ,silky1 brown bud scales1 in many layers1 protect the young shoots hidden in these buds4 ,in ,april these shoots impatiently push aside their wrappings4 ,the outer scales fall1 the inner ones grow longer1 but the growing tip leaves them behind1 and they fall1 while the silky-coated1 fan-plaited baby leaves hang limp and helpless on the lengthening stem4 ,no tree of the woods is more beautiful than the beech as its twigs cover themselves with the tender green of spring4 ,beech leaves are handsome when full grown4 ,in the short hours of their babyhood they are lovely4 ,the sturdy shagbark hickory is late in waking4 ,poplars and beeches are in full leaf when the big buds of this familiar tree with the shaggy bark begin to swell1 and show the pale1 silky inner scales under the black outer pairs1 which soon fall off4 ,the branches are stiff and angular1 but the twigs hold up their big buds1 and the trees look like great candelabra1 each holding up a thousand lighted candles4 ,as the pointed buds push upward1 the protecting scales grow rapidly larger1 and the outer ones turn back like the sepals of an iris4 ,wonderful tints of olive and yellow1 violet and rose1 blend in their silky covering4 ,out of this petal-like frill rises the cluster of young leaves1 small but perfectly formed1 and just as varied and delicate in colouring under their velvet covering4 ,these complete the flower-like appearance of the young shoots4 ,the illusion lasts only until the leaves spread out1 and take on their natural1 colour and size4 ,the scales fall1 their duty done1 and the flower catkins come out1 under the broad umbrellas of the fresh1 new leaves4 ,the tree is thoroughly awake1 and has begun its long summer's work4 ,illustration3 ,the great winter buds of the shagbark hickory open like flowers in ,may ,illustration3 ,pink and silvery catkins of trembling aspen1 and the white1 flannel-like leaves1 just opened ,the poplar likes to grow in moist ground1 and in companies of its own kind4 ,copses of these trees1 especially if they be young ones1 are sure heralds of the coming spring4 ,their stems and branches are smooth1 and almost as pale as white birches4 ,they become greenish1 especially the smaller branches and twigs1 as the sap rises4 ,they are alive from root tips to shining buds4 ,the brown scales loosen in ,march on the plumpest buds4 ,the fuzzy grey pussies push out1 and lengthen into soft chenille fringes that wave gracefully from every twig4 ,they are grey1 with a flush of pink1 an exquisite colour harmony1 too lovely to last4 ,their catkins fall as soon as their golden pollen dust is ripened and scattered by the wind4 ,the plain1 green fertile ones on other trees catch the pollen1 and set seed which ripens1 in green1 berry-like capsules1 in ,may4 ,the seeds are almost too small to be seen4 ,each floats away with the small wisp of down in which it hides4 ,the slim buds on the same twigs open while the trees are still in blossom4 ,the young shoots come out1 and unroll their baby leaves1 soft and white1 covered with a silky down1 and tinted pink under the protective hairs4 ,for a short time only they look like white velvet1 and are limp and helpless4 ,then the hairy coat is shed2 the leaves become shiny and bright green1 and twinkle in the sunshine4 ,the stems are flexible and long and flattened4 ,this makes them catch the breeze1 if the blades do not1 so the foliage trembles whenever a breeze goes through the tree top4 ,quaking aspen1 trembling aspen1 and 8quakenasp0 are popular names given this tree1 whose foliage has the appearance and the sound of rippling water4 ,tradition says the tree is forever accursed1 and trembles as from fear1 because the traitor1 ,judas1 hanged himself on an aspen4 ,this is a foolish notion4 ,only gaiety is expressed by the continual fluttering of the aspen's leaves4 ,the buds of cottonwood and ,balm of ,gilead trees are sealed with a fragrant wax which softens as spring loosens the scales and growth begins4 ,bees throng these trees1 and gather the soft wax to carry to their hives4 ,they use it to stop up cracks that would let in the rain4 ,what is not needed at once they store for future use4 ,bee-keepers call it 8propolis40 ,they have offered the bees something 8just as good10 but they will take no substitute for the genuine4 ,that is produced only on the buds of trees of the poplar family1 and for a brief season it is ready for them in spring4 ,,trees ,,that ,,bloom ,,in ,,early ,,spring ,in late ,march1 or early in ,april1 before the leaves have come out on any of the trees along your street1 you may look out of an upper window and notice that strange-looking tassels are hanging on the twigs of a poplar or cottonwood tree4 ,its buds are large and they shine in the sun1 as if they were wet4 ,a day or two later you may be walking with your mother or sister1 and she will be startled to see the sidewalk covered with what look to her like great red caterpillars6 ,then you may remember the tree with the tassels on it1 and recognise them1 and explain where they came from4 ,a single look shows that this worm-like object is a catkin1 and the lovely red is the colour of the many stamens that contain the pollen dust4 ,when this is ripe the stamens burst and let it fly away4 ,then the tree lets its catkins fall1 for they have done their part4 ,green catkins hang on other trees of the same kind in the neighbourhood4 ,the flowers are waiting for pollen that will enable them to set seed4 ,if the wind blows in the right direction when the pollen is flying about1 the green1 fertile flowers will get all they need4 ,these catkins are not shed as the red ones are4 ,they make little show among the opening leaves1 but little seed balls take the place of the flowers4 ,by the end of ,may the green balls the size of peas turn yellow1 and open4 ,out of each pod floats tufts of white down1 each bearing away a tiny white seed4 ,this is the end of the story4 ,before the chestnut trees have begun to blossom1 the poplars have scattered their seeds1 and have all the summer to spend in growing long1 supple shoots covered with their dancing1 shining leaves4 ,they look as if they enjoy life6 ,the pussy willows push their fuzzy noses out in winter4 ,some are even showing in autumn4 ,but the yellow pollen is not seen on these flowers until the catkins are full grown1 and they wait till winter is past4 ,they dare not risk a frost4 ,among pussy willow trees there is a difference in the catkins4 ,on one tree they turn yellow when mature2 the golden pollen dust rises in a cloud when the twig is disturbed4 ,these catkins soon fall off4 ,on other trees the catkins are greenish1 and they stay on after reaching full size4 ,they are the fertile flowers1 which develop into seed pods4 ,pollen brought to them by the wind or by visiting insects in search of nectar1 insures the setting of seed in these flowers4 ,though the gayer flowers fall1 they are quite as necessary to the making of seeds as the fertile ones4 ,in all the willows and poplars1 it requires two trees1 bearing the two kind of flowers1 to make the seed4 ,and the wind and nectar-seeking insects are necessary as pollen-carriers4 ,illustration3 ,the winter flower buds1 the blossoms1 the full-grown winged seeds1 and the ribbed leaf of our ,american elm ,illustration3 ,the majestic1 fan-shaped elm blossoms while snow is still on the fields ,in marshy land1 or by a brook or river1 or even just outside the window at home1 there is a tree that turns rosy in ,march with a multitude of small red flowers clustered on the sides of its twigs4 ,it is the swamp maple1 the red maple1 the river maple1 the scarlet maple4 ,two of these names tell of the tree's thirst2 two name its colour when in blossom1 and also when the leaves change colour in autumn4 ,each flower is a red bell1 for the petals are red4 ,one has a red forked pistil thrust out2 another lacks a pistil1 but has a cluster of yellow stamens4 ,one tree may be deep red throughout1 having only pistillate flowers4 ,another may have only staminate flowers2 it will be orange coloured1 by the blending of the colours of the yellow stamens1 and the red petals4 ,another tree may have flowers of both kinds4 ,occasionally flowers will be found that have both stamens and pistils4 ,the bees are in the scarlet maples at the first loosening of the bud scales4 ,there is nectar in those flower bells4 ,the colour and a faint fragrance tell this secret4 ,from pollen flowers the busy insects carry the golden dust to the forked pistils that set seeds4 ,the wind helps by scattering pollen in the tree tops1 and very soon the flowers are gone4 ,the staminate trees turn green when the opening leaves lose their vivid red4 ,the pistillate trees hang out red clusters of winged seeds below the opening leaf clusters4 ,these red trees keep their name written plainly as long as the seed clusters swing4 ,early in ,march1 the side buds on the elm twigs begin to swell1 and soon clusters of purplish flowers1 small but very pretty1 come out of the largest buds1 and the tree top has a purplish haze upon it1 that means that spring is coming4 ,the bees come to get nectar from these early blossoms1 but few people speak of the blossoming elms4 ,they do not notice that elms ever blossom2 and are rather incredulous when a spray is shown them covered with the graceful little tassels4 8,who ever heard of elms having flowers80 ,the truth is that every tree1 when it is large enough1 bears flowers4 ,not every one bears fruit1 for some have pollen flowers only1 the seeds being borne on the fertile trees4 ,elms have perfect flowers1 and soon after the leaves open1 the green fruits are seen in clusters1 and before ,may passes1 the seeds1 each surrounded by an oval wing1 flutter off in the wind4 ,,the ,,american ,,elm ,,and ,,its ,,kin ,beautiful and stately1 yet full of grace is the form of a big elm tree against the grey sky of a cloudy winter day4 ,the tall trunk is crowned with many main branches1 which spread into a widening funnel shape1 subdividing into numberless smaller branches1 whose direction is outward and downward4 ,the numerous twigs have the droop of a weeping willow4 ,the tree top is wonderful when every limb is bare4 ,in summer the same tree is a great fountain of green leaves4 ,the long1 leafy twigs of new wood are flung out to the wind1 and the twinkling blades dazzle the eyes like spray4 ,this is the time that we love the elm for its shade1 and as an ornament to home grounds and parks4 ,roadside elms are the favourite nesting trees of the ,baltimore oriole1 whose hanging pocket of grasses and yarns swings at the end of a high outer branch4 ,when winter is still in the air1 and snow on the landscape1 the dark twigs of these bare elm trees change colour4 ,it is the purple flower clusters that are flung out from opening buds in late ,march4 ,it takes sharp eyes to see the cause of the wine-coloured flush in the tree top4 ,with the opening of the leafy shoots in ,april1 the trees get an added colour from the pale green seed discs that replace the flowers4 ,these are winged1 and they soon turn brown1 and fly away on the first breeze4 ,this is the elm's way of sowing seeds4 ,a crop of young elms grows each summer in fields and gardens near these seed trees4 ,the leaf of the seedling is exactly after the pattern of the parental tree1 but smaller4 ,the ,english elm is less graceful than our ,american tree4 ,it has more the stature of the white oak4 ,the head is compact1 and the foliage mass thicker1 and longer-lived4 ,the robin red-breast nests close to the sturdy trunk1 shielded by the earliest leaves4 ,an old couplet guides the farmer in the old country3 8,when the elm leaf is as big as a mouse's ear1 ,then to sow barley never fear40 ,the toughness of elm is remembered by all who have 8read of the wonderful one-hoss shay40 ,nothing but 8ellum0 was proper stuff for the hubs1 you know4 ,as it is durable in soil1 elm is good timber for posts and railroad ties4 ,by its toughness and flexibility1 it is fit for waggon tongues1 and all kinds of agricultural implements4 ,the ancient warrior of ,england was likely to carry a longbow made of the tough ,british elm4 ,slippery elms grow more irregular in form than the ,american1 and are usually smaller trees4 ,both kinds grow together in the wooded regions east of the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,the difference between them can be easily detected by a blind person4 ,twigs1 buds1 and leaves of slippery elms are made rough and harsh to the touch by coarse1 reddish hairs4 ,boys and many other people like the taste of the glutinous inner bark of this tree when the sap is running1 and the limbs and trunks peel easily4 ,many a tree is sacrificed to this appetite4 ,the same delectable mucilaginous substance quenches the thirst and allays hunger1--so hunters say1 who have eaten it when lost in the woods1 and threatened with starvation4 ,poultices of it relieve throat troubles1 when there is congestion4 ,it is a home remedy for inflammations and fevers4 ,dried and ground1 the rich cambium is mixed with milk1 and forms a nutritious and tasty food for invalids4 ,it is a staple on the shelves of apothecary shops4 ,the rock elm might be mistaken for a bur oak were the leaves not decided proof that it is an elm4 ,the limbs are shaggy1 and the twigs winged by the corky bark4 ,indeed1 another name for the tree is the cork elm4 ,the framework of this tree is stiff and irregular1 a decided contrast to the graceful drooping top of the ,american elm1 whose symmetry is one of its best points4 ,the wood has its fibres so interlaced that no wood excels it in toughness and springiness4 ,it is the wheelwright's choice4 ,it makes the finest bridge timbers1 and the best axe handles1 and wheel hubs4 ,the winged elm is the smallest and daintiest of the elms4 ,the twigs are broadened by a corky ridge on each side4 ,this gives the tree its name4 ,the ,indian name1 ,wahoo1 is also heard in the ,south4 ,the leaves are of the elm type1 but unusually small4 ,it is seen as a street and lawn tree in cities and towns south of ,virginia1 and west to ,illinois and ,texas4 ,,the ,,maple ,,family ,if you meet a tree of good size1 with slender branches1 and small buds set opposite upon the twigs1 you may suspect it of being a maple4 ,the leaves are needed to assure you4 ,if it is winter time1 and the tree stands on the street1 the leaves may all have been raked away4 ,if the tree grows in the woods1 the chances are that there is a leaf carpet over its roots1 and that most of these leaves have fallen from its branches4 ,you can make sure of this point by picking up a dead leaf1 examining the base of its stalk to see if it fits the leaf scars on the twigs4 ,if the leaves are simple1 that is1 if they have a single blade1 the evidence that this is a maple is very strong4 ,there are a few small trees with simple leaves set opposite on the twigs1 but they do not grow as large as maples4 ,does the leaf have three main divisions1 each with a vein which is one of three large branches of the leaf stalk8 ,then you may be sure that the tree is one of the maple family4 ,simple leaves1 of three main lobes1 set opposite on the twigs1 and the twigs set opposite on the branches1--in these are the plain signature of the maples4 ,they write their names in these characters1 across every branch throughout the growing season1 and on the leafless branches1 and the dead leaves under the tree in winter4 ,another signature is the one-sided maple key1 which hangs on the trees all summer1 and even late into the winter on some kinds1 but is shed in early summer by a few4 ,the two early-blooming maples are commonly planted as street and shade trees all over the ,eastern half of the country4 ,it is easy to recognise these1 and to know them apart by the leaf alone4 ,the red maple is a spreading1 symmetrical tree1 of medium size with slender1 erect branches4 ,the leaves are red when they open in spring2 so are the flowers which cluster on the bare twigs in early ,april1 before the leaves are out4 ,the clustered fruits that dangle in pairs all along the stems in ,may are red1 and in the autumn the tree changes its green robe of foliage to scarlet before winter comes4 ,the buds that cluster at the joints are red as rubies1 and the slim twigs glow with the same warm colour1 which is warmer by contrast with the snow4 ,all maple leaves are more or less cleft into three main divisions4 ,the red maple has two shallow clefts1 ,v-shaped1 at the top1 and the lobes are pointed and triangular4 ,the margins are irregularly saw-toothed4 ,these leaves are often downy beneath1 and always white-lined when young4 ,in summer they have pale green linings4 ,as a rule1 red maple leaves are small1 averaging less than three inches in the length of their blades4 ,they are larger on young trees4 ,the silver maple is much more easily grown from seed than the red maple1 but it has a far more irregular tree top4 ,the limbs branch low on the trunk1 and these limbs grow very long1 giving the tree a loose head of great height1 and great horizontal spread4 ,the small branches curve downward1 and the twigs are held erect4 ,the wind twists and breaks these great weak limbs1 or wrenches them loose from the trunk4 ,it is dangerous to have these trees near the house1 for wind and ice storms are constantly snapping off branches large enough to break windows1 or knock down chimneys as they fall4 ,illustration3 ,the flowers of the red maple are concealed in winter in brown buds ,illustration3 ,seeds of red maple1 in late ,may1 and in early ,april ,the flowers of the silver maple show no red4 ,they come out greenish-yellow on the