The Trees of Vermont 41 



PINACEAE 



Eed Spruce 

 Picea rubra (DuRoi) Dietr. [Picea rubcns Sarg.] 



Habit. — A tree 50-80 feet high, with a trunk diameter of 1-3 feet ; 

 foniiing a narrow, conical crown of slender, spreading branches reach- 

 ing nearly to the ground ; when crowded, usually lacking branches for 

 much of its length. 



Leaves. — Spirally arranged, pointing outward in all directions ; 

 awl-shaped, •4-sided, mostly sharp or thickly taper-pointed, more or 

 less incurved; slender; lustrous, dark yellow-green; ^^-^ inch long. 

 Persistent for several years. 



Flowers. — May ; monoecious ; the staminate in ovoid clusters, 

 about ^ inch long, composed of many spirally arranged, bright red 

 anthers ; the pistillate in oblong-cylindrical clusters, ^ inch long, com- 

 posed of thin, rounded, purple scales (subtended by small, obovate 

 bracts) spirally arranged upon a central axis. 



Fruit. — Autumn of first season, falling mostly during their first 

 winter; pendent, elongate-ovoid, short-stalked cones, 1^4 "2 inches long; 

 seeds about % inch long, dark brown, with short, broad wings. 



Winter-buds. — Ovoid, acute, light red-brown, puberulous, about 

 %(5 inch long. 



Bark. — Twigs at first greenish, with dense, whitish pubescence, 

 becoming light brown and rusty-pubescent ; thin, red-brown on the 

 trunk, flaky with thin scales. 



Wood. — Light, soft, weak, close-grained, pale and tinged with 

 red, with thin, paler sapwood. Page 217. 



Distribution. — Common throughout Vermont especially on the 

 mountain slopes. 



Habitat. — Well-drained uplands ; rocky slopes with thin soil ; 

 sometimes extending down to the borders of swamps. 



Notes. — This is the common spruce of our mountain forests, the 

 vast green expanse of which suggested the names of both mountain 

 range and State. It is not distinguished commonly from the preceding 

 species and both are known as "black spruce." It attains a height of 

 from seventy to one hundred feet and large logs may be three or more 

 feet in diameter. When growing in open fields it often forms a conical 

 head with the branches, especially of the younger trees, brushing the 

 ground. It frequently is planted as an ornamental tree in Vermont, 

 but its slower growth and less symmetrical form make it less desirable 

 for this purpose than the native white spruce or Norway spruce. 



