Handbook of the Trees of New England
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Lorin Low Dame >> Handbook of the Trees of New England
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=Inflorescence.=--Similar to that of _P. balsamifera_.
=Fruit.=--Similar to that of _P. balsamifera_.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; has an attractive
foliage and grows rapidly in all soils and situations, but the branches
are easily broken by the wind, and its habit of suckering makes it
objectionable in ornamental ground; occasionally offered by nurserymen
and collectors. Propagated from cuttings.
[Illustration: PLATE XIX.--Populus candicans.]
1. Winter bud.
2. Branch with fertile catkins.
3. Fertile flower.
4. Fruiting branch.
=Populus alba, L.=
ABELE. WHITE POPLAR. SILVER-LEAF POPLAR.
=Range.=--Widely distributed in the Old World, extending in Europe from
southern Sweden to the Mediterranean, throughout northern Africa, and
eastward in Asia to the northwestern Himalayas. Introduced from England
by the early settlers and soon established in the colonial towns, as in
Plymouth and Duxbury, on the western shore of Massachusetts bay. Planted
or spontaneous over a wide area.
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia,--occasional.
New England,--occasional throughout, local, sometimes common.
Southward to Virginia.
=Habit.=--A handsome tree, resembling _P. grandidentata_ more than any
other American poplar, but of far nobler proportions; 40-75 feet high
and 2-4 feet in diameter at the ground; growing much larger in England;
head large, spreading; round-topped, in spring enveloped in a dazzling
cloud of cotton white, which resolves itself later into two
conspicuously contrasting surfaces of dark green and silvery white.
=Bark.=--Light gray, smooth upon young trees, in old trees furrowed upon
the trunk.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds not viscid, cottony. Leaves 1-4 inches
long, densely white-tomentose while expanding, when mature dark green
above and white-tomentose to glabrous beneath; outline ovate or deltoid,
3-5-lobed and toothed or simply toothed, teeth irregular; base
heart-shaped or truncate; apex acute to obtuse; leafstalk long, slender,
compressed; stipules soon falling.
=Inflorescence and Fruit.=--April to May. Sterile catkins 2-4 inches
long, cylindrical, fertile at first shorter,--stamens 6-16; anthers
purple: capsules 1/4 inch long, narrow-ovoid; seeds hairy.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy. Thrives even in very poor soils and in
exposed situations; grows rapidly in good soils; of distinctive value in
landscape gardening but not adapted for planting along streets and upon
lawns of limited area on account of its habit of throwing out numerous
suckers and its liability to damage from heavy winds. The sides of
country roads where the abele has been planted are sometimes obstructed
for a considerable distance by the thrifty shoots from underground.
=Salix discolor. Muhl.=
PUSSY WILLOW. GLAUCOUS WILLOW.
=Habitat and Range.=--Low, wet grounds; banks of streams, swamps, moist
hillsides.
Nova Scotia to Manitoba.
Maine,--abundant; common throughout the other New England states.
South to North Carolina; west to Illinois and Missouri.
=Habit.=--Mostly a tall shrub with several stems, but occasionally
assuming a tree-like habit, with a height of 15-20 feet and trunk
diameter of 5-10 inches; one tree reported at Laconia, N. H., 35 feet
high (F. W. Batchelder); branches few, stout, ascending, forming a very
open, hemispherical head.
=Bark.=--Trunk reddish-brown; branches dark-colored; branchlets light
green, orange-dotted.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds ovate-conical; apex obtuse to acute.
Leaves simple, alternate, 2-4 inches long, smooth and bright green
above, smooth and whitish beneath when fully grown; outline
ovate-lanceolate to narrowly oblong-oval, crenulate-serrate to entire;
apex acute, base acute and entire; leafstalk short; stipules toothed or
entire.