twigs when the red maple's flowers are glowing on their red twigs in ,march1 and early ,april4 ,the leaves are pale green1 white beneath1 and set on long flexible stems4 ,they are larger than the leaves of the red maple1 and cleft in a distinctly different way4 ,a narrow1 deep fissure divides the leaf in thirds1 and two side clefts divide the lower lobes in two unequal halves4 ,these fissures reach two-thirds of the way through the leaf blade1 and each lobe is cleft along its sides1 into many irregular bays and capes4 ,these leaves are always silvery white beneath in summer1 and they turn to yellow in the autumn4 ,in late ,may the pairs of winged keys hang on short stems4 ,each key is about two inches long1 fuzzy green1 until ripe1 twice the length of the smooth keys of the red maple1 which are ripening at the same time4 ,it is good fun to lie under a maple tree1 and watch the seeds as they fall4 ,if the wind is strong1 they shower down like rain4 ,each key separates from its mate1 and as it lets go its hold on the twig1 the wind catches its thin wing1 and sends it whirling round and round4 ,the heavy seed makes for the earth1 while the flat blade above it acts as a parachute1 or a sail1 to keep it in the air4 ,how far does a silver maple send its seeds in these summer days1 when they are falling8 ,it is easy to answer this question by pacing the distance from the tree trunk in a straight line to the point where the farthest key falls4 ,go in the direction towards which the wind is blowing1 in determining this distance4 ,it will be interesting to run out another line from the tree trunk to find out how far the seeds are thrown on the side that is against the wind4 ,from the silver maple go to a red maple1 and watch the harvest of these small-winged keys4 ,do a little measuring here1 and find out if their smaller size and weight enables these seeds to sail further in the same breeze than those of the silver maple4 ,the sugar maple is known also as the rock or hard maple1 because its wood is harder1 and therefore slower to grow1 than the two quick-growing soft maples just described4 ,this is the one whose trunk is tapped in spring1 and the sap boiled down in great kettles over an open fire in the woods4 ,when the water is all evaporated1 solid cakes of maple sugar remain4 ,if you are walking in the woods in winter1 and come upon any trees bored with small auger holes1 several near the base of each trunk1 you may suspect that this is a grove of hard maples which the ,new ,england farmer calls his 8sugar bush40 ,look at the twigs1 and you will see that the plump round buds are set opposite1 and the twigs are opposite on the branch4 ,this is the way with all maple trees4 ,are the branches many1 and do they shoot upward rather than outward1 and form an oval head8 ,this is the typical habit of young hard maple trees4 ,as they grow older the heavy lower limbs become horizontal4 ,they are clean1 hardy1 vigorous trees1 long-lived1 dependable1 able to meet the storms1 and to suffer the theft of their rich sap every spring without apparent loss of strength and vitality4 ,the leaves come out later than those of the soft maples4 ,they are firm1 and broad1 with five pointed lobes between wide fissures that reach half-way to the stem4 ,margins of these lobes are wavy1 never saw-toothed1 like those of the silver maple4 ,they are dark green above1 with paler linings4 ,in autumn they turn to yellow1 orange1 and red4 ,the flowers open in ,may1 shortly after the leaves appear4 ,they are in thick1 hairy1 yellowish clusters4 ,some are pistillate1 some staminate1 in the same cluster4 ,those with the forked pistils remain and grow into smooth fruits towards the end of summer4 ,the keys of sugar maples are short-winged1 like those of the red maple1 but have stouter1 thicker seeds4 ,they are shed in late autumn and early winter4 ,hard maples are among the best of shade trees1 and the glory of their autumn colouring makes them one of the most to be desired among trees planted merely for ornament4 ,a street planted to hard maples is well planted always4 ,but people are impatient for trees to grow up4 ,the slow growth of the sugar maple is discouraging4 ,it is a good plan to plant the quick-growing soft maples1 and alternate with them the slow-growing species4 ,for a few years the soft maples are pretty1 and with each year's growth they give more abundant shade4 ,by the time the wind has crippled their long arms1 and made the trees unsightly1 the hard maples are coming on to take their places1 and they need the room which is given them by the removal of their neighbours on to the left and right4 ,when ,i went into the woods of ,oregon1 ,i found the vine maple trees1 which seems not to have sufficient backbone to stand upright4 ,these trees start to grow erect1 but their weight soon overcomes their strength1 and they droop1 but keep on growing1 with their limbs prostrate on the ground4 ,the wet land in many places was covered with a network of the interfering branches of these serpentine maple trees4 ,the leaf is about the size of the palm of my hand1 and almost circular4 ,the border is cut into many shallow lobes4 ,the seeds are characteristic keys1 smooth1 and the wings of each pair are spread almost opposite each other4 ,the ,norway maple is a most popular street tree4 ,its foliage is very dense1 and the tree forms a round1 symmetrical head4 ,the broad1 five-lobed leaves are remotely toothed1 smooth1 thin1 and dark green on both sides4 ,break a leaf stem1 and a milky juice appears4 ,the seeds are very flat1 and have broad1 flaring wings4 ,the flowers are yellowish4 ,great clusters of them come out with the leaves4 ,the seeds are ripe in autumn4 ,we shall find that the foliage of the ,norway maple stands the wear and tear better than that of many shade trees4 ,the crown of a ,norway maple turns to bright gold in autumn1 and most of the leaves are still unmarred when they fall4 ,the box elder is the one native maple which has compound leaves4 ,the leaf blade is cleft quite to the stem1 and the thirds form separate leaflets1 each mounted on its own stalk4 ,these leaves are set opposite on the twigs1 like those of other maples4 ,in spring pink fringes like corn silk decorate the branches of certain box elder trees4 ,other trees of the same kind hide little green flowers among the opening leaves4 ,the pink fringes are the pollen-bearing flowers1 which fall when ripe4 ,staminate trees never bear fruit4 ,all through the summer the trees which bore the greenish flower are dangling clusters of pale green seeds1 each with the peculiar wing1 which proves it a maple4 ,when the ragged1 yellowing foliage falls1 these seed clusters remain on the branches1 and all through the winter the wind is plucking and carrying them away4 ,the wood of box elder is very soft4 ,the tree is planted because it grows so quickly and surely1 and its seeds are so easily obtained4 ,but broken branches give the older trees a crippled1 unhappy look1 and the ragged clusters of seeds give them a disheveled appearance all winter4 ,fortunate is the man who has planted elms or hard maples along the road1 so that he may take out the decrepit box elders1 and have the better trees coming on to take their places4 ,the striped maple is a little tree1 which hides in the woods1 and only a few people know the tree1 and love it as it deserves4 ,the stripes are on its smooth green bark1 which breaks into a network of furrows as the stems increase in diameter4 ,these furrows expose a very pale under-bark1 so that at a short distance the trunk seems to be delicately traced with white lines4 ,in its blossoming season the striped maple has a loose1 drooping cluster of yellow1 bell-like flowers4 ,the leaves that surround them are broad and shallowly three-lobed1 and saw-toothed all around4 ,the seeds are little maple keys1 smaller than those of the red maple4 ,the mountain maple is another little tree quite as modest and retiring as its striped cousin4 ,it has longer1 more taper-pointed leaves4 ,the flower clusters are much smaller than those of the striped maple1 and they stand erect4 ,the fruits hang late in the winter1 on the grey downy twigs1 which are brightened by red buds4 ,,the ,,willow ,,family ,one of the first tree families whose name we learn is the willow family4 ,the members are numerous1 and the botanists find great difficulty in distinguishing certain species1 which closely resemble each other2 but these troubles we shall leave to the scientist4 ,the point for us to consider is this3 ,when we see a tree which we know to be a willow1 how do we know it8 8,it looks like a willow10 some one says4 ,but who knows1 and can tell how willows look--how they differ from other trees8 ,first1 willows have slender1 flexible twigs that give the tree tops grace and lightness4 ,second1 willow leaves are nearly always long and slim to match the supple twigs4 ,they are always simple1 and short-stemmed4 ,the wood is light and soft1 so the trees break easily in storms of wind and ice4 ,an old willow tree is likely to be crippled1 but its scars and wounds are covered in summer by the arching branches and the abundant foliage4 ,the first trees to blossom in spring are the shrubby pussy willows1 a distinct kind whose catkins are so eager to push out of their scales that their grey1 silky noses are often seen in ,november4 ,frequently1 they are out and the scales dropped in ,february2 but the yellow stamens and the long-tongued pistils do not rise above the grey fur until ,march1 at least4 ,the most attractive stage of these catkins is the earlier one1 when the flower buds are concealed by the grey silk4 ,by cutting pussy willow twigs in the late fall1 or any time during the winter1 and putting them into a jar of water1 we may see the blossoming1 quite out of season4 ,sufficient food is stored in the twig to force out the blossoms1 even to the shedding of the pollen4 ,it is a charming thing in the winter to have a vase of these twigs in full bloom on a window sill when snow banks are piled high just outside4 ,willows are lovers of wet ground1 and we shall see groves of them scattered along streams and on the margins of ponds and swamps4 ,a few species thrive in dry soil1 and seem to prefer it4 ,some grow at sea level1 others are found on high mountains4 ,from small shrubs they vary to mighty trees4 ,there is no climate and no soil that does not have its native willows4 ,the family is distributed from the ,equator to the ,arctic ,circle4 ,it is very common in many places for farmers to plant a grove of willows for a windbreak1 to protect their houses and barns4 ,this is especially seen in prairie states and other treeless regions4 ,willows are quick-growing trees1 and sure to grow4 ,all one needs do is to cut limbs from a growing tree1 chop these limbs into pieces the length of stove wood1 and drive them into the ground4 ,each one takes root1 and grows into a tree1 if the soil is at all moist4 ,another plan is to cut fence posts from the willow grove1 and drive them into the ground4 ,each of these posts forms the trunk of a willow tree1 which soon has a great head of branches4 ,in ,holland and other countries1 willows are thickly planted to form hedges and for their roots to hold the soil along the banks of streams and ditches4 ,the same trees may perform a double service4 ,willow wood makes good summer fuel1 where a quick1 hot fire is desired4 ,the twigs make the best charcoal used in the manufacture of gunpowder4 ,the long1 flexible twigs of a low-growing willow are used in the manufacture of wicker chairs1 tables1 and other furniture4 ,these trees are grown on a large scale in ,france and other ,european countries1 and the industry is being introduced in some parts of ,america4 ,when spring comes on1 we may notice a peculiar change in the colour of the bare willows that line the stream borders4 ,the twigs turn gradually green1 and the long1 pointed buds prepare to cast off their single scales4 ,these are shaped like the long1 knitted caps which children wear in winter time1 although there is no tassel at the end4 ,the cap fits snugly over the long bud1 and is fastened in a circle at the joint4 ,the swelling bud simply pushes it off4 ,under these trees1 we shall find a good many fresh twigs4 ,reaching up to break one1 we find that it snaps off short at the base4 ,it is not brittle along its whole length4 ,try a dozen twigs1 and off they snap1 almost at a touch4 ,the wind has broken off those that fell to the ground4 ,some that fall in the water1 float away down stream4 ,they catch on sandbars1 and strike root4 ,some swing in to the shore1 and grow on the banks4 ,we have discovered a habit of certain kinds of willow trees4 ,the shedding of their twigs at the season when they are fullest of life is the tree's method of colonising new territory4 ,these twigs float away1 and blow away1 and those which lodge in wet ground before they dry are almost sure to grow4 ,the billowy acres of green which cover sandbars and stream borders are willow trees1 children of parents that grow far up stream4 ,along roadsides in this country a large willow is much planted1 whose leaves are pale beneath1 so that they look very cheerful and cool in midsummer4 ,the most striking thing about these willows is that their twigs are yellow as ducks' feet1 and particularly bright in early spring4 ,the older trees grow very stout1 and great branches leave the trunk close to the ground4 ,this is the golden osier willow1 one form of the white willow of ,europe1 which does not grow vigorously in this country4 ,the weeping willows1 whose long1 supple branches sweep out and downward1 sometimes yards in length1 from the tree top1 came originally from ,babylon4 ,who were they in that far country who 8hung their harps on the willow trees08 ,a great many weeping willows in the ,eastern states are said to be sprung from the parent tree1 which grew on the ,island of ,st4 ,helena4 ,what famous prisoner probably sat under the shadows of this willow tree1 and dreamed again of conquering the world8 ,the weeping willow has the habit of snapping its twigs off1 short1 at the base4 ,one of these long withes1 cut into bits with one or two buds on each cutting1 will start as many weeping willow trees1 if the bits are stuck into wet sand and kept wet until rooted1 and then set out and given plenty of water until they become established in the ground4 ,the black willow is named for the black bark of the old tree4 ,it is the only one of the narrow-leaved willows whose leaves are uniformly green on both sides4 ,these leaves are often curved like a sickle4 ,at the base of each leaf is a pair of heart-shaped1 leafy blades1 called stipules4 ,many trees have stipules that come out with the leaves1 and are dropped off1 but these persist1 as a rule1 all summer4 ,the black willow is one of those with the twigs that snap4 ,it takes possession of stream borders1 and its offspring may cover miles of new territory in a single season4 ,the balsam willow we shall know by the fragrant coating of wax1 or balsam1 on its young shoots and buds4 ,its broad leaves are blunt at the tip1 and look scarcely willow-like1 but the tree is known by its buds and its catkins4 ,to find it we shall have to go into the boggy regions in the ,northern tier of states1 where it is numerous1 but never more than a shrubby tree4 ,one use is served by no tree as well as a willow4 ,when the sap rises in spring1 the willow branches are in prime condition to make whistles4 ,i wonder if there is a boy1 in town or country1 who does not know how to make a willow whistle that will 8go08 ,surely not1 unless his supply of uncles and grandfathers is short4 ,you cannot make a willow whistle by following printed directions4 ,some skilful person1 who has been a boy1 must show you1 and one lesson is enough4 ,,why ,,trees ,,need ,,leaves ,spring or early summer is the best time to study the leaves of trees4 ,they are clean1 and fresh1 and new4 ,every tree is a great mound of green4 ,the broad-leaved trees seem to be thatched or shingled with overlapping blades so that no sunlight can get into the darkened room1 which is empty except for the bare branches that support this outer dome of leaves4 ,a sugar maple1 or a linden tree1 shows best this outer thatch1 which is so thick that the sun is unable to look through4 ,the bird flying overhead sees only a solid mass of leaves4 ,the one on its nest in a forked limb looks up and sees the inside of this leafy tree cover4 ,she is glad for the twilight that surrounds her1 and for the coolness of this shady place2 but more glad that her nest is hidden from sight of hawks that sail overhead1 while she keeps a close watch for sly1 thieving red squirrels that may come to steal her eggs1 by climbing up the branches4 ,what are the leaves for8 ,why does the tree put out in spring young shoots with rows of leaves along their sides8 ,why does the tree hold these branches out as far as possible from the trunk1 and bend the leaf stems and the twigs so as to face the leaf blades towards the sun8 ,the reason is this3 the life of the trees is in the green layer which we see on the surface of all green shoots1 and which we can discover under the older bark of twigs1 which has turned brown4 ,following the twig back from its tip1 all of the leafy part is green4 ,behind it the smooth twig is no longer green1 but a thumb nail easily strips off the layer of brown1 and reveals the green under bark4 ,go a little further back1 and gradually the outer bark thickens1 and it is more difficult to get at the soft under layer4 ,after a while1 we shall need a knife to reach it1 for old bark is hard and