CONIFERS 35 



nent ring-like scars. Leaves awl-shaped, triangular and rounded above, or rarely 

 4-angled, spirally disposed and remote on leading shoots, on lateral branchlets in 

 crowded fascicles, each leaf in the axil of a deciduous bud-scale, deciduous. Flowers 

 solitary, terminal, the staminate globose, oval or oblong, sessile or stalked, on leaf- 

 less branches, yellow, composed of numerous spirally arranged anthers with connec- 

 tives produced above them into short points, the pistillate appearing with the leaves, 

 subglobose, composed of few or many green nearly orbicular stalked scales in the 

 axes of much longer mucronate usually scarlet bracts. Fruit a woody ovoid-oblong 

 conical or subglobose short-stalked cone composed of slightly thickened suborbicular 

 or oblong-obovate concave scales, shorter or longer than their bracts, gradually de- 

 creasing from the centre to the ends of the cone, the small scales usually sterile. 

 Seeds nearly triangular, rounded on the sides, shorter than their wings; the outer 

 seed-coat crustaceous, light brown, the inner membranaceous, pale chestnut-brown 

 and lustrous; cotyledons usually 6, much shorter than the inferior radicle. 



Larix is widely distributed over the northern and mountainous region of the north- 

 ern hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to the mountains of Pennsylvania and Oregon 

 in the Xevr World, and to central Europe, the Himalayas, central China, and Japan 

 in the Old World. Nine species are recognized. Of the exotic species the European 

 Larix Larix, Karst., has been much planted for timber and ornament in the northeast- 

 ern states, where the Japanese Larix Kcempferi, Sarg., also flourishes. 



Larix is the classical name of the Larch-tree. 



CONSPECTUS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES. 



Cones small, subglobose ; their scales few, longer than the bracts. 



Leaves triang-ular. 1. L. Americana (A B, F). 



Cones elongated ; their scales numerous, shorter than the bracts. 



Young branchlets pubescent, soon becoming glabrous ; leaves triangular. 



2. L. occidentalis (B, G). 



Young branchlets tomentose ; leaves 4-angled. 3. L. Lyallii (B, F). 



1. Larix Americana, Michx. Tamarack. Larch. 



Leaves linear, triangular, rounded above, prominently keeled on the lower surface, 

 f'-iy long, bright green, conspicuously stomatiferoiis when they first appear; turn- 

 ing yellow and falling in September or October. Flowers : staminate subglobose 

 and sessile, pale yellow ; pistillate oblong, with light-colored bracts produced into 

 elongated green tips, and nearly orbicular rose-red scales. Fruit on stout incurved 

 stems, oblong, rather obtuse, I'-f long, composed of about 20 scales slightly erose 

 on their nearly entire margins, rather longer than broad and twice as long as their 

 bracts, bright chestnut-brown at maturity, usually falling during their second year; 

 seeds \' long, about one third as long as their light chestnut-brown wings broadest 

 near the middle and obliquely rounded at the apex. 



A tree, 50-60 high, with a trunk 18'-20' in diameter, small horizontal branches 

 forming during the early life of the tree a narrow regular pyramidal head always 

 characteristic of this tree when crowded in the forest, or with abundant space sweep- 

 ing out in graceful curves, often becoming contorted and pendulous and forming a 

 broad open frequently picturesque head, and slender leading branchlets often covered 

 at first with a glaucous bloom, becoming light orange-brown during their first win- 

 ter and conspicuous from the small globose dark red lustrous buds. Bark of the 

 trunk \'-^' thick, separating into thiu closely appressed rather bright reddish brown 