=Inflorescence.=--March to April. Appearing before the leaves in
catkins, sterile and fertile on separate plants, occasionally both kinds
on the same plant, sessile,--sterile spreading or erect,
oblong-cylindrical, silky; calyx none; petals none; bracts entire,
reddish-brown turning to black, oblong to oblong-obovate, with long,
silky hairs; stamens 2; filaments distinct: fertile catkins spreading;
bracts oblong to ovate, hairy; style short; stigma deeply 4-lobed.
=Fruit.=--Fruiting catkins somewhat declined: capsules ovate-conical,
tomentose, stem two-thirds the length of the scale: seeds numerous.
=Horticultural Value.=--Picturesque in blossom and fruit; its value
dependent chiefly upon its matted roots for holding wet banks, and its
ability to withstand considerable shade. Sold by plant collectors;
easily propagated from cuttings.
[Illustration: PLATE XX.--Salix discolor.]
1. Leaf-buds.
2. Branch with sterile catkins.
3. Sterile flower.
4. Branch with fertile catkins.
5. Fertile flower.
6. Fruiting branch.
7. Mature leaves.
=Salix nigra, Marsh.=
BLACK WILLOW
=Habitat and Range.=--In low grounds, along streams or ponds, river
flats.
New Brunswick to western Ontario.
New England,--occasional throughout, frequent along the larger streams.
South to Florida; west to Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Indian
territory, Louisiana, Texas, southern California, and south into
Mexico.
=Habit.=--A large shrub or small tree, 25-40 feet high and 10-15 inches
in trunk diameter, attaining great size in the Ohio and Mississippi
valleys and the valley of the lower Colorado; trunk short, surmounted by
an irregular, open, often roundish head, with stout, spreading branches,
slender branchlets, and twigs brittle towards their base.
_S. nigra_, var. _falcata_, Pursh., covers about the same range as the
type and differs chiefly in its narrower, falcate leaves.
=Bark.=--Trunk rough, in young trees light brown, in old trees
dark-colored or nearly black, deeply and irregularly ridged, separated
on the surface into thick, plate-like scales; branchlets reddish-brown;
twigs bronze olive.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds narrowly conical, acute. Leaves simple,
alternate, appearing much later than those of _S. discolor_, 2-5 inches
long, somewhat pubescent on both sides when young, when mature green and
smooth above, paler and sometimes pubescent along the veins beneath;
outline narrowly lanceolate, finely serrate; apex acute or acuminate,
often curved; base acutish to rounded or slightly heart-shaped; petiole
short, usually pubescent; stipules large and persistent, or small and
soon falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Appearing with the leaves from the axils
of the short, lateral shoots, in catkins, sterile and fertile on
different trees, stalked,--sterile spreading, narrowly cylindrical;
calyx none; corolla none; bracts entire, rounded to oblong, villous,
ciliate; stamens about 5: fertile catkins spreading; calyx none; corolla
none; bracts ovate to narrowly oblong, acute, villous; ovary
short-stalked, with two small glands at its base, ovate-conical,
sometimes obovate, smooth; stigmas 2, short.
=Fruit.=--Fertile catkins drooping: capsules ovate-conical,
short-stemmed, minutely granular; style very short: seeds numerous.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy in New England; grows rapidly in all
soils, particularly useful in very wet situations; seriously affected by
insects; occasionally offered in nurseries; transplanted readily;
propagated from cuttings.
[Illustration: PLATE XXI.--Salix nigra.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Branch with sterile catkins.
3. Sterile flower, side view.
4. Sterile flower, front view.
5. Branch with fertile catkins.
6. Fertile flower, side view.
7. Fertile flower, front view.
8. Fruiting branch.
9. Fruit enlarged.
=Salix fragilis and Salix alba.=
The _fragilis_ and _alba_ group of genus _Salix_ gives rise to puzzling
questions of determination and nomenclature. Pure _fragilis_ and pure
_alba_ are perfectly distinct plants, _fragilis_ occasional, locally
rather common, and _alba_ rather rare within the limits of the United
States. Each species has varieties; the two species hybridize with each
other and with native species, and the hybrids themselves have varietal
forms. This group affords a tempting field for the manufacture of
species and varieties, about most of which so little is known that any
attempt to assign a definite range would be necessarily imperfect and
misleading. The range as given below in either species simply points out
the limits within which any one of the various forms of that species
appears to be spontaneous.