tough4 ,when the bark gets so thick that the sun cannot reach the green layer1 the colour fades out4 ,the living part of the trunk of the tree is the soft1 juicy layer between the bark and wood4 ,through this portion of the tree the sap rises from the roots1 and finally reaches the leaves4 ,this sap needs to be changed before it can be useful to the tree as food4 ,the leaves are the places where these changes take place4 ,through little doorways in the under sides of the leaf air passes in4 ,with it goes carbonic acid gas1 an important food element4 ,the soft green leaf pulp1 which is the green juice of a bruised leaf1 has a wonderful work to do4 ,it cannot do this work unless the sun is shining upon it4 ,on a bright day every leaf is making starch1 and sending it down through the twigs and branches as food4 ,this starch is contained in the sugary sap that flows back constantly from the leaves to the farthest root tips4 ,it is made in the leaves out of the sap brought up from the roots and the carbonic acid gas which the leaves absorb from the air4 ,as long as the leaves do their work1 the tree is able to grow1 and to blossom1 and to ripen its seeds4 ,when the leaves have done their work the summer has passed2 the tree lets go the leaves1 and rests without growing all winter4 ,it is not easy to explain the work of the leaves1 nor even to understand the wonderful work accomplished there all through the summer4 ,when we eat1 our food must go into the stomach to be changed by the processes called digestion4 ,it is hours before the digested food is poured into the blood and carried to all parts of the body4 ,the tree takes its food from the air1 and from the soil4 ,neither the dirty water that rises as sap to the leaves1 nor the gas which enters the leaf doorways from the air1 is useful as food to the growing tree until they have been combined and changed4 ,the leaves are1 then1 in a sense1 the stomachs of the trees1 for in them the raw foods must be 8digested0 before they are ready to be poured into the life blood that flows down through all the live parts of the tree4 ,now they are fit to feed the growing cells1 which are always hungry4 ,,leaves ,,of ,,all ,,shapes ,,and ,,sizes ,the leaf of the tree is its visiting card4 ,we shall learn to know trees by their leaves1 as easily as if the name were written across the face of the leaf4 ,some leaves have a single blade of green1 and for this reason the botanist calls them simple leaves4 ,this blade has a stem that unites it with the twig4 ,a compound leaf is one whose stem bears more than one blade4 ,these small blades are called leaflets4 ,there are two types of compound leaves1 one feather-like1 having a main stem with leaflets arranged in two rows on opposite sides of this stem4 ,such a leaf is feather-like4 ,the other type has a leaf stem with all the leaflets attached at one end4 ,the horse chestnut is the best example of this type4 ,the leaves spread from the end of the stalk somewhat as the fingers rise from the palm of your hand4 ,the biggest leaves with single blades to be found in our forests grow on trees of the magnolia family4 ,the silver-lined leaves of the large-leaved cucumber tree are over a foot in length1 sometimes two and one-half feet1 down ,south4 ,these great leaves are about one-fourth as wide as long1 and at the base each one broadens and extends backward into two rounded ear-like lobes4 ,this gives the tree the name1 ear-leaved magnolia4 ,the whole leaf flaps in the wind1 like the ear of an elephant1 and1 of course1 the wind lashes it into strings and soon robs it of its beauty4 ,the ,northern cucumber tree is another magnolia whose leaves are tropical-looking4 ,this is the hardiest of the magnolia family1 and its heart-shaped leaves are six to ten inches long4 ,they are not large for a magnolia of the ,south1 but they look larger because they grow among the small-leaved trees of the ,northern states4 ,the tulip tree has a large leaf of peculiar form4 ,it is broad like a maple leaf at the base1 but at the tip it is cut off square as if with a pair of shears1 forming a right angle with its straight sides4 ,sometimes the leaf is notched1 as if a ,v-shaped piece were cut out of the square tip4 ,these leaves are long-stemmed1 their blades polished1 and they flutter on the twigs with the lightness of a poplar leaf4 ,once we have in mind the form of the leaf of the tulip tree1 we shall never forget it1 for it is different from all other leaves4 ,the catalpa tree1 which lifts its great blossom clusters above the foliage in late ,june1 is another of the few large-leaved trees of the ,north4 ,the single blade is heart-shaped1 six to eight inches long1 and more than half as broad4 ,these leaves usually have plain margins1 but sometimes they are wavy and notched near the base so as to produce faint side lobes4 ,the blades hang on long1 stout stems4 ,among the feather-leaved trees1 the walnuts and butternuts1 the sumachs1 and the ailanthus1 furnish examples4 ,a black walnut leaf is often two feet long1 with a dozen or more leaflets on the longest ones4 ,these leaflets are always set opposite in pairs1 with an odd one on the tip of the leaf stem4 ,butternut leaves have the same form1 but the leaves are longer4 ,they range from fifteen to thirty inches1 and have from ten to twenty leaflets1 but always an odd number4 ,the peculiar gummy feeling of these hairy leaves1 and their pungent butternut odour when bruised1 make it easy to know the tree wherever we meet it1 through the long summer4 ,the hickories are cousins of the walnuts1 but their leaves1 though of the feather form1 have larger and fewer leaflets than any walnut tree4 ,a shagbark hickory leaf has one or two pairs of little leaflets on the stem1 and above them three of larger size4 ,the pignut has the same habit of clustering its three largest leaves at the tip of the leaf stem1 and tapering off at the base with one or two pairs of decreasing size4 ,the largest of all the compound leaves have branched stems to which leaflets are attached4 ,the main leaf stem's side branches may yet branch again1 forming a twice-branched framework that is set with leaflets1 not large1 but so numerous as to make the whole leaf surprisingly large4 ,the greatest of these twice-compound leaves is borne by that astonishing1 spiny-stemmed ,hercules' club4 ,a single leaf is often four feet long1 and nearly a yard wide4 ,there are no leaflets on the main stem2 they are on the side branches4 ,how shall we tell a leaf stem from a twig8 ,leaf stems do not look like the twigs of the tree4 ,a little practice in looking closely and comparing these leaf stems and twigs will obviate any confusion of the two4 ,the leaf has a bud at its base1 and it breaks off easily at this joint4 ,illustration3 ,the sugar maple trees are tapped in ,february2 they bloom in ,may after the leaves come out2 they ripen their keys in ,october1 when the foliage turns to red and yellow4 ,illustration3 ,leaves of black willow have frills at their bases4 ,twigs of pussy-willows1 cut and brought indoors1 can be forced into bloom in midwinter ,among the fine1 feathery leaves that are so beautiful and light that they give great beauty to the tree tops are those of the honey locust4 ,these leaves are of the feather type1 the slender stems1 with double rows of tiny leaflets4 ,very often we find among the single feather forms1 leaves of greater size1 which have branched stems4 ,this branching multiplies the number of leaflets1 and gives us1 on the same trees1 what the botanists call once compound1 and twice compound leaves4 ,the simple feather and the branched feather forms add greatly to the beauty and luxuriance of the foliage of the honey locust4 ,the common black locust of the roadside has single leaf stems with oblong leaflets set in opposite rows upon it4 ,ash trees have the same feather type of leaves1 the leaflets usually pointed and oval1 and always an odd one at the tip4 ,they are all larger than leaves of the locusts4 ,in the maple family there is a broad1 simple blade1 about as wide as it is long4 ,it is a family trait to have three main veins running out from the end of the leaf stem1 into the blade4 ,each of these veins has side branches1 and they are connected with a network of smaller veins4 ,between the tips of these three main veins the leaf is usually notched1 so as to divide it into thirds4 ,in the red maple these notches are shallow ,v's cut out1 leaving triangular points4 ,in the silver maple the leaves are cut by deeper clefts1 which reach more than half-way to the leaf stalk4 ,the three lobes are cut with jagged points into an uneven margin4 ,the sugar maple has its three lobes separated by wide1 deep clefts1 and its margins are irregularly wavy4 ,the box elder1 which is a maple1 is cleft so deeply that the blade is split into three distinct leaflets1 each with its own short stem4 ,this makes a compound leaf of it4 ,it is the only maple with a leaf of more than one blade4 ,the tree which shows the greatest difference in the form of its leaves is the sassafras1 whose oval leaves grow on the same stem with mittens and double mittens--a mitten pattern with a thumb on each side4 ,the hawthorns have small oval leaves with variously cleft borders4 ,there are over a hundred kinds of hawthorns in our woods1 and each kind has a leaf different from all the rest2 yet a single tree will often show leaves that differ so much from the others in form that we might easily suspect1 if some one brought them to us1 that each grew on a different tree from all the rest4 ,many oak trees have the same habit of leaf variation1 so that even a forester has to examine many leaves with care1 and with them the buds and the acorns1 to make sure that he has called the oak by its right name4 ,the behaviour of the leaves of a tree depends largely on the length and flexibility of their stems4 ,if they are long1 and slender1 and supple1 the tree-top is in a continual flutter when the wind blows4 ,if they are thick and stiff1 they do not catch the breeze as readily1 and their blades lie comparatively still when other trees near by may be twinkling and trembling4 ,leaves with deeply cut borders1 like some oaks and maples1 flutter much more than leaves like the basswood1 whose borders are unbroken4 ,oak leaves that are deeply cut will rarely lie down flat4 ,the curving bays in its borders cause the leaf to curl1 so that no matter what face is presented1 the wind gets under and strikes some surface1 and sets the leaf to dancing4 ,the flat leaf stems of the trembling aspen1 one of the poplar family1 are very flexible1 and they are flattened at right angles to the blades of the leaves4 ,when a breeze comes by1 it may strike the edge of the leaf1 but if so1 it catches the flat leaf stem broadside4 ,if it comes from any other direction the leaf trembles1 because one of the blades is sure to receive the force of the wind4 ,so the tree top is in one constant tremor1 even when the breeze is scarcely sufficient to disturb broad-leaved trees which are near neighbours of the aspens4 ,whatever the form and size and shape of its leaf1 the tree depends upon its foliage mass for all the life it enjoys1 and for all the growth it makes4 ,the soil and the air feed the tree4 ,the leaves and the sun do the work of digesting the food4 ,in the porous wood and bark are the channels through which sap mounts upward to the leaves1 and another set of channels which carry the prepared food back1 leaving it wherever needed1 along the way from tip of twig to tip of root4 ,whatever is not needed is stored away1 to be dissolved as needed and carried to the points where the need is4 ,in spring it is the growing buds that chiefly need this stored food4 ,its presence explains the miracle of the bursting of blossoms and leaves when spring comes4 ,one by one the trees of your own yard may be learned by name this summer4 ,the leaves are your sure guide4 ,trees stay where they are4 ,once we recognise their leaves and call them by name1 we may depend upon finding them still standing the next day we pass them1 and their leaves are still held out as the sign of recognition4 ,every time we pass yonder red maple let us glance at its three-pointed leaf1 and fix its shape indelibly in the mind4 ,when we have done this a dozen times1 ,i am sure that we shall be able to pick out all the red maples in town2 and if we journey far from home we may find and recognise the same kind of trees by the same sign4 ,more and more as we grow older1 we find out that half the pleasure of travelling is the occasional meeting with old friends1 be they people or trees4 ,,tree ,,studies ,,in ,,the ,,summer ,,trees ,,with ,,the ,,largest ,,flowers ,if we set out to find the trees that have the largest flowers1 meaning to count only trees that grow wild in our woods1 it will save time to go straight south into ,north ,carolina1 and climb the foot hills of the ,allegheny ,mountains4 ,or it may be that in the fertile valleys that lie between the low ridges we shall first come upon a magnolia1 called the large-leaved cucumber tree4 ,anywhere from ,north ,carolina to ,florida1 and west to ,arkansas1 these remarkable trees are likely to be found1 in small groups4 ,in cultivation1 they are successfully planted as far north as ,boston4 ,before the tree has attained more than a man's height it is a wonder1 on account of the leaves which measure more than a foot in length1 and have their long1 green blades lined with white4 ,in ,june the flowers open--great white bowls1 made of waxen petals1 in a double row1 the inner ones painted purple at their bases1 giving the flower a purple centre4 ,the wind blows the leaves about1 and tears them into rags1 unless the tree is in a sheltered place4 ,the silvery leaf linings1 as white as the blossoms1 make it difficult to see that the tree is in bloom1 until one is close enough to see the petals4 ,if the leaves were green on both sides the great blossoms1 as large as a man's head1 would be seen afar off4 ,the tree would look like a giant rose bush4 ,from ,pennsylvania southward to the ,gulf of ,mexico1 and west to ,arkansas and ,texas1 the evergreen magnolia grows on stream borders1 and even on uplands where the soil is not very moist4 ,when this pyramid of shining green leaves lights all its waxen tapers1 it is a sight worth a day's journey to see4 ,each stiff twig is bent upward1 and there a bud appears in spring4 ,a few at a time1 the flowers open1 and the blooming time lasts till ,august4 ,each blossom is a deep1 creamy cup1 made of six wax-like petals1 surrounded by three white sepals4 ,inside are many stamens1 purple at the base1 and a cone of pistils1 all grown together4 ,the leaves are oblong or oval1 often eight inches long1 thick1 deep green1 and bright as if polished on the upper surface4 ,the lining is dull green1 sometimes covered with rusty down4 ,the paler green and the brighter polish on the young leaves add much beauty to the tree in summer4 ,in winter the leaves get grimy and the tree top is sombre1 for most of the foliage has seen much wear and tear4 ,in autumn the ends of the twigs hold up green cones1 made of many furry capsules that end in curved horns4 ,each capsule splits when ripe1 and a scarlet seed1 like a berry1 hangs out on an elastic thread1 and swings lower and lower1 until finally it is carried away4 ,thus the magnolia sows its seeds in winter4 ,the shining leaves of this magnolia come ,north at the ,christmas season1 and are used to decorate homes and churches4 ,holly1 mistletoe1 palm leaves1 and the beautiful ,southern smilax are other ,christmas greens now commonly in use4 ,they are all gathered with magnolia and shoots of the long-leaf pine1 in the woods down ,south4 ,the swamp bay is a magnolia that grows as a shrub to ,new ,england1 keeping to the swampy lands that skirt the ,atlantic coast4 ,every spring the fragrant1 creamy blossoms are to be bought from street ,arabs in ,new ,york and ,philadelphia4 ,a single globular flower is surrounded by a whorl of oval leaves1 bright green1 but lined with a white1 powdery substance that makes them look silver-lined4 ,the flowers are deliciously fragrant1 and most beautiful when not spread wide open4 ,the seller often takes the trouble to spring the petals back1 to make the blossom seem bigger4 ,the waxy petals turn brown soon after such handling1 and all their natural beauty departs4 ,from ,florida westward to ,texas this magnolia becomes a slender1 tall evergreen tree4 ,the best flowers of this tree are borne on shoots that are produced by pruning back the new growth each year4 ,the largest leaves and flowers are also the handsomest4 ,the cucumber tree is the magnolia of the ,north4 ,it is a fine tree in ,ontario1 ,canada1 and from this region it spreads south1 its range widening like a fan1 reaching from ,arkansas to the ,carolinas1 and ,mississippi1 and ,alabama4 ,the tropical appearance of the tree is due to the big1 heart-shaped leaves4 ,their tulip-like flowers are as large as garden tulips1 but they make scarcely any show1 because they are very much the same in colour as the yellowish-green new leaves that surround them4 ,the 8cucumbers0 are the green cones that contain the seeds4 ,they are very lumpy and irregular in form1 but when ripe the cells split open and the scarlet seed1 let down on an elastic thread from each1 looks like any magnolia seed4 ,cucumber wood is soft1 yellowish-brown1 and close-grained4 ,it is not very good lumber1 though put to many uses4 ,the tree is worth more alive than dead4 ,it is an admirable shade tree1 though not planted as much as it deserves4 ,the tulip tree is a close relative of the magnolias4 ,it