teeth glandular-tipped, bases swollen, articulate ana decurrent, stem 
puberulent, branching the fourth or fifth year. 
Abundant below 5000 ft., especially north of the Coeur d'Alene xiver, 
scant in the Ste Joe and Clearwater forests. Associated especially with 
Thuja plicata and in the northern part of the range persisting in the climax 
type as a Codominant by reason of its great shade tolerance. 
2. 7. Mertensiana (Bong,} Sargt. Mountain Hemlock. ——————> A handsome 
subalpine tree of usually smll dimensions, rarely over 15 m. tall in our 
region,with D.BeH. of 25-50 cm., infrequently as much as 25 me tall, with 
DeBele of 120 cm., in which case it tapers rapidly; branchlets wooly, soon 
checking longitudinally, becoming light gray and scurfy; youn, bark scaly, 
the scales curling somewhat, mature bark 3-4 cm. thick, dark reddish brown, 
deeply and rather narrowly furrowed, the furrows forming a net work, reddish 
within, the ridges narrow; crown narrowly Conical, dense, acute, the leader 
pendulous, the branches slender and drooping, commonly extending to the 
base in open stands; foliage bluish green, rather dark, but the new foliage 
glaucous, needles deciduous in third to fifth year, spreading on all sides of 
the branch, 15-20 mm. long, rounded at the apex, narrowed at the base, 
triangular in cross-section and appearing plump and not flat, stomata 
prominent in several rows on both surfaces, leaving a short leaf base after 
abscission; staminate cones 5-6 mm. long, the purplish anthers raised on a 
stalk, ovulate cones borne mostly in the upper third of the crown, usually 
purple in flower, narrowly elliptical before opening, acute, elliptical- 
oblong when open, 5-6 cm. long, “5-5 cme broad, green to purplish blacz, 
pendulous, falling during the winter, scales cureate, rounded-truncate at 
the apex, 1 cm. long, seed 2-5 mm. long, the wing oval, twice as long. 
Seedlings 3-5 cm. tali, their hypocotyls red; cotyledons 5-6, commonly 4, 
ridged along the middle on the upper surface and hearing longitudinal rows of 
minute white dots, 1.5-2.5 cm. long, 1-5-2 mm. wide, blunt,entire, green 
on the lower surface} first leaves 8-10 mn. long, white-dotted on the lower 
surface. 
Commonly along ridges ana hich slopes above 5500 feet, associated with 
Pinus albicaulis and Abies lasiocarpa put occasionally descending as low as 
4500 feet mingling with Tsuga heterovhylla and Pinus monticola. Not seen in 
the Priest Siver drainage. Abundant in the eastern portions of the St. Joe 
and Clearwater forests. 