=Salix fragilis, L.=
CRACK WILLOW. BRITTLE WILLOW.
=Habitat and Range.=--In low land and along river banks. Indigenous in
southwestern Asia, and in Europe where it is extensively cultivated;
introduced into America probably from England for use in basket-making,
and planted at a very early date in many of the colonial towns; now
extensively cultivated, and often spontaneous in wet places and along
river banks, throughout New England and as far south as Delaware.
=Habit.=--Tree often of great size; attaining a maximum height of 60-90
feet; head open, wide-spreading; branches except the lowest rising at a
broad angle; branchlets reddish or yellowish green, smooth and polished,
very brittle at the base. In 1890 there was standing upon the Groome
estate, Humphreys Street, Dorchester, Mass., a willow of this species
about 60 feet high, 28 feet 2 inches in girth five feet from the ground,
with a spread of 110 feet (_Typical Elms and other Trees of
Massachusetts_, p. 85).
=Bark.=--Bark of the trunk gray, smooth in young trees, in old trees
very rough, irregularly ridged, sometimes cleaving off in large plates.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds about 1/3 inch long, reddish-brown,
narrow-conical. Leaves simple, alternate, 2-6 inches long, smooth, dark
green and shining above, pale or glaucous beneath and somewhat pubescent
when young; outline lanceolate, glandular-serrate; apex long-acuminate;
tapering to an acute or obtuse base; leafstalk short, glandular at the
top; stipules half-cordate when present, soon falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Catkins appearing with the leaves,
spreading, stalked,--sterile 1-2 inches long; stamens 2-4, usually 2;
filaments distinct, pubescent below; ovary abortive: fertile catkins
slender; stigma nearly sessile; capsule long-conical, smooth,
short-stalked.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows best near
streams, but adapts itself readily to all rich, damp soils. A handsome
ornamental tree when planted where its roots can find water, and its
branches space for free development. Readily propagated from slips.
SALIX ALBA, L.
WHITE WILLOW.
=Habitat and Range.=--Low, moist grounds; along streams. Probably
indigenous throughout Europe, northern Africa, and Asia as far south as
northwestern India. Extensively introduced in America, and often
spontaneous over large areas.
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Ontario.
New England,--sparingly throughout.
South to Delaware; extensively introduced in the western states.
=Habit.=--A large tree, 50-80 feet in height; trunk usually rather short
and 2-7 feet in diameter; head large, not as broad-spreading as that of
_S. fragilis_; branches numerous, mostly ascending.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunk in old trees gray and coarsely ridged, in young
trees smooth; twigs smooth, olive.
=Leaves.=--Leaves simple, alternate, 2-4 inches long, _silky-hairy on
both sides when young, when old still retaining more or less pubescence,
especially on the paler under surface_; outline narrowly lanceolate or
elliptic-lanceolate, glandular-serrate, tapering to a long pointed apex
and to an acute base; leafstalk short, usually without glands; stipules
ovate-lanceolate, soon falling.
=Note.=--Var. _vitellina_, Koch., by far the most common form of this
willow; mature leaves glabrous above; twigs _yellow_. Var. _caerulea_,
Koch.; mature leaves bluish-green, glabrous above, glaucous beneath;
twigs _olive_.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Catkins appearing with the leaves,
slender, erect, stalked; scales linear; stamens 2; filaments distinct,
hairy below the middle; stigma nearly sessile, deeply cleft; capsule
glabrous, sessile or nearly so.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows best in
moist localities; extensively cultivated to bind the soil along the
banks of streams. Easily propagated from slips.
JUGLANDACEAE. WALNUT FAMILY.
=Juglans cinerea, L.=
BUTTERNUT. OILNUT. LEMON WALNUT.
=Habitat and Range.=--Roadsides, rich woods, river valleys, fertile,
moist hillsides, high up on mountain slopes.