is one of the trees with large flowers1 though1 like the cucumber tree1 the colour of the flowers makes them rather inconspicuous4 ,in ,june the upturned twigs blossom with yellow tulips4 ,the three sepals flare outward1 the petals form the cup4 ,a band of orange decorates the cup1 and signals the bees which come for nectar hidden near the bottom of the flower cup1 among the bases of the many stamens4 ,many people see the gay petals of the tulip tree flowers when they fall on the sidewalk1 and some wonder what these bits of colour are4 ,a few will say3 8,there must be a tulip tree near by10 and look up to find the singular squared-leaf blades that belong to no other tree4 ,there is a whole tree top fluttering with them1 and this tremulous motion explains why the tree is often called the tulip poplar4 ,the yellow wood gives the name1 yellow poplar4 ,pulp of this wood is used for the manufacture of the ordinary postal cards4 ,it has many other uses1 and is a valuable lumber tree4 ,for shade and ornament it is one of the best trees to plant4 ,the cones of the tulip tree do not set free their seeds1 as those of the magnolias do4 ,instead of horned capsules1 the cone has flat1 overlapping blades1 like the wing of a maple seed1 and the small1 closed seed case is the base of the blade4 ,a few of these seeds are fully developed4 ,but when the winter strips the tree of its leaves1 the wind shakes the cones1 and the loosened scales gradually fall4 ,the wind catches the flat wings1 and away they sail4 ,little tulip trees grow up where good seeds fall in favourable ground4 ,one day a neighbour told me that there was a tree in blossom on the side of the ravine4 ,this was a strange story1 for it was the dead of winter4 ,we went to see this wonderful tree4 ,what do you think it was8 ,a tulip tree1 with the seed cones half stripped of their seeds1 and shining like yellow flowers on the ends of the twigs4 ,it was not strange at all that a person who did not know the tree1 and had never seen its cones in mid-winter1 should make this very mistake4 ,the flowering dogwood invites us every spring to break off branches covered with big1 white blossoms1 each like a four-pointed star1 with a cluster of small white buds in the centre4 ,the trees are small and low-branching1 their limbs are flat1 and they spread outward and slightly downward4 ,who can resist cutting a few of the blossoming boughs of this lovely tree6 ,the best part is that the tree suffers not at all if the pruning is done with some care4 ,take a thought for the tree2 cut the branches clean with a knife4 ,take them off where they are thick1 and you will leave the tree better in shape than when you came4 ,do not strip it of flowers4 ,this will cripple it4 ,a few sprays of dogwood1 prettily arranged in a vase1 are a delight to the eye4 ,a crowded mass of them is not at all4 ,the four outer wings of white are not the petals of a dogwood blossom4 ,they are colourless leaves1 the full-grown scales of the winter flower buds4 ,the notch at the tip is made by the falling off of the withered tip which in winter protected the flowers4 ,the base grew long and broad and turned gradually white4 ,the bees see these white banners farther1 perhaps1 than they can catch the faint perfume4 ,watch the bee as she probes the middle flowers for nectar4 ,see the pollen on her hairy body4 ,from one to another1 she is the pollen distributor of these flowers1 and she doesn't know it4 ,,trees ,,most ,,showy ,,in ,,bloom ,sometimes a tree with very small flowers has such a multitude of them that it attracts more attention and admiration when in blossom than the trees with the largest flowers4 ,a magnolia blossom as large as a cabbage head must sacrifice delicacy to size4 ,we must see it at a distance to overlook its coarseness1 and to escape its overpowering perfume4 ,an orchard in early ,may is transformed into fairyland by the opening of millions of buds4 ,apple trees have just begun to unfold the new leaves4 ,they are pale green1 and coated with white hairs1 so that a silvery cloud rests on the tree when the white blossoms1 warmed with a tinge of pink1 come with a rush that takes one's breath away4 ,a single apple blossom has its five flaring petals inside of five green sepals that are the bud's green overcoat4 ,the stamens are many2 the pistils five in the centre of the flower4 ,the plan of the flower is five4 ,the green lump below the blossom is the apple1 already forming4 ,inside it are the five cells of the core1 and each has its seeds already forming1 if the five pistils have each caught a grain of pollen for each of the embryo seeds its chamber of the core contained4 ,the delicate colour and rich fragrance of the apple orchard are enchanting4 ,to the honey bees these two signals call to a feast of nectar4 ,all unknown to them1 they carry pollen on their furry bodies from flower to flower1 and thus enable the pistils to set seed4 ,if the days are damp and there are frequent showers while the apple trees are in bloom1 the bees are kept at home1 and there will be but a small crop of apples4 ,fortunately for the bees and for us1 the blossoms do not all come out on the same day4 ,the trees and the bees are hopeful till the last moment that the sun will shine1 and the nectar be gathered1 before the opportunity of the year passes4 ,flowers much like apple blossoms in form cover the twigs of hawthorn trees4 ,they are usually in many-flowered clusters1 set off by the green leaves4 ,fragrance1 sometimes sickening sweet1 draws the bees and other insects to these trees4 ,nectar drips from the blossoms of some species4 ,the thorny branches spread sidewise1 holding the blossoms out in wide platforms4 ,the red fruits1 called haws1 adorn the trees in late summer4 ,plum and cherry trees are laden with white bloom1 and heavy with fragrance4 ,some species haven't a leaf when they bloom4 ,and these are among the showiest of blossoming trees4 ,in these flowers there are single pistils1 and but a single grain of pollen is needed to set seed4 ,the single seed is the pit1 or stone1 of this family known as the trees with stone fruits4 ,,trees ,,that ,,bloom ,,in ,,midsummer ,in spring the big chestnut tree is late in putting out its leaves4 ,it is ,may before the bare limbs are clothed with green4 ,this crown is made of long1 pointed leaves1 each short-stemmed1 strongly ribbed1 with parallel veins on each side of the midrib1 polished and sharp-toothed along its margin4 ,it is a superb dome of unusually handsome leaves4 ,when the flower procession is long past and the grain fields have turned yellow1 and the mower and reaper are humming busily1 the chestnut's crown turns from green to gold1 as if to harmonise with the landscape of midsummer4 ,each twig ends in a feathery yellow plume1 which waves in the breezes1 and sheds its yellow pollen abroad4 ,the fertile flowers are at the base of the plume4 ,as the yellow pollen flowers fade1 the green scaly ones below them are swelling4 ,they are the young chestnuts4 ,the long tongue each held out to catch pollen when it was ready for use4 ,each flower has three nuts as its full quota to form4 ,failure to be pollenated may cause one of the three to fail4 ,the husk will then contain two nuts4 ,illustration3 ,leaves and flowers of the ear-leaved cucumber tree are the largest in the magnolia family ,illustration3 ,the orange-yellow flower cups and squared leaves of the tulip tree ,in ,may the yellow locust trees still stand along the roadsides1 or herded together along the banks of streams1 bare and ugly1 while the trees around them are beautifully clothed in their green garments1 and adorned with blossoms4 ,the dead pods still cling to the locust's branches1 and not even the buds are in sight to prove the twigs alive4 ,suddenly the trees wake1 push out their hidden buds into shoots which unfold leaves made of tiny leaflets4 ,the leafy spray is light and graceful1 pale green with a silvery sheen at first4 ,soon the leaves are inundated with a flood of white blossoms1 fragrant with their nectar1 which hang in clusters from each twig4 ,the bees see the white cloud on the locust tree1 and hurry to the feast4 ,each curious pea-like flower has a honey pot in its horned petal4 ,throughout the summer the locust trees wave their fern-like leaves1 among which the young pods swing1 rosy and green1 and velvety soft4 ,the two thorns at the base of each leaf are there1 but they are not conspicuous1 unless you grasp a limb2 then they let you know where they are1 and what they can do4 ,on a summer evening we shall see that the locust has closed its leaves1 folding the opposite leaflets together1 and the whole leaf drooping from its stem4 ,it reminds us of the old-fashioned sensitive plant whose leaves resembled these1 folded its leaflets and drooped whenever it was touched4 ,indeed1 the locust tree and these plants are near relatives4 ,the locust leaves are sensitive to the evening air4 ,they close if a rain comes up1 but open when the sun comes out again and the sky clears4 ,locust trees have an insect enemy which bores into the solid wood1 and ruins it for lumber4 ,even the twigs are swollen and distorted by these insects1 which feed upon the rich sap that should go to feed the tree4 ,it is impossible to reach this enemy with poison1 so the trees are helpless4 ,except for this unfortunate fact1 locusts would be a profitable crop to raise for timber4 ,locust wood is very hard1 durable1 and strong4 ,it is slow to decay when in water1 so it is valuable for fence posts1 and for boat building4 ,it is used for hubs and spokes of waggon wheels1 and it is an excellent fuel4 ,the locust timber that reaches market comes from the mountain slopes1 where the locust-borer is thus far unknown4 ,the range of the tree is all over the ,eastern states and west to the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,we shall not find them south of the latitude of ,tennessee4 ,illustration3 ,flowers1 fruit1 and the three different leaf patterns of the sassafras tree ,illustration3 ,waxy flower of the evergreen magnolia1 usually eight inches across when open ,the catalpa's great heart-shaped leaves1 as broad as a man's hat1 come out in ,may1 but the leafy shoots grow a foot or more in length1 and it is well along toward ,independence ,day before the flower buds show streaks of white above the foliage mass4 ,the upturned twigs end in a spike of blossoms1 creamy in colour1 but speckled within their wide throats with purple and yellow4 ,the rim of the flower cup is daintily scalloped1 and frilled1 and the tree top is even more showy than the horse chestnut a month earlier4 ,there is stateliness1 even stiffness1 in the figure of a blossoming horse chestnut--a pyramid of green holding up a thousand pyramids of white4 ,the catalpa has a round head1 and the loose flower clusters are quite informal in their arrangement4 ,the flowers nod gracefully on their stems--a thing the horse chestnut flowers are unable to do4 ,why are the dots of colour sprinkled in the throat of the flower8 ,why are they arranged in lines that lead to the nectar sac8 ,to guide the bees which come in swarms in answer to the signals of colour and fragrance the flowers fling out as lures to them4 ,the two stamens are ripe before the pistil4 ,the bee rubs the pollen off by crowding into the flower4 ,some of this dust is bound to be rubbed off on the ripe stigma of an older blossom visited by this bee4 ,thus1 unconsciously the bee helps the tree to set good seed4 ,of these we will study when we come to the tree again in autumn4 ,only a hint of the seed vessel is given by looking at the oldest flower in a cluster1 and noticing the green part at the base4 ,the linden or basswood holds its arms out so that the broad leaves are exposed to the sun in slanting strata1 or platforms of shade1 that strike downward4 ,the tree's frame is roofed in with them in an almost unbroken thatch of green4 ,cattle love to crop this foliage1 and to enjoy the dense shade on a hot day4 ,in ,july the dark green is illuminated by thousands of starry white blossoms1 a few at the end of a slender stem that rises out of a pale green1 leaf-like blade4 ,there is nothing like it borne on any other tree4 ,the news that the basswoods are in bloom reaches the hives in good time4 ,one is able to hear the murmur of bees as far as he can see the flowers1 but the fragrance travels much farther4 ,basswood honey is higher in price than other kinds4 ,is this the reason the bees are so hard at work8 ,small as the individual flowers are1 they have an unusual supply of nectar1 and the bees revel in the plenty of what will feed them and yield wax4 ,they make honey while the sun shines1 counting the basswoods their best source of the crude materials for honeymaking4 ,it was so in the days of old4 ,greek poets sang of the honey-laden lindens4 ,honey made from linden trees in the ,lithuanian forests was carried to ,rome1 where it sold for three times the price of ordinary honey4 ,bees swarm1 and the new colony often takes to the woods and sets up housekeeping in a hollow tree4 ,this is so likely in the ,southern states to be a linden that 8bee tree0 is a familiar name of this tree4 ,,the ,,early ,,berries ,,in ,,the ,,woods ,robins come to our cherry trees in ,june1 and they hunt for our strawberries under the green leaves4 ,the blackberries come on1 and the raspberries1 and currants4 ,the birds look at them with calculating eyes4 ,an appetite for berries is inherited in them1 learned in the woods1 where wild berries have grown1 and ripened for them1 from the times long before there were gardens and cultivated fruits4 ,back in the woods we shall find wild berries ripening1 and birds feasting thankfully upon them4 ,the harvest begins with the ,june-berries in the month of ,june4 ,serviceberries they are also called1 and the tree is known also as the shadbush4 ,we remember the lovely veil of white blossoms this tree put on before its leaves came out4 ,in ,june we might not know the trees1 except that they bear red berries1 few on a cluster1 and here the birds are feasting4 ,there is no other tree with berries that ripen so early1 unless it be the broad-leaved mulberry4 ,here1 too1 the birds will be found in numbers4 ,turn back the wide1 heart-shaped leaves1 and you will find the single berries of all sizes1 some green1 some reddening and soft4 ,they are like blackberries1 each made of many tiny berries1 grown together4 ,the beauty of the mulberry is that its fruit keeps coming on from ,june until ,august4 ,it is a very slow1 easy-going tree1 in no hurry to have its harvest over4 ,the birds like the soft1 seedy berries1 which to our taste are insipid4 ,it is a shrewd thing to plant mulberry trees on the edges of fruit gardens1 and set a row of ,june-berry trees along the road outside the cherry orchard4 ,it is the scarcity of wild berries that brings the birds into our gardens4 ,many a fruit-grower has saved his crop by planting wild berry trees for the birds4 ,the elders are shrubby trees with large1 fern-like leaves4 ,they lift up flat1 white flower clusters1 sometimes as large as dinner plates1 in ,june1 and in the middle of summer dark red berries are ripening where the flowers were4 ,here is another feast for the birds1 and elderberry pies are the reward of boys and girls who gather the berries1 and take them home to mother4 ,grandma thinks of elderberry wine1 so good for many ailments1 and if the berries are plenty it is easy to gather a bucketful to make a few pints of this old-fashioned cordial4 ,among the shining green leaves of the wild red cherry tree the little fruits glow like rubies in the summer4 ,here is a feast for the birds4 ,we find these small pin cherries very thin-fleshed1 and sour1 and the biggest of them is no larger than a pea4 ,but how the birds love them6 ,the bird cherry is indeed the bird's tree4 ,in blossom it belongs to the bees1 which come in swarms for nectar4 ,to them1 unconscious carriers of pollen from flower to flower1 the birds owe a debt of gratitude4 ,they insure the setting of seed1 and this means a big crop of fruit4 ,the wild black cherry is later with its shining clusters of dark red cherries4 ,they come in ,september1 when the birds' procession has turned southward4 ,the earliest comers hold high carnival in these trees1 devour quantities of the bitter-sweet fruit1 and drop the seeds near and far4 ,the wind can do little in scattering the seeds of fruit trees4 ,the birds are the chief agents of distribution4 ,,the ,,sassafras ,the sassafras is not important as a forest tree1 yet ,i do not know another to whom so many kinds of people1 of all ages1 go1 asking for favours this tree alone can give4 ,even in regions where the tree does not grow1 its name is well known4 ,sassafras tea has a world-wide reputation as a cure for 8spring fever10 otherwise known as 8that tired feeling40 ,drug store windows are piled high in spring with bits of the corky bark of the sassafras roots1 and the buds in winter taste of the same aromatic oil1 whose flavour rises from a steaming pot of sassafras tea4 ,many a bad-tasting medicine is made more palatable by a drop or two of oil of sassafras4 ,the leaves and twigs of young sassafras trees are used in the ,south to flavour and thicken gumbo soups4 ,the wood of sassafras is light and tough4 ,the long limbs are cut and stripped by country boys going fishing1 who know what trees yield the best fishing rods4 ,sassafras posts last a long while1 for the wood does not rot in contact with soil1 or soaked with water4 ,it makes good boats and barrels for this same reason4 ,children know the sassafras tree4 ,in winter they nibble the