Rural School Leaflet 



953 



Horse -chestnut 



Horse-chestnut. — The horse-chestnut belongs to a family that has some 

 species native to the Southern and Western States. The buckeye of Ohio 



belongs here . The European species i s the 

 one most commonly planted in this part 

 of the country. The horse-chestnut can 

 be distinguished from other trees by its 

 compound leaves, which have seven leaf- 

 lets growing from a common point rather 

 than distributed along the central stem 

 as in the locust. The flowers are very 

 ^/ beautiful in the spring, and the large 

 nut, which ripens in the fall, is well 

 known to every boy and girl. 



Alder. — The alder is a member of the 

 birch family and its leaves resemble those 

 of the birches somewhat, but are more 

 rounded at the end. A very noticeable 

 feature of the alder is the presence of the 

 catkins (staminate flowers), which are formed in the late summer but 

 which remain in a dormant condition until the following spring. The 

 pistillate flowers are formed in the spring, and after being fertilized 

 develop into a, cone-like fruit. 



The alders that rural teachers in New York State are most likely to find 

 in their work are Alnus incana and Alnus riigosa. Another alder that is 

 frequently planted and found in cultivation is the European black alder, 

 Alnus vulgaris. This has been reported 

 as escaped from cultivation in some 

 places, and might therefore be found 

 in unexpected places. In contrast to 

 the native alders that have been men- 

 tioned, the European black alder has a 

 distinctly tree-like habit of growth, and 

 under favorable conditions would reach 

 a height of 50 feet or more. The writer 

 believes that rural teachers would 

 always be able to distinguish this form 

 of tree from our common alders by its 

 habit of larger growth. 



Elm. — The elm tree is one of the 

 largest and most graceful of the trees 

 native to New York State. It fre- 

 quently branches a short distance from the ground and forms a large 

 spreading crown, the shade from which covers a great deal of the space 