New Brunswick, throughout Quebec and eastern Ontario.
Maine,--common, often abundant; New Hampshire,--throughout the
Connecticut valley, and along the Merrimac and its tributaries, to the
base of the White mountains; Vermont,--frequent; Massachusetts,--common
in the eastern and central portions, frequent westward; Rhode Island and
Connecticut,--common.
South to Delaware, along the mountains to Georgia and Alabama; west
to Minnesota, Kansas, and Arkansas.
=Habit.=--Usually a medium-sized tree, 20-45 feet in height, with a
disproportionately large trunk, 1-4 feet in diameter; often attaining
under favorable conditions much greater dimensions. It ramifies at a few
feet from the ground and throws out long, rather stout, and nearly
horizontal branches, the lower slightly drooping, forming for the height
of the tree a very wide-spreading head, with a stout and stiffish spray.
At its best the butternut is a picturesque and even beautiful tree.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunk dark gray, rough, narrow-ridged and wide-furrowed
in old trees, in young trees smooth, dark gray; branchlets brown gray,
with gray dots and prominent leaf-scars; season's shoots greenish-gray,
faint-dotted, with a clammy pubescence. The bruised bark of the nut
stains the skin yellow.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds flattish or oblong-conical, few-scaled,
2-4 buds often superposed, the uppermost largest and far above the
axil. Leaves pinnately compound, alternate, 1-1-1/2 feet long,
viscid-pubescent throughout, at least when young; rachis enlarged at
base; stipules none; leaflets 9-17, 2-4 inches long, about half as wide,
upper surface rough, yellowish when unfolding in spring, becoming a dark
green, lighter beneath, yellow in autumn; outline oblong-lanceolate,
serrate; veins prominent beneath; apex acute to acuminate; base obtuse
to rounded, somewhat inequilateral, sessile, except the terminal
leaflet; stipels none.
=Inflorescence.=--May. Appearing while the leaves are unfolding, sterile
and fertile flowers on the same tree,--the sterile from terminal or
lateral buds of the preceding season, in single, unbranched, stout,
green, cylindrical, drooping catkins 3-6 inches long; calyx irregular,
mostly 6-lobed, borne on an oblong scale; corolla none; stamens 8-12,
with brown anthers: fertile flowers sessile, solitary, or several on a
common peduncle from the season's shoots; calyx hairy, 4-lobed, with 4
small petals at the sinuses; styles 2, short; stigmas 2, large,
feathery, diverging, rose red.
=Fruit.=--Ripening in October, one or several from the same footstalk,
about 3 inches long, oblong, pointed, green, downy, and sticky at first,
dark brown when dry: shells sculptured, rough: kernel edible, sweet but
oily.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows in any
well-drained soil, but prefers a deep, rich loam; seldom reaches its
best under cultivation. Trees of the same age are apt to vary in vigor
and size, dead branches are likely to appear early, and sound trees 8 or
10 inches in diameter are seldom seen; the foliage is thin, appears late
and drops early; planted in private grounds chiefly for its fruit; only
occasionally offered in nurseries, collected plants seldom successful.
Best grown from seed planted where the tree is to stand, as is evident
from many trees growing spontaneously.
[Illustration: PLATE XXII.--Juglans cinerea.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, side view.
4. Fertile flower.
5. Fruit.
6. Leaf.
=Juglans nigra, L.=
BLACK WALNUT.
=Habitat and Range.=--Rich woods.
Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont,--not reported native;
Massachusetts,--rare east of the Connecticut river, occasional along the
western part of the Connecticut valley to the New York line; Rhode
Island,--doubtfully native, Apponaug (Kent county) and elsewhere;
Connecticut,--frequent westward, Darien (Fairfield county); Plainville
(Hartford county, J. N. Bishop _in lit._, 1896); in the central and
eastern sections probably introduced.
South to Florida; west to Minnesota, Kansas, Arkansas, and Texas.