dainty green buds1 or dig away the snow at the roots to get a morsel of the aromatic bark4 ,in summer it is the leaves that are the chief charm of the tree4 ,it is a fascinating game to look for the 8mittens and double mittens10 which seem to be more numerous than the plain oval leaves on this tree4 ,there is no other tree that has three distinct leaf shapes4 ,the mitten form has its thumb just right1 on one side4 ,it might be used for a mitten pattern4 ,there are lefts and rights1 and mittens of all sizes4 ,the doll-sized ones are the youngest1 and they grow near the tips of the twigs4 ,the double mittens have a thumb on each side1 and the simple oval shape--the hand part with no thumb at all--is usually harder to find than either of the others4 ,when looking for these strange leaf shapes1 there is always a chance of coming upon a strange inhabitant of the sassafras tree4 ,a great green caterpillar is lying at ease upon a hammock of silk1 which he has spun for himself4 ,there he lies1 and gazes at the startled person who discovers him4 ,are those really eyes1 or only black spots8 ,they probably scare away birds which are looking for worms4 ,the effect of the two 8eye spots0 is almost as surprising as if two rolling eyeballs glared at the intruder1 and threatened violence if he came near4 ,carry home this fearsome green mummy on the leaf2 put him in a cage made of wire screen1 and watch him4 ,he needs no food1 for he is asleep4 ,when he awakes his mummy case will split open1 and out of it will emerge a wonderful butterfly1 with banded wings of black and yellow velvet1 and long1 tapering points trailing behind1 which gives him his name--the swallow-tailed butterfly4 ,he has a flexible tongue1 an inch or more in length1 coiled like a watch spring4 ,with it he will probe the tubes of flowers1 and find the nectar at the base of each4 ,he is hungry now1 so let him go4 ,turn him loose in a bed of flowers1 and you may see just how he feeds4 ,when the mother butterfly laid its tiny green egg on the face of an open leaf of the sassafras1 the tree was probably in blossom4 ,in ,june1 delicate1 starry1 greenish-yellow flowers come out in clusters on the ends of twigs4 ,the butterfly finds nectar in these fragrant and dainty blossoms4 ,in the autumn birds come and feast upon the blue berries which look very handsome on their red stems4 ,indeed1 it is quite usual for the trees to be stripped while the berries are still green1 so hungry are the birds that stop to feed on their long journey to the ,south4 ,in the autumn the sassafras trees change colour from the brilliant green of summer4 ,all colours of the sunset1 purple1 red1 and golden1 blend in these shining tree tops4 ,a clump of sassafras and sweet gum trees1 with here and there a tupelo and a dogwood1 a scarlet oak and a hard maple1 make a picture never to be forgotten4 ,if the roadside trees were on fire1 they would not show any more vivid colouring4 ,it is their glorious good-bye to the year1 before they all let their leaves fall and enter into the sleep of winter4 ,,the ,,ash ,,family ,the trees whose leaves are set opposite upon the twigs are few in the ,american woods compared with those whose leaves alternate4 ,the maples have the opposite arrangement of leaves2 so have the dogwoods4 ,these trees have simple leaves4 ,the horse chestnuts and buckeyes have their leaves set opposite1 and these leaves are compound3 five or seven leaflets rise from the end of the stout leaf stem4 ,the ash family is another large group of trees1 with leaves set opposite on the twigs4 ,these leaves are compound1 but of a different pattern from those of the horse chestnut4 ,the leaf stem has the leaflets arranged in pairs along its sides4 ,this is the feather type of compound leaf1 seen in the locust family1 and among walnuts and hickories4 ,ash trees are recognised by their opposite compound leaves4 ,there is another sign3 the fruit has a dry seed1 pointed and winged like a dart4 ,there is no other seed exactly like those of the ash4 ,the seed clusters hang on the bare twigs1 far into winter4 ,the twigs are stout1 and set in pairs on the branches4 ,the trees grow large1 and their tops are regular and handsome4 ,the bark is close1 broken by shallow fissures into small1 often diamond-shaped plates4 ,our common ash trees are distinguished by colour1 as the names indicate4 ,a few well-marked differences are shown by the species1 which are often found growing together in mixed woods4 ,the white ash is a tall1 handsome1 stately tree1 with a trunk like a grey granite column4 ,the white in its name is from the pale leaf linings1 that illuminate the tree top in summer4 ,the twigs are pale1 and the bark is often as pale grey as that of a white oak4 ,the slender1 dart-like seeds are one to two inches long1 with a wing which is twice the length of the round1 tapering seed4 ,they hang in thick clusters1 paler green than the leaves1 and often flushed with a rosy tinge in late summer4 ,all winter the wind harvests the crop of seeds1 and plants young white ashes wherever the darts fall on good ground4 ,the black ash is a slender1 upright tree1 with narrow head and stout twigs4 ,the plump1 leathery buds on the winter twigs are almost black1 and the bark is a very dark grey4 ,the foliage in summer is much darker green than that of any other ash1 so the name is earned by buds1 bark1 and leaves4 ,the seeds are flat and short1 and the wing is broad and short1 and deeply notched4 ,a black ash leaf has all its leaflets stemless except the one at the tip4 ,the white ash has a much fleecier foliage than that of the black1 because each leaflet has a stem of its own4 ,the wood of the black ash splits readily into thin sheets1 each representing the growth of a single year4 ,the ,indians taught the white men to make baskets out of black ash splints4 ,they cut the tree down1 sawed the log into the lengths required1 split the blocks into pieces as wide as the splints should be4 ,these sticks were bent over a board1 and the strain separated the bands of dense1 tough wood into the thin strips just right for basket weaving4 ,the red ash is a small1 spreading tree1 with a close head1 slender branches1 and crowded twigs4 ,its bark is reddish1 closely furrowed1 and scaly4 ,the young twigs are covered with soft hairs4 ,the leaves are a shiny yellow-green above1 often a foot long1 made of seven to nine slender leaflets1 whose stems and veins have a silky down1 that remains all summer4 ,red ash seeds are extremely slender and long1 and they hang on hairy stems4 ,the green ash has dark1 lustrous foliage1 the leaf lining green1 like its upper surface4 ,the bark is grey1 and closely checked1 and the twigs are smooth and slender4 ,this is the ash tree which grows in the regions of scant rainfall2 in ,utah1 ,arizona1 and ,texas4 ,in the ,east it is found from ,virginia to ,florida4 ,it is one of the beautiful shade trees in the regions where few trees grow well4 ,east of the ,alleghenies it is but one among many ash trees1 and is little noticed2 but in the far ,west1 and on the treeless plains of ,nebraska and ,dakota1 it is a far handsomer tree than its companions1 the willows and the cottonwoods4 ,illustration3 ,fruits1 leaves and flowers of basswood tree1 called also linden ,illustration3 ,chestnut trees blossom in ,july1 and the nuts drop after the first severe frost ,the blue ash is common on the rich river lands along the principal tributaries of the ,mississippi4 ,some of the finest specimens grow on the limestone hills of the ,smoky ,mountains4 ,it is a tall1 graceful1 grey-stemmed ash4 ,we shall know it anywhere as an ash tree by its opposite twigs and leaves1 and by its dart-like fruits4 ,it differs from all other ash trees in having four-angled twigs4 ,the tree has a kind of blue dye in its inner bark4 ,cut out a piece and put it in water1 and it is as if you had added a few grains of indigo4 ,the blue ash ranks high as a shade tree1 and its wood is quite the equal of white ash4 ,it is used for vehicles1 for flooring1 and for tool handles4 ,it is especially desired for pitchfork handles4 ,the native ash of ,europe is a large timber tree1 whose range extends through ,asia ,minor4 ,the wood of this tree had a wonderful reputation for general usefulness4 ,its tough1 thin inner bark was used to write on before paper was invented4 ,the wood was used for lances and spears1 for bows1 pikes1 and shields by the soldiers1 during ancient times4 ,every tool1 vehicle1 and implement of the farmer and mechanic were made of this wood4 8,every prudent lord of a manor should employ one acre of ground with ash to every twenty acres of other land4 ,in as many years it would be worth more than the land itself40 ,the seeds of ash trees were used for fattening pigs4 ,they were also used as remedies for many diseases4 ,they were called birds' tongues1 from their shape1 and every apothecary kept a stock of them4 ,ash wood makes the best of fuel1 and its ashes1 rich in potash1 make a splendid fertiliser1 especially in orchards4 ,one warning the old ,english rhyme offers regarding this tree4 ,it is supposed to attract lightning4 ,oaks have the same reputation4 ,on the other hand1 tradition holds that a beech tree is never struck by lightning4 ,there is opportunity1 where these trees grow1 and where thunderstorms are frequent1 to notice how true are the popular beliefs4 ,have you ever been warned by this old rhyme8 8,beware of the oak1 it draws the stroke2 ,avoid the ash1 it courts the flash2 ,creep under the thorn--it will save you from harm40 ,,the ,,horse-,,chestnut ,,and ,,the ,,buckeyes ,when an ,english lad speaks of a chestnut1 he means the horse-chestnut1 and the chances are that he does not know anything about the ,american trees1 whose sweet nuts we gather in the woods at home after the frost has opened their spiny burs4 ,in ,america the ,european tree is planted very commonly for ornament and shade1 and it is always called horse-chestnut here1 except by ,english cousins who may be visiting us4 ,they ask us why we put the word 8horse0 before this tree's name4 ,for answer we pull down a twig1 snap off a leaf1 and show the scar of the leaf's attachment to the twig4 ,it is somewhat like the print of a horse's hoof on the ground4 ,even the horseshoe nails are there1 for a thread from each leaflet goes down through the leaf stem1 and its fibres are buried in the twig4 ,there are five or seven of these nail prints in the scar1 depending upon the number of leaflets4 ,five is the usual number1 but seven is not at all unusual4 ,an old tradition states that the people of ,eastern countries feed these chestnuts to their horses to cure them of cough1 shortness of breath1 and other lung disorders4 ,upon this is based a second claim for using the word 8horse0 before this tree's name4 ,the quality of the fruit1 however1 is probably the best answer to the question4 ,the coarse1 large nuts are not fit for human food4 ,it is quite common to think that horses can eat things too rank for our more fastidious taste4 ,horse sugar is the name of a small tree whose sweetish twigs are browsed upon by cattle and horses in wooded pastures4 ,horse-radish and horse-mint are coarser1 more rank-growing kinds of plants1 than their closely related species which are used for human food4 ,we shall know the horse-chestnut in the dead of winter by the large buds1 the large hoof-print leaf scars1 and by the pyramidal form of the tree4 ,the twigs are stout1 and they turn upward so that the largest of the varnished buds are held up like candles4 ,the main branches leave the trunk with an upward curve1 then bend outward and downward1 then up again to hold the buds upright4 ,the tree looks1 therefore1 like a great complex candlestick1 with many arms and many candles4 ,the twigs are stout1 and they come out opposite each other on the branch4 ,this is a peculiarity of few trees4 ,it belongs to all of the members of the horse-chestnut family1 which includes the buckeye trees1 our native horse-chestnuts4 ,in early spring1 watch the horse-chestnut tree outside your windows and along the streets as they begin to swell1 and until they finally open4 ,the tree lights all its candles when the brown1 varnished outer bud scales fall1 and the soft1 silky inner ones1 yellow as a candle flame1 are revealed4 ,on the side twigs the buds are smaller than on the tips4 ,out of each small bud comes a bunch of leaves4 ,out of the big buds come the flowers4 ,in ,june a big horse-chestnut tree holds up a thousand pyramids of white blossoms4 ,below each flower duster is an umbrella-like circle of leaves4 ,each blossom of the dense spike has in its throat dashes of yellow and red4 ,the petals form a ruffled border4 ,the curving stamens are thrust far out4 ,bees come in search of pollen and nectar4 ,after the flowers pass1 green fruits appear1 a few in a cluster1 and all covered with spines4 ,not many of these reach full size4 ,it seems to be enough for the tree to ripen one or two fruits in a cluster4 ,in the autumn they turn brown1 and the husk splits into three equal parts4 ,out of this spreading husk the brown nuts fall4 ,now the boys assail the tree with sticks and stones1 and the harvest of nuts is on4 ,who does not love them for their beauty alone8 ,the great white spot is the place where they were attached to the husk4 ,the kernel is as bitter as gall1 and ,i know of no animal which eats it4 ,if any one counts them useless1 let him see the hoards of them which children gather1 and use in their play4 ,he will change his mind completely4 ,their glowing1 soft colour is a feast to the eye1 and they just fit the hand4 ,,the ,,buckeyes ,the ,ohio buckeye is a little tree1 but it has given its name to the ,buckeye ,state4 ,there must have been many of them in the virgin forest that the ,ohio pioneer cut down to make room for his crops of corn and grain4 ,he noticed these trees particularly because of a disagreeable odour that comes from the bitter sap4 ,the chopping and handling of these trees intensifies this odour1 which is noticeable even when one drives past a growing tree4 ,the name was given by some imaginative person who saw a resemblance between the smooth brown nuts and the soft brown eyes of a buck4 ,the white of the eye corresponds to the dash of white on the nut4 ,deer abounded in the virgin forests1 and no doubt it was one of the first settlers1 a hunter as well as a farmer1 who named the tree4 ,the flowers and leaves resemble those of the horse-chestnut1 but are smaller1 as the tree is4 ,the number of leaflets is five1 rarely seven1 and they cluster on the end of a long leaf stem4 ,the flowers appear in ,april and ,may1 and are not conspicuous1 for they are yellowish-green1 and make little contrast with the new leaves4 ,one thing is to be said in favour of this ill-smelling tree4 ,its wood has been found to be the best kind for the making of artificial limbs4 ,to this special use the lumber is chiefly devoted4 ,the sweet buckeye lacks the disagreeable odour of the ,ohio buckeye1 and its nuts are eaten by cattle4 ,it is a handsome1 large tree1 with leaves of five slim leaflets1 more or less hairy below1 and on the veins above4 ,the flowers are yellow and showy4 ,each corolla is drawn out into a tube1 like a honeysuckle's4 ,the husks of the nuts are smooth4 ,this species grows from ,western ,pennsylvania along the mountain slopes to ,alabama1 and on the prairies westward to ,iowa4 ,the nuts are full of starch1 and these are ground into flour1 which is used by bookbinders in making their paste4 ,the reason why this paste is preferred is that destructive insects do not eat it as they do paste made of wheat flour4 ,a red-flowered buckeye tree of small size grows wild from ,missouri to ,texas1 and east into ,tennessee to ,northern ,alabama4 ,this is not the same as the red horse-chestnut1 which is sometimes seen in cultivation as a handsome tree1 twenty to thirty feet high4 ,in the far ,west1 the ,california buckeye is a wide-topped tree of good size1 with leaves of the true horse-chestnut type1 and white or rose-coloured flowers1 in showy clusters1 and smooth1 pear-shaped nuts4 ,this is the only one of our native species which grows beyond the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,,the ,,locusts ,,and ,,other ,,pod-,,bearers ,when you find a tree with flat pods1 containing a row of seeds1 you may be sure it is a locust1 or one of the family to which locusts belong4 ,it is a near relative of the peas and beans that grow in the vegetable garden4 ,this is a great and valuable family to the human race1 for it furnishes some of the most valuable foods upon which the people of all countries live4 ,only one family1 the grasses1 is more important4 ,this includes not only grasses that are used for making hay1 but all the grains--wheat1 barley1 rice1 oats1 and corn1 that make the bread of the world1 and forage crops for horses and cattle4 ,the banana and sugar cane and bamboos are in this wonderful grass family4 ,along the roadsides1 along rivers1 and in the woods grow the black or yellow locusts that bloom in ,june1 covering their ugly limbs with a cataract of white1 pea-like blossoms1 in large clusters4 ,all summer the slim1 thin pods are velvety and green1 with a lovely flush of rose1 as they swing among the feathery1 fern-like leaves4 ,in autumn the pods turn brown1 and in winter1 when the wind can switch them against the bare twigs1 they split1 and one by one1 the hard little seeds are shaken out4 ,they are too heavy to be carried in the wind4 ,so we see little locusts coming up among the old ones1 and on the outer edges of the clump4 ,no tree is so discouraged-looking1 unkempt1 and diseased