Part 49

BARK.--Twigs and branches red to red-brown; young trunks dark red-brown, smooth; blackish on old trunks and rough, broken into thick, irregular plates; bitter, aromatic.

WOOD.--Light, rather hard, strong, close- and straight-grained, light brown or red, with thin, yellow sapwood.

DISTRIBUTION.--Frequent in the southern half of the Lower Peninsula, rare in the northern half and the Upper Peninsula.

HABITAT.--Prefers a rich, moist soil, but grows well on dry, gravelly or sandy soils.

NOTES.--Grows very rapidly in youth.

1. Winter twig, × 1. 2. Portion of twig, enlarged. 3. Leaf, × 1. 4. Margin of leaf, enlarged. 5. Flowering branchlet, × 1/2. 6. Vertical section of flower, enlarged. 7. Fruit, × 1/2.]

+ROSACEAE+

+Choke Cherry+

Prunus virginiana L. [Padus virginiana (L.) Roemer]

HABIT.--Usually a large shrub, but sometimes a small tree 15-25 feet high, with a crooked, often leaning trunk 5-6 inches in diameter; forming a spreading, somewhat rounded crown.

LEAVES.--Alternate, simple, 2-4 inches long, one-half as broad; obovate to oblong-obovate or oval, abruptly acuminate at the apex; finely and sharply serrate; dull dark green above, paler beneath, glabrous both sides; petioles short, slender, glandular at the apex.

FLOWERS.--May, when the leaves are half grown; perfect; about 1/2 inch across; borne on short, slender pedicels in many-flowered racemes 3-6 inches long; calyx cup-shaped, 5-lobed; petals 5, white; stamens 15-20; stigma broad, on a short style.

FRUIT.--July-August; a globular drupe, 1/4-1/2 inch in diameter, usually bright red, often yellow to almost black, with dark red flesh; astringent, but edible.

WINTER-BUDS.--Terminal bud 1/4-1/2 inch long, conical, acute; scales rounded at the apex, light brown, smooth.

BARK.--Twigs at first light brown or greenish, becoming red-brown, finally dark brown; thin, dark brown on the trunk, slightly fissured.

WOOD.--Heavy, hard, close-grained, weak, light brown, with thick, lighter colored sapwood.

DISTRIBUTION.--Common throughout the entire state.

HABITAT.--Prefers a deep, rich, moist loam, but is common on less favorable sites.

NOTES.--The most widely distributed tree of North America, extending from the arctic circle to Mexico, from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean.

1. Winter twig, × 1. 2. Portion of twig, enlarged. 3. Leaf, × 1. 4. Margin of leaf, enlarged. 5. Flowering branchlet, × 1/2. 6. Flower, enlarged. 7. Fruit, × 1.]

+ROSACEAE+

+Wild Red Cherry. Pin Cherry+

Prunus pennsylvanica L. f.

HABIT.--A slender tree, seldom over 30 feet high, with a trunk diameter of 8-10 inches; crown rather open, narrow, rounded, with slender, regular branches.

LEAVES.--Alternate, simple, 3-5 inches long, 3/4-1-1/4 inches broad; oblong-lanceolate; finely and sharply serrate; bright green and shining above, paler beneath; petioles slender, 1/2-1 inch long, glandular near the blade.

FLOWERS.--May-June, with the leaves; perfect; about 1/2 inch across, borne on slender pedicels in 4-5-flowered umbels, generally clustered, 2-3 together; calyx 5-cleft, campanulate; petals 5, white, 1/4 inch long; stamens 15-20.

FRUIT.--July-August; a globular drupe, 1/4 inch in diameter, light red, with thick skin and sour flesh.

WINTER-BUDS.--Terminal bud 1/8 inch long, broadly ovoid, rather blunt, brownish, smooth.