=Habit.=--A large tree, 50-75 feet high, with a diameter above the swell
of the roots of 2-5 feet; attaining in the Ohio valley a height of 150
feet and a diameter of 6-8 feet; trunk straight, slowly tapering,
throwing out its lower branches nearly horizontally, the upper at a
broad angle, forming an open, spacious, noble head.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunk in old trees thick, blackish, and deeply
furrowed; large branches rough and more or less furrowed; branchlets
smooth; season's twigs downy.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds small, ovate or rounded, obtuse, more or
less pubescent, few-scaled. Leaves pinnately compound, alternate; rachis
smooth and swollen at base, but less so than that of the butternut;
stipules none; leaflets 13-21 (the odd leaflet at the apex often
wanting), opposite or alternate, 2-5 inches long, about half as wide;
dark green and smooth above, lighter and slightly glandular-pubescent
beneath, turning yellow in autumn; outline ovate-lanceolate; apex
taper-pointed; base oblique, usually rounded or heart-shaped; stemless
or nearly so, except the terminal leaflet; stipels none. Aromatic when
bruised.
=Inflorescence.=--May. Appearing while the leaves are unfolding, sterile
and fertile flowers on the same tree,--the sterile along the sides or at
the ends of the preceding year's branches, in single, unbranched,
green, stout, cylindrical, pendulous catkins, 3-6 inches long; perianth
of 6 rounded lobes, stamens numerous, filaments very short, anthers
purple: fertile flowers in the axils of the season's shoots, sessile,
solitary or several on a common peduncle; calyx 4-toothed, with 4 small
petals at the sinuses; stigmas 2, reddish-green.
=Fruit.=--Ripening in October at the ends of the branchlets, single, or
two or more together; round, smooth, or somewhat roughish with uneven
surface, not viscid, dull green turning to brown: husk not separating
into sections: shell irregularly furrowed: kernel edible.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy in central and southern New England; grows
well in most situations, but in a deep rich soil it forms a large and
handsome tree. Readily obtainable in western nurseries; transplants
rather poorly, and collected plants are of little value. Its leaves
appear late and drop early, and the fruit is often abundant. These
disadvantages make it objectionable in many cases. Grown from seed.
[Illustration: PLATE XXIII.--Juglans nigra.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, front view.
4. Sterile flower, back view.
5. Fertile flower.
6. Fruiting branch.
=Carya alba, Nutt.=
_Hicoria ovata, Britton._
SHAGBARK. SHAGBARK OR SHELLBARK HICKORY. WALNUT.
=Habitat and Range.=--In various soils and situations, fertile slopes,
brooksides, rocky hills.
Valley of the St. Lawrence.
Maine,--along or near the coast as far north as Harpswell (Cumberland
county); New Hampshire,--common as far north as Lake Winnepesaukee;
Vermont,--occasional along the Connecticut to Windsor, rather common in
the Champlain valley and along the western slopes of the Green
mountains; Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut,--common.
South to Delaware and along the mountains to Florida; west to
Minnesota, Kansas, Indian territory, and Texas.
=Habit.=--The tallest of the hickories and proportionally the most
slender, from 50 to 75 feet in height, and not more than 2 feet in trunk
diameter; rising to a great height in the Ohio and Indiana river
bottoms. The trunk, shaggy in old trees, rises with nearly uniform
diameter to the point of furcation, throwing out rather small branches
of unequal length and irregularly disposed, forming an oblong or rounded
head with frequent gaps in the continuity of the foliage.
=Bark.=--Trunk in young trees and in the smaller branches ash-gray,
smoothish to seamy; in old trees, extremely characteristic, usually
shaggy, the outer layers separating into long, narrow, unequal plates,
free at one or both ends, easily detachable; branchlets smooth and gray,
with conspicuous leaf-scars; season's shoots stout, more or less downy,
numerous-dotted.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds tomentose, ovate to oblong, terminal
buds large, much swollen before expanding; inner scales numerous,
purplish-fringed, downy, enlarging to 5-6 inches in length as the leaves
unfold. Leaves pinnately compound, alternate, 12-20 inches long; petiole
short, rough, and somewhat swollen at base; stipules none; leaflets
usually 5, sometimes 3 or 7, 3-7 inches long, dark green above,
yellowish-green and downy beneath when young, the three upper large,
obovate to lanceolate, the two lower much smaller, oblong to
oblong-lanceolate, all finely serrate and sharp-pointed; base obtuse,
rounded or acute, mostly inequilateral; nearly sessile save the odd
leaflet; stipels none.