as a black locust infested with the borers1 and stripped of the foliage that covered its thin1 irregular limbs in the summer time4 ,the buds1 even1 are hidden1 and the tree looks as if life had left it4 ,but the late spring denies the rumour by clothing the dead-looking twigs with foliage whose tender shadings and delicate leaf forms make it one of the most graceful and lovely of all native trees4 ,unfortunately1 we cannot have locusts of this species in this ,eastern country without exposing them to the attacks of insects against which we cannot defend the trees4 ,the eggs are laid in clefts of the bark1 and the grubs hatch quite out of reach of poisons and other damaging spraying solutions4 ,they feed on the living substance under the bark1 and their presence is shown by swellings above their burrows4 ,twigs1 limbs1 and trunks are distorted1 and gradually the tree loses vitality1 and the wood is made worthless by the honeycombing it receives4 ,only in the mountainous parts of its range does the black locust reach its best growth4 ,no tree has better lumber for posts and other uses requiring durability in contact with the soil and with water4 ,the clammy locust is a pink-flowered species with a sticky substance exuding from the hairy surface of new shoots4 ,the flowers are lovely but scentless4 ,the trees are much planted in parks and on lawns as an ornament1 in all temperate climates4 ,the honey locust earns its name in the summer time1 when the curving green pods are full of a sweet1 gelatinous pulp4 ,boys would like to get these honey pods1 but the vicious thorns permit no climbing of the trees4 ,stoning and other throwing of missiles is a slow and unsatisfactory means of obtaining the forbidden fruit that hangs so high4 ,by the time they ripen and fall off the pods are bitter as gall4 ,an old-world relative has thick1 purple pods1 which are sweet and palatable when ripe4 ,these are brought to this country1 and sold on small fruit stands under the name1 ,st4 ,john's bread4 ,it is said that this was the food of ,john the ,baptist in the wilderness4 ,the ,kentucky coffee tree is the coarsest member of the locust family in our woods4 ,its pods are thick and short1 and the seeds inside are as large as hazel nuts4 ,in the story of the ,revolutionary ,war1 the patriotic citizens refused to pay duties on imported goods4 ,the seeds of this locust were used as a substitute for coffee4 ,i have tasted the bitter outside of one of these nuts1 and tried to break one with a hammer1 but unsuccessfully4 ,it is not easy to understand how a beverage made of such a nut could have been fit to drink4 ,the name of the tree seems to give colour of truth to the tradition4 ,a coffee tree much like our native species grows in ,china4 ,we may believe that it is called by another name1 for the people use its heavy pods for soap4 ,whether green or ripe1 ,i do not know4 ,the club-like branches of our coffee tree give it a burly1 clumsy appearance in winter1 when nothing conceals them from view4 ,the dangling pods rattle against the bare1 stubby twigs1 calling attention to their lack of grace and symmetry4 ,even the buds are out of sight1 buried under the thin bark1 just above the big leaf scars4 ,all winter the wind strives with the stubborn pods4 ,when one is torn off1 it lies unopened until melting snow softens it1 and the horny seed lies long before it is able to sprout4 ,a thin pod adorns the most delicate of the locust trees4 ,this is the little red bud1 a flat-topped tree1 of slender1 thornless branches1 most of them horizontal4 ,early in spring this tree earns its name4 ,quantities of rosy magenta1 pea-shaped flowers cluster on its slim1 angular twigs1 quite covering the smaller branches4 ,it is an unusual colour1 and an unusual time to see pea-blossoms4 ,you cannot forget it1 if you have seen the tree once4 ,the leaves that soon follow are as unusual as the flowers4 ,roundish1 heart-shaped1 smooth1 and shining as if polished1 they flutter on thin1 flexible stems1 and the slim pods hang among them4 ,they ripen and turn from green to rich purple when the leaves change to bright yellow4 ,the hard little seeds are close together in the pods1 so that they are numerous1 though the pods are but two or three inches long4 ,i do not know when the red bud is most charming4 ,certainly its autumn garment of yellow is beautiful1 trimmed with a fringe of purple pods4 ,it is a royal robe1 and so fresh and new-looking when the foliage of so many larger trees is faded and in tatters4 ,the trees that hide in the shelter of larger ones can often save their leaves from wear and tear1 and this the red bud does4 ,judas tree is the name by which the red bud of ,europe is commonly called4 ,it is one of a few species to which an ugly tradition has been fastened by custom4 ,it is said that this is the kind of tree upon which ,judas ,iscariot hanged himself4 ,our little ,american tree has had to share the disgrace1 for it looks like its ,european cousin4 ,the name to use is the true one4 ,nurserymen have imported a large-flowered red bud from ,china4 ,its flowers are not only more showy1 but they have a paler1 prettier colour--a rosy pink1 and lacking the sad1 blue tone of the others4 ,it is easy to raise red bud trees1 and they are admirable in the border planting of a garden or lawn4 ,they begin to blossom when quite young1 and they never grow so large as to be out of place among shrubbery4 ,the yellow-wood has larger and lovelier blossom clusters than the black locust1 with which it might most easily be confused4 ,in autumn the flower stems hang full of thin pods1 one to three seeds in a pod4 ,no other locust is so scantily supplied with seeds in a pod4 ,in summer the leaflets prove that the tree is not a black locust4 ,they are larger and fewer1 though of the same feathered type4 ,in the seasons when the tree blooms freely1 which is by no means every year1 the twigs are loaded with clusters larger than any black locust produces4 ,in winter it is the bark that distinguishes the tree4 ,it is grey and smooth1 like that of the beech2 not at all like the dark trunk and rough limbs of the locust4 ,the form of the tree is a regular head of horizontally-spreading limbs1 ending in tapering twigs that droop gracefully4 ,it is one of the handsomest trees in winter4 ,the locust is one of the weediest and ugliest of trees when bare4 ,to find the yellow-wood in its native haunts1 we must go to the mountains of ,eastern ,tennessee and ,north ,carolina4 ,it goes farther north and south1 but its range is scant4 ,better chance of our meeting it in our neighbour's yard4 ,it is cultivated as a flowering tree by people who appreciate the finest trees that grow wild in ,american woods4 ,the nurserymen call it ,virgilia4 ,this is certainly a graceful name1 fitted to a tree that deserves only the best4 ,the catalpas are pod-bearers of a different type4 ,their long pencils are green1 and there is no sign of splitting until autumn4 ,the seeds are not like those of the flat pods1 set in a single row4 ,they are thin as tissue paper1 and packed in overlapping layers about the thin partition that divides the pod into two compartments4 ,the pods hang on after the large1 heart-shaped leaves fall4 ,winter winds bang them against the twigs1 and their two sides separate lengthwise4 ,gradually the thin1 two-winged seeds escape1 and are scattered4 ,the sowing lasts a long time4 ,willows and poplars have pods of a sort1 but like neither locusts nor catalpas4 ,the seeds are very minute in each family1 and carried in delicate wisps of cottony down4 ,the pods open by splitting down their walls1 along two or four lines1 curling back the dry segments1 and thus letting the seeds escape4 ,these trees are early in scattering their seeds4 ,the true pod-bearers are late about it4 ,,wild ,,apple ,,trees ,,and ,,their ,,kin ,go out into the woods1 and you will find wild crab apple trees1 bearing hard1 sour little apples1 unfit to eat4 ,four distinct kinds are native to this country4 ,in ,eastern ,asia wild apple trees grow in greater variety than here4 ,our orchard apple trees are descended from these ,oriental wild apples1 which were brought under cultivation long before ,america was discovered4 ,nurserymen in ,europe and ,japan have for centuries worked with the wild species to improve them4 ,the ,japanese worked to produce finer flowering trees4 ,european horticulturists desired finer and larger fruit4 ,american orchards show how well they have succeeded4 ,for over a century ,american horticulture has made marked progress4 ,many valuable kinds of fruit have originated in this country4 ,our own wild apples are now studied with the aim of bringing them into cultivation1 just as the ,asiatic species were improved centuries ago4 ,it is a wonderful work1 accomplished by crossing1 grafting1 budding1 by fertilising1 and good tillage1--processes too special to be explained in this book4 ,the taming of wild apples1 however1 is one of the great achievements of the centuries4 ,every boy and every girl who enjoys the eating of a fine apple will wish to know how such glorious fruit1 in abundance sufficient to supply the world's needs1 has been produced from such unpromising beginnings as the gnarled little crab trees scattered through the woods1 and dwarfed by the larger forest trees that overshadowed them4 8,grafting0 or 8budding0 a little tree insures that the fruit it bears later on will be of the variety of the tree from which the scions came4 ,only once in a long while does a good variety of fruit come on a seedling tree4 ,plant the seed of the best apple you ever ate1 and then wait a dozen years or more for this tree to bear fruit4 ,the chances are ninety-nine to one that the apples turn out to be miserable1 sour1 or tasteless nubbins1 like the roadside apples1 that nobody planted4 ,it is too expensive to experiment in hope of getting good varieties from seed4 8,johnny ,appleseed0 was a funny old fellow who wandered up and down the ,ohio valley states1 and planted apple seeds wherever he went4 ,queer1 and perhaps crazy1 he was a kindly soul1 who dreamed of the days when orchards should dot the landscape1 and be a part of every farm homestead4 ,he did what he could to make the wild prairie wilderness blossom and bear fruit4 ,no doubt many pioneer orchards came from his planting4 ,seedling trees1 all of them1 for he believed firmly that it is wrong to graft a tree6 ,each year better and bigger apples are shown at fairs1 and fruit shows4 ,the history of apple culture is full of interest4 ,it requires hundreds of books to tell the story4 ,but any man who has an orchard can tell you how his trees were made into the varieties he ordered at the nursery4 ,he may show you how grafting and budding is done1 and how a tree may be made over in a few years to change entirely the kind of apple it bears4 ,he may show a tree that bears distinct kinds of apples on different limbs1 and show you the scar of the graft from which each new variety has sprung4 ,when you are old enough1 you can grow apple trees from seed1 and graft or bud them to the variety you choose1--greening1 russet1 northern spy--taking your scions from a tree whose apples are especially fine4 ,it is a fascinating game to play1 with the soil1 and the sun1 and the rain all working with you to help you win4 ,meanwhile1 the wild apple1 though worthless as a fruit tree1 is well worth knowing4 ,no well-fed orchard tree has charm to compare with this wild thing when spring transforms its ugly1 thorny twigs4 ,the rosy blossoms of the wild crab apple come out of a multitude of coral-red buds which open just after the leaves4 ,the gnarled limbs are bare and ugly1 until late in ,may4 ,then the silvery1 velvet leaves unfold1 scarcely green at first1 because each one wears so thick a garment of soft1 white hairs4 ,before the leaves have lost this velvet coat1 the flower buds begin to glow1 and the tree top is soon blushing with the blossoms1 and the air is full of their spicy fragrance4 ,illustration3 ,an old apple orchard is a fairy land indeed when blossoms cover the trees ,illustration3 ,nothing tastes so good as ripe apples picked right off the tree6 ,their charm is the charm of the wild rose4 ,their arrangement on the gnarled twigs is irregular4 ,the artist loves the unstudied grace of it4 ,the great botanist1 ,linnus1 probably saw only pressed specimens1 but he named the tree coronaria1 which means1 8fit for crowns and garlands40 ,i remember gathering the little green apples in the fall4 ,hard1 and almost bitter1 when eaten out of hand1 they make a jelly that is as distinct and delightful in its way as the flowers are more admirable than common apple blossoms4 ,the taste is wild1 and almost bitter1 but beside it ordinary apple jelly tastes insipid4 ,perhaps ,i am prejudiced1 and the memory of that wild crab-apple jelly too remote to be depended upon4 ,but many people agree with me4 ,if you are in the woods in ,october1 and come to a thicket of trees bearing flat1 yellow apples1 pick as many as you can carry home4 ,smell their spicy fragrance1 and persuade your mother to make them into jelly1 so that you can form your own opinion of it4 ,the ,eastern crab apple grows over a large part of the region between the ,atlantic coast1 and the dry plains east of the ,rocky ,mountains1 and south to ,northern ,alabama and ,texas4 ,the prairie crab1 a different species1 grows in the ,mississippi ,valley4 ,a narrow-leaved species grows in the ,south1 and the ,oregon crab is the native wild apple of the woods1 from ,california north into ,alaska4 ,quinces are core fruits1 cousins of the apples4 ,so are pears4 ,all of our orchard pears and quinces are cultivated varieties of species that once grew wild in ,europe or ,asia4 ,the ,japanese quince in ,america is a hedge plant which in spring covers its bare twigs with large1 deep rose-coloured flowers1 and bears hard1 freckled fruits that smell better than they taste1 in ,september4 ,we know all these fruits1 and have them in our gardens1 but they are foreigners here1 though much at home4 ,we have no native pears or quinces in ,america4 ,,the ,,cherries ,do you know the peculiar taste and odour of the pit of a cherry or peach8 ,then you will recognise it without difficulty when you meet it in a bruised leaf or twig of any tree that bears stone fruits1 wild or cultivated4 ,it belongs to the family which includes plums1 cherries1 peaches1 apricots1 and almonds4 ,but one species of native cherry is a large tree4 ,it is chiefly as fruit trees that the cultivated varieties are important4 ,a few are grown for their beauty as flowering trees and shrubs2 some for their rich bronze foliage4 ,the wild cherry is the one lumber tree in the family4 ,its wood ranks with mahogany1 though not so expensive as the tree which grows no nearer to us than lower ,florida and ,central ,america4 ,it is made into furniture or used in the interior finishing of houses1 parlour cars1 and ocean liners4 ,it takes a beautiful polish1 and has a rich brown colour that improves with time4 ,it is largely used as veneer on cheaper woods4 8,solid cherry0 is likely to be birch1 if the article is of modern make4 ,this cherry has dark1 shiny bark when young1 which breaks into shallow furrows1 and curls back like birch bark4 ,the unquestionable sign by which to know a wild cherry is the bitter1 peach-pit taste of the sap4 ,nibble a leaf or twig or bit of bark1 and you get that unforgettable taste1 that stays on the tongue longer than we like4 ,birds feast in ,september on the long clusters of dark purple berries4 ,they are bitter sweet1 barely edible1 ,i say4 ,but birds take them thankfully1 and children usually eat them freely4 ,old-fashioned people make them into wines or cordials for home remedies4 ,the choke cherry is a shrubby tree1 with a rank1 disagreeable odour added to the bitter and pungent odour that belongs to the black cherry4 ,the leaves are twice as wide as the black cherry's4 ,the fruit shares the rank quality of the leaves and bark4 ,until dead ripe1 the cherries are so bitter1 harsh1 and puckery that children1 who eat the black cherries eagerly1 cannot be persuaded to taste choke cherries a second time4 ,this is well-named the 8choke0 cherry4 ,only the birds can eat the berries without choking4 ,they seem not to mind its rankness1 for the fruit is all taken by the time it has turned black-ripe4 ,early in summer the red bird cherry is in fruit1 after its crown of white blossoms has passed4 ,the pit is large1 and the flesh thin and sour1 and the whole fruit is discouragingly small4 ,but birds are happy among the shining leaves until the last cherry is gone4 ,this is quite sufficient appreciation4 ,the seeds are dropped1 and the little trees come up all through the woods and in the most unexpected places1 due to the birds' scattering of the seeds4 ,garden cherries of the sweet and sour groups have sprung from wild species that grow in ,europe4 ,the red1 black1 and yellow cherries of ,california are the largest1 most improved varieties4 ,the garden cherries of the ,eastern states are not nearly so large4 ,the native cherry of ,japan has been cultivated as a flowering tree1 until it is wonderfully beautiful4 ,in its season of bloom1 ,japan is a perfect fairyland4 ,the country is one great garden of pink cherry blossoms4 ,at this time the people turn out to see the marvellous sight4 ,a national holiday is dedicated to this tree1 which is the symbol of happiness in the ,flower ,kingdom4 ,,the ,,plums ,all plum trees are small in stature1 and many are thorny by the sharpening of side twigs1 as if the struggle with adverse conditions made it necessary to carry