344 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:8— Nov., 1917 



A still taller species is the western larch, reaching up one hundred 

 feet or more. It seems to be the largest of any of the larches, and 

 is called the red American larch, the great western larch and the 

 western tamarack. It occurs chiefly in the basin of the Columbia 

 River. The wood of this species is a bright dark orange, takes a 

 fine polish and is much used for furniture. The wood is the third 

 heaviest of all coniferous trees, having a specific gravity of .74. 

 Although it is the grandest of all the larches, it has not been culti- 

 vated in Europe, nor will it thrive in the eastern United States 

 unless grafted on the root of some other species. 



Julia Rogers tells us that there are six old-world species of the 

 larch, and that the most beautiful for use in lawns is the Japanese 

 larch which has pale blue-green white-hued leaves. It is culti- 

 vated to some extent in Europe as a timber-tree, and proves an 

 admirable wind-break. It may be readily grown from the seed 

 and easih^ transported. The Apennine species mav grow to be 

 over 120 feet in height. 



The generic name Larix comes from the Celtic word lar meaning 

 fat, — evidently given because of the resinous substance produced 

 from the bark. 



''All of the larches grow with straight, rather slender trunks 

 which are covered with thick, rough, scaly or furrowed bark. The 

 branches are slender, usually horizontal, but sometimes ascending. 

 The branchlets are pendulous, slender, elongated. They are 

 roughened by short, scaly budlike branches. The buds are small 

 and covered by broad, shining, brown scales. These scales remain 

 for a time, leaving ringlike scars at the base of the newly-formed 

 twig. The flowers appear in May with the leaves. The staminate 

 ones are borne on short, leafless lateral branchlets, somewhat oblong 

 and short-stemmed-many spirally arranged short-stalked, two 

 celled anthers, opening cross-wise or diagonally. The pistillate 

 flowers are lateral, on leafy branchlets of the previous season. 

 The base is surrounded by inner scales of buds, and a few spiral 

 thin scales with two inverted ovules at the inner base. The bracts 

 are paper-like, long-tipped, longer than the scales, and scarlet in 

 color. The cones, which remain on all winter, are erect and rather 

 small and short-stalked. At the base of each fertile scale are two 

 nearly triangular seeds, rounded at the sides, light brown and rather 

 shiny. Leaves are deciduous, and two resin ducts are located close 

 to the epidermis." 