=Inflorescence.=--May. Sterile and fertile flowers on the same tree,
appearing when the leaves are fully grown,--sterile at the base of the
season's shoots, in slender, green, pendulous catkins, 4-6 inches long,
usually in threes, branching umbel-like from a common peduncle;
flower-scales 3-parted, the middle lobe much longer than the other two,
linear, tipped with long bristles; calyx adnate to scale; stamens
mostly in fours, anthers yellow, bearded at the tip: fertile flowers
single or clustered on peduncles at the ends of the season's shoots;
calyx 4-toothed, hairy, adherent to ovary; corolla none; stigmas 2,
large, fringed.
=Fruit.=--October. Spherical, 3-6 inches in circumference: husks rather
thin, firm, green turning to brown, separating completely into 4
sections: nut variable in size, subglobose, white, usually 4-angled:
kernel large, sweet, edible.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; prefers light,
well-drained, loamy soil; when well established makes a moderately rapid
growth; difficult to transplant, rarely offered in nurseries; collected
plants seldom survive; a fine tree for landscape gardening, but its nuts
are apt to make trouble in public grounds. Propagated from a seed. A
thin-shelled variety is in cultivation.
[Illustration: PLATE XXIV.--Carya alba.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, front view.
4. Sterile flower, back view.
5. Fertile flower.
6. Fruiting branch.
=Carya tomentosa, Nutt.=
_Hicoria alba, Britton._
MOCKERNUT. WHITE-HEART HICKORY. WALNUT.
Habitat and Range.--In various soils; woods, dry, rocky ridges, mountain
slopes.
Niagara peninsula and westward.
Maine and Vermont,--not reported; New Hampshire,--sparingly along the
coast; Massachusetts,--rather common eastward; Rhode Island and
Connecticut,--common.
South to Florida, ascending 3500 feet in Virginia; west to Kansas,
Nebraska, Missouri, Indian territory, and Texas.
=Habit.=--A tall and rather slender tree, 50-70 feet high, with a
diameter above the swell of the roots of 2-3 feet; attaining much
greater dimensions south and west; trunk erect, not shaggy, separating
into a few rather large limbs and sending out its upper branches at a
sharp angle, forming a handsome, wide-spreading, pyramidal head.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunk dark gray, thick, hard, close, and rough,
becoming narrow-rugged-furrowed; crinkly on small trunks and branches;
leaf-scars prominent; season's shoots stout, brown, downy or dusty
puberulent, dotted, resinous-scented.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds large, yellowish-brown, ovate, downy.
Leaves pinnately compound, alternate, 15-20 inches long; rachis large,
downy, swollen at the base; stipules none; leaflets 7-9, opposite,
large, yellowish-green and smooth above, beneath paler and thick-downy,
at least when young, turning to a clear yellow or russet brown in
autumn, the three upper obovate, the two lower ovate, all the leaflets
slightly serrate or entire, pointed, base acute to rounded, nearly
sessile except the odd one. Aromatic when bruised.
=Inflorescence.=--May. Sterile and fertile flowers on the same tree,
appearing when the leaves are fully grown,--sterile at the base of the
season's shoots, in slender, pendulous, downy catkins, 4-8 inches long,
usually in threes, branching umbel-like from a common peduncle; scales
3-lobed, hairy; calyx adnate; stamens 4 or 5, anthers red, bearded at
the tip: fertile flowers on peduncles at the end of the season's shoots;
calyx toothed, hairy, adherent to ovary; corolla none; stigmas 2, hairy.
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