weapons of defence4 ,i speak now of the wild species4 ,they grow in thickets1 another habit of self-protection4 ,the wild red and yellow plums that still grow in thickets along streams in the great middle country between the ,east coast and the ,rocky ,mountains1 furnished an important article of food to the pioneer families1 which led the westward march of civilisation1 and founded the prairie states4 ,only people who remember those times1 and actually took part in the work of the pioneer1 can know how valuable the wild fruits were1 while the young orchards were growing1 and no fruit was to be had for the greater part of the year4 ,after the first heavy frost in ,september the plums were fit to eat4 ,they became soft1 and sweet1 and pleasant in flavour4 ,but the skin was thick1 very sour and puckery1 so eating plums was not an unmixed joy4 ,when a team and part of the family could be spared from the farm work1 a day was taken for 8plumming10 and a happy and laborious day it was1 but always enjoyed in true holiday spirit4 ,usually neighbours joined in the outing1 and had a picnic dinner together in the woods4 ,only the oldest clothes were worn1 for in the plum thickets one must risk the ruin of his raiment by the angular1 thorny branches4 ,sheets were spread under the trees where possible1 and a severe shaking or beating of the branches showered the fruit down4 ,all hands were busy at gathering the plums1 and loading the waggons with the harvest4 ,perhaps there was time afterward for the boys to explore the hazel thickets1 and gather a generous bagful of these small1 but deliciously flavoured nuts1 still in their husks4 ,wild grape vines1 loaded with the purple fruit1 tempted the frugal wife to strip them1 even though the sun was low4 ,for days after the return home1 she was at work putting away for winter use preserves and jellies and pickles1 and good old-fashioned plum and grape 8butter10 sweetened with molasses made from sorghum cane4 ,little plum trees1 dug in the woods in early spring1 were planted in the home garden4 ,by setting these carefully1 and tilling and enriching the soil around them1 larger trees and finer fruit were produced than the wild plum thicket could show4 ,some of the good cultivated plums have had such an origin4 ,a half dozen different species of wild plum grow wild in different soils and regions of the ,united ,states4 ,where two grow in the same territory1 natural hybrids have originated1 better than either parent in the quality of their fruit4 ,such a cross has given rise to several varieties of garden plums1 of which the ,miner group is a fair example4 ,the best orchard plums for the middle of the country are crosses between native and ,japanese species4 ,the ,european species1 like ,damsons and ,green ,gages1 do well in the ,eastern states1 and on the ,pacific slope4 ,the prunes we buy are dried plums4 ,for a century or two ,france has led all countries in the prune industry4 ,now ,california leads4 ,the kinds of plums that can be dried are sweet and fleshy4 ,ordinary juicy plums cannot be made into prunes4 ,the hot sun of ,california soon takes all the moisture out of the plums spread on tables to dry4 ,there is no rain to fear in the hot summer months4 ,peaches1 nectarines1 and apricots are stone fruits1 closely related to the plums and peaches4 ,these ,old ,world fruits are grown in the warm parts of this country4 ,california raises them in quantities4 ,the most profitable of the stone fruits has woody flesh1 and is raised for its pit1 which we eat4 ,this is the sweet almond1 a valuable nut4 ,its related species1 the bitter almond1 yields almond oil and hydrocyanic acid1 both important drugs4 ,,the ,,serviceberries ,in the same family with apples and plums and cherries is a group of slender1 pretty trees called ,june berry1 serviceberry1 and on the ,east coast1 shadbush4 ,when the shadbush blossoms white1 the fishermen know that it is time to expect the shad1 which are taken in nets when they run up the rivers to spawn4 ,the red berries are ripe in ,june1 and the birds celebrate the event1 and even take them before they begin to redden4 ,competition is strong1 and the supply never equals the demand4 ,rarely can a human berry-picker find a ripe berry1 to discover how it tastes4 ,the charm of this little tree is that it covers its slim branches so early with white blossoms4 ,the clusters are soft and feathery1 and a warm flush underlies the white1 the ruddy1 strap-shaped bracts1 two of which are under each flower4 ,the dainty opening leaves are also ruddy1 and these have opened before the blossoms pass4 ,in early ,april it is worth a long walk or drive through the woods to see the scattered serviceberry trees standing out from the bare background of leafless trees1 lovely as any tree can ever be1 in their robes of white4 ,thereafter1 they seem to retire from view1 engulfed by the foliage curtain the woodland draws about itself1 as spring advances4 ,,valuable ,,sap ,,of ,,trees ,in early spring on the ,new ,hampshire hillsides1 the sap begins to mount the trunks of the sugar maple trees1 dissolving the sugar stored in the wood cells during the previous summer4 ,it is time for the making of maple sugar4 ,winter is over4 ,spring work has begun4 ,hundreds of twigs of elder have been cut in short lengths1 and the pith pushed out1 to make 8spiles40 ,holes are bored in the trunks of the trees1 and in each hole one of these hollow spiles is driven4 ,these are the little spouts that drain the sap from the tree into the waiting buckets that stand or hang below4 ,drip1 drip1 drip1 the sweet sap flows into the buckets2 and as often as they fill1 the farmer makes the rounds of the trees with barrels on a low sled or 8stone boat10 emptying the buckets4 ,the sap he gathers is poured into the evaporating pans in the sugar house1 and a roaring fire keeps it boiling4 ,as the water goes off in steam1 the remainder becomes maple syrup1 which thickens as it boils4 ,skimming and straining removes any dirt or chips that fall into the sap4 ,when it is just thick enough1 the syrup is drawn off into cans1 and sealed to be sent to market4 ,a part of it1 however1 is boiled longer1 and when drawn off1 and cooled1 it crystalises into the granular yellow maple sugar4 ,it is cooled in shallow pans that hold a certain amount1 and thus the bricks of maple sugar are formed4 ,little heart-shaped cakes are made by filling 8patty pans0 with this heavy syrup4 ,as long as the sap flows in sufficient quantities1 the sugar harvest goes on4 ,if the trees are bored with care1 with holes not too close together1 the tree will stand this draining from year to year1 and seem not to be injured by the loss of sap4 ,if the holes are close together1 and extend all around the trunk1 the tree will be practically girdled and it will die from the injury4 ,the finest kind of maple sugar is the wax which is made by pouring heavy syrup on the snow to cool4 ,quickly it thickens by the cold into stringy yellow wax1 which tastes like other maple sugar1 but does not have the unpleasant gritty feeling1 which sets some teeth on edge4 ,maple wax may be made at home1 by melting the sugar1 and pouring it into snow2 but the time and the place to enjoy it most1 is in the sugar camp when the hot syrup is poured from the long-handled ladle onto the nearest snow bank by the person who is in charge of the boiling4 ,the cold air of the woods puts a keen edge on the appetite4 ,the warm fire under the boiler takes off the chill1 and the silent woods all around give a charm to the scene which one does not feel in any other place4 ,hickory sap is sweet4 ,this is sometimes added to that of the maples when maple trees are scarce4 ,the sap of pine trees is a liquid called resin4 ,the pine forests of the ,south are rich stores of this resin1 which we call also pitch4 ,the crude liquid drained from these trees is heated1 and a light liquid called turpentine is drawn off4 ,the remainder hardens1 and is known as rosin4 ,the pine trees are tapped1 not as the sugar trees of the ,north are1 but in a way that is far more injurious to the trees4 ,resin hardens into gum when exposed to the air1 so it is impossible to draw it out through small tubes like spiles of elder that drain the maple sap4 ,a great gash is cut in the side of the trunk of a pine tree1 forming a pocket holding three pints or more4 ,now a square foot or more of the bark above the pocket is cut off1 and the wood is chipped to a depth of an inch or more4 ,the bleeding surface of the wood fills the pocket below with resin1 and a man comes around with pails and dipper to empty these pockets as fast as they fill4 ,the pails are carried to a still1 where the resin is poured into a tank and heated to draw off the limpid turpentine4 ,once a week1 from ,march till ,november1 more bark and wood1 above the scored surface1 must be chipped to renew the flow of resin4 ,if this fresh wounding did not occur1 the flow would cease1 because the resin thickens and hardens when exposed to the air4 ,this stops up the pores of the wood4 ,fortunes have been made by the draining of these pine trees of their rich1 pitchy sap4 ,turpentine and tar and rosin are all products of the sap of pines1 and all are immensely valuable1 especially in shipyards1 and in the provisioning of sea-going craft of all sorts4 ,the term1 8naval stores10 has been applied to the products of turpentine gathering4 ,our forests supply most of these products to other countries4 ,the sap of certain tropical trees hardens into rubber4 ,this is one of the most valuable of tree crops1 for there is hardly a household that does not have rubber articles of a dozen kinds that are daily used4 ,lacquer varnish is the juice of certain sumach trees that grow in ,japan4 ,gums of fir trees have a special use in medicine1 and in various arts4 ,sweet gum oozes from trees of that name4 ,this is not noticeable in our trees of the ,north1 but if we follow the trees southward1 the gum flow increases4 ,in ,mexico it is an article of commerce1 obtained by wounding the bark of the trees4 ,it is one of the staple glove perfumes in ,france4 ,it is also made into medicines1 perfumes1 and incense4 ,the sap of wild cherry1 holly1 and buckthorn1 of witch hazel and sassafras all yield medicinal drugs4 ,the flowers of locust1 of basswood1 and all the fruit trees furnish nectar out of which bees make honey4 ,the juicy inner bark of the slippery elm is valuable for food1 and as a medicine4 ,,the ,,uses ,,of ,,trees ,imagine a stranger who has lived all his life in a desert where no trees grow1 coming suddenly into our village1 and looking with wonder at the trees that shade the streets4 ,he knows only the spiny cactuses1 and other plants of the desert4 ,his first question would be1 8,what are these great plants that stand so tall80 ,the name1 tree1 is new to him4 ,it would be a strange experience to take such an eager and ignorant man and show him the trees1 on the streets1 planted in orchards1 and growing wild in the woods outside of the town4 ,his questions set us to thinking4 ,he wants to know why we plant trees1 and how we use those that grow in forests4 ,first1 we tell him the uses of the living trees4 ,up and down the streets they are set for shade1 and for their beauty4 ,rows of evergreens set close together make a protecting wall of green against the cold winds4 ,low clipped hedges of many kinds of trees make living boundaries1 much more beautiful than wooden or wire fences4 ,on lawns and near houses trees are planted for their beauty and for their shade4 ,orchards of fruit trees are planted because they furnish food4 ,nut orchards are set out for the same reasons4 ,the trees cut down in the woods1 and sawed at the mills give us lumber to build houses to live in1 and furniture to make them comfortable1 and the same forest furnishes the fuel that keeps us warm4 ,there is so much to explain to a person who discovers trees for the first time4 ,it takes a long time to tell all we know4 ,do we think that we know a great deal about the uses of trees8 ,if so1 we are mistaken4 ,the truth is that trees serve us in ways of which we have never dreamed4 ,we must travel over the world and read a great deal to learn how the people of other countries make use of trees4 ,the basswood or linden which nobody cared to use except for fuel in the ,middle ,west might pass for a useless tree1 compared with those whose wood is harder and stronger4 ,but in older countries people have quite a different opinion of the tree4 ,in ,russia the tough bark of young lindens is used to make the shoes of peasants4 ,ropes1 fishing nets1 and braided mats are made from the same tough 8bast0 fibres1 which are very long and tough in this family of trees4 ,the seeds yield oil that is declared to be quite as good as olive oil for cooking1 and for the table4 ,perfume is distilled from the flowers4 ,cattle browse on the twigs and leaves4 ,the wood is the carver's delight--soft1 white1 free from knots and imperfections4 ,it is used for bureau drawers1 carriage bodies1 shoe soles1 barrel staves and paper pulp4 ,its twigs make artist's charcoal pencils4 ,linden trees are planted for shade in many countries1 and in ,europe they are often cut into grotesque shapes of animals as they grow4 ,they are clipped into hedges1 as close as box or yew4 ,in ,america they are usually allowed to grow naturally1 as shade trees4 ,european species are rather more symmetrical than our native kinds4 ,the ,indians of the ,northwest used the soft inner bark of the tamarack pine for food4 ,they cut down the trees1 strip them of bark1 and scraped out this soft lining layer4 ,with water1 they mash it into a pulp1 which they cook and then mould into large cakes4 ,a hole is next dug in the ground1 lined with stones1 and a fire is built in it4 ,when the stones are hot1 all ashes are removed1 and the cakes1 wrapped in green skunk cabbage leaves1 are laid in4 ,a fire of damp moss is built on top1 and thus the cakes are thoroughly1 baked4 ,to insure their keeping1 they are next smoked in a close tent for a week or more4 ,this dries and cures them so that they may be safely packed away for future use4 ,these hard1 dry cakes are afterward broken into pieces and boiled4 ,when the mass softens and cools1 it is ready to eat4 ,the fat of different animals is used for butter on this strange ,alaskan bread4 ,illustration3 ,flowers and fruit of the wild black cherry ,illustration3 ,the delicate white flower clusters of the serviceberry tree ,everybody knows that trees bear fruits of many kinds that are useful as food for men and beasts4 ,spices1 such as nutmegs1 mace1 cloves1 and allspice1 may be added to this list of fruits which we have as human foods4 ,the bark of birches is invaluable to the ,indians for the making of their canoes1 baskets1 and all kinds of utensils4 ,huts and teepees are walled with it4 ,rope and coarse cloth are made out of the fibre of mulberry bark1 and berry baskets out of the bark of the lodgepole pine4 ,the fibrous roots of the larch tree furnished tough thread1 with which the ,indians sewed canoes of birch1 and they made them water-tight with the gum of the balsam4 ,the brown gum that oozes from wounds of the ,western larch is sweet and starchy4 ,the ,indians discovered in it a valuable article of food4 ,one of the latest uses of wood is the making of paper1 although the white hornet showed in its conical paper nest that this could be done4 ,she has been making wooden paper for hundreds of years1 scraping the wood from the surface of weathern-worn fence boards1 and from the dead limbs of forest trees4 ,our newspapers are made of ground wood1 cooked to a soft pulp1 and rolled out into thin sheets4 ,the high price of paper makes it worth while to gather up papers1 bleach them1 convert them into pulp1 and roll them out again into sheets4 ,spruce wood and poplar are among the cheap woods which have come into demand at the paper mills4 ,the forests of these trees1 counted of little use for lumber1 have become valuable because the paper mills can use them4 ,look about the room1 and a dozen articles1 beside the chairs and table1 are products of wood1 or in some way owe a debt to trees4 ,the paint that covers the window sash and frames was mixed with turpentine1 which is obtained from the pitchy sap of pine trees4 ,the shades and curtains are coloured4 ,dyes of many kinds are extracted from the various dyewoods1 trees that grow in tropical forests4 ,the newspaper and the books on the shelves are made of wood pulp4 ,the lacquered box from ,japan is a handsome thing4 ,the lacquer varnish is the sap of a certain ,oriental sumach tree4 ,the perfume of the gloves in the box is made from the fragrant gum of an ,oriental sweet gum tree4 ,the skin out of which the gloves were made was tanned1 not with bark1 but with the acorn cups1 or galls1 of a ,european oak4 ,the shoes on your feet are made of leather4 ,the hemlock trees that grow on the hills were stripped of their bark by peelers in early spring4 ,black oak and chestnut oak are also stripped in our woods4 ,carloads of bark are shipped to the tanneries to be used in the tanning of skins which changes them into leather4 ,that beautiful book upon the table is bound in ,russia leather4 ,the acorn cups of a ,european oak were used to tan the skins that made this leather so much more beautiful than that of your shoes4 ,your gloves are made of kid skins tanned in ,europe4 ,for this particular work the nut-like galls that grow on certain oak trees are gathered in the woods4 ,tannin is the substance in oak bark which makes it valuable in tanning leather4 ,a high percentage of tannin is found in oak galls4 ,for this reason they are gathered in many countries1 and are among the most valuable and high-priced supplies for the establishments that tan skins for gloves4 ,the most expensive inks and dyes1 those that do not fade1 but are practically permanent1 are made from selected oak galls4 ,oak apples are a strange fruit1 found in more or less abundance on the leaves of our own oak trees in autumn4 ,you have seen them in summer time1 plump1 green balls1 sometimes as large as a hen's egg1 but globular1 sitting upon a leaf4 ,in autumn the balls take on the colour of the dying leaves4 ,the same tree may have hard little marble-like balls growing on its twigs4 ,these are of different sizes1 and it is not unusual to find a hole in the side of each4 ,all such outgrowths on the leaves and twigs of oaks are called galls1 and they are chiefly caused by winged insects called gall-gnats4 ,an egg is laid in early spring1 in a slit pierced in the twig or leaf4 ,as this egg hatches1 the tissue about it is disturbed in its growth by the presence of this feeding grub4 ,the soft leaf pulp1 or the tender tissues of the twig that surround it1 are exactly what the grub likes to eat4 ,food and drink are all about it1 and as it feeds1 it grows4 ,the leaf swells1 and so surrounds the grub with an abnormal growth4 ,the grub still feeds1 and the swelling becomes larger1 until finally1 when the insect ceases to eat1 it is housed in the peculiar ball which we know as an oak gall4 ,each species of gall-maker is known by its house4 ,the oak apples are of several kinds4 ,some are empty except for a little shell in the centre1 in which the fat grub sleeps4 ,sometimes the substance within the 8apple0 is corky1 sometimes spongy4 ,bullet galls1 which form on twigs like little marbles1 are usually solid to the centre1 where the grub lies until the time comes for it to bore its way out to the surface1 and fly away1 to lay eggs which will produce other galls4 ,usually oak galls1 found in winter1 contain the sleeping grub1 whose transformation into a winged insect waits until the coming of spring4 ,the cork in your ink bottle is the bark of an oak tree4 ,go to ,portugal or to ,northern ,africa1 and you may see the cork harvest in progress in ,july or ,august4 ,there is no place to go for genuine cork except to a small evergreen oak that rarely reaches a height over thirty feet4 ,when these trees are twenty-five years old1 a hard1 thin layer of bark is stripped off4 ,this is a valuable tan bark1 but it is not in the least corky4 ,the tree now produces a spongy bark entirely different from the first4 ,it is not disturbed for eight or ten years4 ,this is stripped off4 ,it is the poor quality of bark which fishermen use to float their nets with4 ,ten years later the bark is stripped again4 ,it is better in quality than the first4 ,each ten years brings the bark stripper again to the tree4 ,in the fiftieth year1 the bark is of the finest quality1 and for fifty years that follow there are five strippings of bark of the highest grade4 ,then the quality becomes poorer4 ,the trees are cut down1 the bark is sold to the tanners1 and the wood is used for charcoal or for fuel4 ,it is a very particular job to get the cork off and leave the under layer uninjured4 ,the trunk is stripped from the ground to the point where it branches1 and the inner 8mother bark0 must not be bruised1 for no more cork will grow on any bruised spot4 ,two circular cuts are made1 one at the top1 one at the bottom of the columnar trunk1 then two opposite slits are made dividing the bark of the trunk into two halves4 ,these curved plates are worked off by inserting a wedged-shaped tool between the bark and the trunk1 and gradually working it further in until the whole curved plate of cork comes off4 ,these two big sheets are steamed and flattened1 then bound in bundles1 and shipped to wholesale dealers in cork4 ,the owner of a grove of cork oaks must wait ten years between crops of the bark1 but every year three crops of acorns are borne on these trees4 ,the pigs of the owner1 turned into the grove1 fatten on this rich food4 ,so the little trees are very profitable in two ways4 ,in the south of ,europe1 the handsome1 evergreen holm oak grows wild2 its glossy leaves and compact form remind us of our holly trees4 ,it is one of the most valuable ornamental oaks1 but as a fruit tree1 it has unusual value4 ,its acorns are sweet and rich1 and the crop is heavy4 ,hogs are fattened upon them4 ,in earlier days they were used as human food1 and even now gipsies gather them to eat4 ,its acorn cups1 bark1 and the galls it bears are of the very best quality4 ,they are used in the most particular jobs of dyeing and tanning4 ,under ground1 the holm oak bears a strange fruit--a fungus called 8truffle0 develops on the roots4 ,these truffles are somewhat like mushrooms in their growth4 ,they are far more delicious to eat1 and expensive to buy than ordinary mushrooms4 ,the best of them are found in ,france1 and ,french people are especially fond of them4 ,trees that grow on chalky lands are more likely to produce truffles4 ,at a dozen years old1 they begin to yield1 and truffles may be found upon their roots for about twenty-five years4 ,not every holm oak has truffles on its roots4 ,the finding of these delicacies is a very interesting and exciting game1 and a great deal of a lottery4 ,there is but one way to find them1 and that is by the sense of smell4 ,the truffle has a rich1 strong odour4 ,dogs and pigs are the only animals that are able to find it4 ,the truffle-hunter is usually an old woman1 who goes with a trained pig or a trained dog into the oak forest4 ,she has a basket1 and a spading fork1 and she keeps a close eye on her four-footed partner4 ,if the pig1 in rooting about under an oak1 suddenly becomes excited1 and begins to root furiously1 she drives him away1 and digs out the precious ball of fungus he has scented4 ,it is irregular in form1 and looks somewhat like a potato4 ,meanwhile the pig locates another1 and is again disappointed4 ,the truffle dog is treated in the same manner4 ,unless put into a pen1 or chained at night1 these truffle-hunters are likely to take to the woods and feast when no one is by to interfere with their pleasure4 ,truffles are shipped in cans to the ,united ,states1 but we have not yet discovered them growing on the roots of our oak trees4 ,probably we have not yet looked for them with sufficient care and patience4 ,,appendix ,,appendix ,,identification ,,keys ,,to ,,tree ,,groups ,,and ,,families ,a ,,key ,,to ,,needle-,,leaved ,,evergreens ,a4 ,leaves few1 in sheathed bundles1 set spirally on the twig4 ,,the ,,pines4 ,,aa4 ,leaves solitary1 set spirally on the twig4 ,b4 ,twigs with bracket-like projections for attachment of leaves2 cones hanging down4 ,c4 ,leaves flat1 blunt1 with short stalks4 ,the ,hemlocks4 ,,cc4 ,leaves angled1 sharp1 without stalks4 ,the ,spruces4 ,,bb4 ,twigs smooth2 cones standing erect4 ,the ,firs4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,pines ,a4 ,sheaths of leaf-bundles soon shed2 wood soft1 pale4 ,,soft ,,pines4 ,b4 ,needles1 #e in a bundle4 ,c4 ,cones1 #e to #h inches long2 ,eastern4 ,white ,pine4 ,,cc4 ,cones1 #ab to #ah inches long2 ,western4 ,sugar ,pine4 ,,bb4 ,needles fewer than #e in a bundle2 ,western4 ,nut ,pines4 ,,aa4 ,sheaths of leaf-bundles not soon shed2 wood hard1 heavy1 dark1 resinous4 ,,hard ,,pines4 ,b4 ,needles1 #c in a bundle4 ,c4 ,length of needles1 #h to #ah inches2 cones1 #f to #aj inches4 ,longleaf ,pine4 ,,cc4 ,length of needles1 #f to #i inches2 cones1 #c to #e inches4 ,loblolly ,pine4 ,,ccc4 ,length of needles1 #c to #e inches2 cones1 #a to #c inches4 ,pitch ,pine4 ,,bb4 ,needles1 #b in a bundle2 ,northern4 ,c4 ,length of needles1 #d to #f inches2 cones #b inches4 ,red ,pine4 ,,cc4 ,length of needles1 #a to #c inches2 cones1 #b to #c inches4 ,jersey ,pine4 ,,bbb4 ,needles1 #b or #c in a bundle2 ,southern4 ,c4 ,length of needles1 #c to #e inches2 cones1 #a to #c inches4 ,shortleaf ,pine4 ,,cc4 ,length of needles1 #h to #ab inches2 cones1 #c to #f inches4 ,cuban ,pine4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,scale-,,leaved ,,evergreens ,a4 ,seeds borne in a woody cone2 twigs flattened1 leaves minute4 ,arbor ,vitae4 ,white ,cedar4 ,,aa4 ,seeds borne in a fleshy1 blue berry2 leaves scale-like or spiny1 or both4 ,juniper4 ,red ,cedar4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,nut ,,trees ,a4 ,nuts in a husk that opens when ripe4 ,b4 ,husk opens in four divisions4 ,c4 ,surface of husk1 spiny4 ,d4 ,nut three-angled1 small1 two in a husk4 ,beech4 ,,dd4 ,nut rounded1 or flattened1 #b or #c in a husk4 ,chestnut4 ,,cc4 ,surface of husk not spiny4 ,hickories4 ,,bb4 ,husk opens in three divisions4 ,horse-chestnuts and ,buckeyes4 ,,bbb4 ,husk opens in two divisions2 spiny4 ,chinquapin4 ,a4 ,nuts in a husk that does not open when ripe4 ,b4 ,shape of nut1 globular2 surface1 smooth4 ,black ,walnut4 ,,bb4 ,shape of nut1 oblong2 surface1 clammy4 ,butternut4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,groups ,,of ,,oaks ,a4 ,acorns1 annual2 bark usually pale2 leaves with rounded lobes1 not spiny-pointed4 ,the ,white ,oak ,group4 ,,aa4 ,acorns1 biennial2 bark usually dark2 leaves with spiny-pointed lobes4 ,the ,black ,oak ,group4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,white ,,oak ,,group ,a4 ,leaves evergreen2 ,southern tree4 ,live ,oak4 ,,aa4 ,leaves not evergreen4 ,b4 ,lining of leaves pale1 not downy2 lobes finger-like4 ,white ,oak4 ,,bb4 ,lining of leaves pale1 downy4 ,c4 ,bark of branches corky-ridged2 acorn large1 in fringed cup4 ,bur ,oak4 ,,cc4 ,bark of branches shed in rough flakes2 acorns large1 on long stalks4 ,swamp ,white ,oak4 ,,ccc4 ,bark of branches not corky-ridged1 nor scaly4 ,d4 ,acorn medium-sized2 leaf margins cut into squarish lobes4 ,post ,oak4 ,,dd4 ,acorn large2 leaf margins wavy2 bark dark brown4 ,chestnut ,oak4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,black ,,oak ,,group ,a4 ,leaves narrow1 willow-like2 ,southern tree4 ,willow ,oak4 ,,aa4 ,leaves oval1 with deeply-cleft margins4 ,b4 ,acorn cups1 shallow1 broader than high4 ,c4 ,tree pyramidal1 twigs with pin-like spurs4 ,pin ,oak4 ,,cc4 ,tree spreading2 acorns large1 in shallow saucers4 ,red ,oak4 ,,bb4 ,acorn cups as deep as broad4 ,c4 ,leaves thin1 smooth1 deeply cut2 acorn cup drawn in at the top4 ,scarlet ,oak4 ,,cc4 ,leaves leathery1 rough1 with rusty hairs beneath2 acorn cup not drawn in at the top4 ,black ,oak4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,elms ,a4 ,twigs smooth1 not hairy-coated4 ,b4 ,bark of branches not corky-ridged4 ,american ,elm4 ,,bb4 ,bark of branches corky-ridged4 ,winged ,elm4 ,wahoo4 ,,aa4 ,twigs hairy-coated4 ,b4 ,bark of branches corky4 ,cork ,elm4 ,rock ,elm4 ,,bb4 ,bark of branches not corky2 buds coarsely hairy4 ,slippery ,elm4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,maples ,a4 ,leaves simple4 ,b4 ,bloom before the leaves open2 seeds ripe in ,may4 ,c4 ,flowers red2 leaves pale beneath1 with three triangular lobes4 ,red ,maple4 ,,cc4 ,flowers greenish2 leaves pale beneath1 deeply cleft1 with long1 spiny lobes4 ,silver ,maple4 ,,bb4 ,bloom after the leaves open2 seeds ripe in autumn4 ,c4 ,leaves wider than long2 lobes spiny-tipped4 ,d4 ,lining of leaves1 pale2 keys joined at acute angle4 ,sugar ,maple4 ,,dd4 ,lining of leaves1 not pale2 keys joined at wide angle4 ,norway ,maple4 ,,cc4 ,leaves circular1 lobed2 tree prostrate4 ,vine ,maple4 ,,ccc4 ,leaves about as wide as long2 trees small4 ,d4 ,bark striped with white lines2 flowers and seeds in dense1 pendant clusters4 ,striped ,maple4 ,,dd4 ,bark not striped2 flowers and seeds in pendant clusters4 ,mountain ,maple4 ,,aa4 ,leaves compound1 of #c to #g leaflets4 ,ash-leaved ,maple4 ,box ,elder4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,willows ,a4 ,twigs long1 drooping4 ,weeping ,willow4 ,,aa4 ,twigs erect4 ,b4 ,leaves white beneath4 ,c4 ,twigs yellow in spring2 leaves narrow4 ,golden ,osier ,willow4 ,,cc4 ,twigs reddish in spring2 leaves broad4 ,pussy ,willow4 ,,bb4 ,leaves not white beneath2 heart-shaped frill at base of leaf stem4 ,black ,willow4 ,a ,,key ,,to ,,the ,,locusts ,a4 ,leaves simple2 flowers rosy4 ,redbud4 ,,aa4 ,leaves compound4 ,b4 ,trees thorny4 ,c4 ,thorns simple1 paired1 at bases of leaves2 pods small1 thin4 ,black ,locust4 ,,cc4 ,thorns often branched1 clustered2 pods large1 curved4 ,honey ,locust4 ,,bb4 ,trees not thorny4 ,c4 ,pods thick2 limbs clumsy2 leaves twice compound4 ,kentucky ,coffee ,tree4 ,,cc4 ,pods thin1 small2 limbs not clumsy2 leaves once compound4 ,yellow-wood4 ,virgilia4 ,,index ,a ,acorns1 #bh4 ,ailanthus1 #fa1 #age4 ,alligator-wood1 #ij4 ,almond1 ,bitter1 #bcb4 ,sweet1 #bcb4 ,apple1 #if1 #aij4 ,crab1 #bbd4 ,oak1 #bdc4 ,wild1 #ii1 #bba1 #bbd4 ,apricots1 #bca4 ,arbor ,vit1 #ei1 #abh4 ,ash1 #eh4 ,black1 #bje4 ,blue1 #bjf4 ,green1 #bjf4 ,mountain1 #fe4 ,red1 #bje1 #bjf4 ,white1 #bjd4 ,ashes1 #if1 #bjc4 ,aspen1 ,quaking1 #ade1 #agi4 ,b ,balm of ,gilead1 #adf4 ,bark1 #hc4 ,bark1 ,birch1 #hh1 #bda4 ,basswood1 #fb1 #aif1 #bcg1 #bci4 ,bay1 ,swamp1 #ahe4 ,beech1 #bf1 #adc1 #bjh4 ,blue1 #fc1 #hi4 ,copper1 #hh4 ,cut-leaved1 #hh4 ,european1 #hh4 ,weeping1 #hh4 ,beeches1 #hg1 #hh4 ,bee ,tree1 #aig4 ,birch1 #fj1 #gf1 #if4 ,black1 #he4 ,canoe1 #hd4 ,cherry1 #he4 ,red1 #he4 ,white1 #hc4 ,yellow1 #he4 ,birches1 ,weeping1 #ig4 ,box ,elder1 #eg1 #afa1 #agg4 ,buckeye1 #bjc4 ,california1 #bac4 ,ohio1 #baa4 ,red1 #bac4 ,sweet1 #bab4 ,buckthorn1 #bcg4 ,budding1 #bbb1 #bbc4 ,burning ,bush1 #aci4 ,butternut1 #ah1 #age4 ,c ,cambium1 #aec4 ,catalpa1 #fj1 #agd1 #aie1 #bbj4 ,cedar1 ,red1 #ie4 ,cedars1 #abg4 ,red1 #abi4 ,white1 #abh4 ,cherry1 #aia4 ,choke1 #bbg4 ,japanese1 #bbh4 ,red1 #aii4 ,wild ,black1 #fh1 #baf1 #bcg4 ,chestnut1 #bb1 #ib4 ,horse1 #gd1 #aie1 #bjc1 #bjh4 ,chestnuts1 #aaf1 #aib4 ,chinquapin1 #be4 ,coffee ,tree1 ,kentucky1 #baf4 ,conifers1 #ajb4 ,cottonwood1 #adf1 #adg4 ,cucumber ,tree1 ,large-leaved1 #agd1 #ahc4 ,northern1 #agd1 #ahf4 ,cypress1 ,bald1 #acd4 ,knees of1 #ace4 ,d ,dogwood1 #fe1 #ge1 #ia1 #ahh1 #bjc4 ,e ,elders1 #aih4 ,elm1 #fa1 #if1 #aej1 #aea4 ,camperdown1 #ig4 ,cork1 #aec4 ,english1 #aeb4 ,rock1 #aec4 ,slippery1 #aeb1 #bcg4 ,weeping1 #ig4 ,winged1 #aed4 ,evergreens1 #ei1 #aja4 ,evonymus1 #aci4 ,f ,fir1 #ei4 ,balsam1 #ajf4 ,firs1 #ie4 ,g ,galls1 ,oak1 #bdd4 ,grafting1 #bbb1 #bbc4 ,gum1 ,sweet1 #ei1 #ij1 #bjc1 #bcg4 ,h ,hackberry1 #ff1 #hi4 ,hawthorn1 #ii1 #agh1 #aia4 ,hazel1 ,witch1 #bi1 #cb1 #bcg4 ,hemlock1 #ei1 #aje4 ,hercules' ,club1 #ajj1 #agf4 ,hickories1 #gf1 #if4 ,hickory1 ,big ,bud1 #ac4 ,big ,shellback1 #aa4 ,bitternut1 #ad4 ,shagbark1 #i1 #ac1 #hf1 #adc4 ,shellback1 #i1 #ac4 ,swamp1 #ae4 ,white ,heart1 #ac4 ,hickory ,nuts1 #aaf4 ,holly1 #ff1 #acf1 #bcg4 ,european1 #ach4 ,hornbeam1 #fj1 #fc1 #hi4 ,hop1 #ij4 ,i ,ironwood1 #hi1 #ia4 ,j ,judas ,tree1 #bai4 ,june ,berries1 #aig1 #bcb4 ,juniper1 #acj4 ,k ,king ,nuts1 #ab4 ,l ,lacquer1 #bdb4 ,larch1 #aca4 ,european1 #acb4 ,western1 #acc4 ,leaf1 ,compound1 #agc1 #agf4 ,simple1 #agc4 ,leaflet1 #agc4 ,leaf ,pulp1 #gi1 #aga4 ,linden1 #gf1 #agj1 #aif4 ,locust1 #bcg4 ,black1 #ii1 #agg1 #bad4 ,clammy1 #baf4 ,honey1 #ie1 #ih1 #agf1 #baf4 ,yellow1 #ii1 #agg1 #aib4 ,log-rollings1 #ag4 ,m ,magnolia1 ,evergreen1 #ahd4 ,maple1 #aed4 ,mountain1 #afc4 ,norway1 #eg1 #gf1 #if1 #afa4 ,red1 #eg1 #if1 #adi1 #aee1 #agg4 ,scarlet1 #ge1 #adi4 ,silver1 #ef1 #aef1 #agg4 ,striped1 #afb4 ,sugar1 #gd1 #ib1 #aeh1 #agj1 #agg4 ,swamp1 #adi4 ,vine1 #aej4 ,mockernut1 #ac4 ,mulberry1 ,weeping1 #ig1 #aih4 ,n ,nannyberry1 #fd4 ,naval ,stores1 #bcf4 ,nectarines1 #bca4 ,o ,oak1 ,black1 #cf1 #dg1 #di1 #bdb4 ,bur1 #ci4 ,chestnut1 #df1 #bdb4 ,cork1 #bde4 ,council1 #dj4 ,holm1 #bdf4 ,iron1 #dd4 ,knees of1 #db1 #dd4 ,live1 #da1 #if4 ,mossy-cup1 #ci4 ,pin1 #ec1 #ie4 ,post1 #dd4 ,red1 #di1 #ej4 ,scarlet1 #ea4 ,swamp ,white1 #de4 ,tanbark1 #dh4 ,turkey1 #dd4 ,white1 #ce1 #cg1 #ie4 ,willow1 #ed4 ,yellow1 #dg4 ,oaks1 #d1 #bh1 #cc1 #gf1 #if1 #agh1 #agi4 ,oilnuts1 #ah4 ,osage ,orange1 #ih4 ,p ,paper1 #bda4 ,peaches1 #bca4 ,pecan1 #i4 ,persimmon1 #ga4 ,pignut1 #ab1 #hg4 ,pine1 #ajc1 #ajh4 ,cuban1 #abc4 ,curly1 #aai4 ,digger1 #aab4 ,georgia1 #aai4 ,hard1 #aah4 ,jersey1 #abg4 ,loblolly1 #abd4 ,longleaf1 #aai4 ,north ,carolina1 #abb4 ,nut1 #aad1 #aag4 ,old ,field1 #abd4 ,pitch1 #aah1 #abe4 ,red1 #abf4 ,shortleaf1 #aba4 ,soft1 #aji4 ,sugar1 #aab4 ,swamp1 #abc4 ,tamarack1 #bdj4 ,white1 #aji4 ,yellow1 #aab1 #aai1 #abb4 ,plum1 #aia4 ,wild ,red1 #bbi4 ,yellow1 #bbi4 ,poplar1 #gf1 #add4 ,lombardy1 #id4 ,tulip1 #ahg4 ,yellow1 #ahg4 ,poplars1 #bba4 ,propolis1 #adf4 ,prunes1 #bca4 ,pulp1 ,wood1 #bda4 ,q ,quakenasp1 #adc4 ,r ,redbud1 #bag4 ,resin1 #bce4 ,rosin1 #bce4 ,s ,sassafras1 #fd1 #agh1 #bjj1 #bcg4 ,seedlings1 #bbb4 ,serviceberries1 #aig1 #bcb4 ,shadbush1 #bcb4 ,sheepberry1 #fd4 ,spindle-tree1 #aci4 ,spruce1 #ei1 #ajd4 ,st4 ,john's ,bread1 #baf4 ,sugar ,bush1 #aei4 ,maple1 #bcc4 ,pine1 #aab4 ,sumach1 #ff1 #age1 #bdb4 ,sycamore1 #e1 #he4 ,t ,tamarack1 #aca4 ,tanbark1 #dg4 ,tannin1 #bdc4 ,truffle1 #bdg4 ,tulip ,tree1 #gf1 #agd1 #ahg4 ,turpentine1 #aah4 ,v ,viburnums1 #fd4 ,virgilia1 #bbj4 ,w ,wahoo1 #ahd4 ,walnut1 ,black1 #af1 #age4 ,english1 #ai4 ,willow1 #fc4 ,balsam1 #afi4 ,black1 #afh4 ,golden ,osier1 #afg4 ,pussy1 #adh1 #afd4 ,weeping1 #ig1 #afh4 ,white1 #afg4 ,willows1 #bba4 ,winterberry1 #ach4 ,witch ,hazel1 #bi4 ,y ,yellow-wood1 #bai4 ,transcriber's ,notes --,corrected some palpable typos1 and standardized the form of some names 7e4g4 serviceberry74 --,in the text versions only1 represented text font and size variations 7the ,,html version preserves the presentation of the original73 --,text in italics is delimited by underscores4