100 PLANT LIKK OF ALAHAMA. 



tlicsc iH)liiii(l>. wliicli, Ix-iiij^- rich in liiiiiiiis. as a I'csult of the rcju'tioii 

 of its calcari'oiis »(mstitu»'tits upon \ ('{^'•(.tuldr matter, closely rcsomhlos 

 the «Miually j)ro(liictiv(^ soil of the western treeless prairies. Before 

 its .settleiiiciit hy whites this re<iioii was harj^ely covered hy forests of 

 a decithnlly inesopliile character, mostly of hardwood trees, in some 

 localities mixed with i"ed cedar. On the fertile uplands the forest has 

 been almost entirely icmoved; the >)ottoms of the Alabama and Toni- 

 bit^bee rivers and their lart^est tril)utai'i(\s, where sub]'(M*t to overflow, 

 are still heavily timl»ered with a mesophile, growth of cow oak, over- 

 cup oak {Qiiercus lyrata)^ laurel oak {Qiiercna Imirifolia)^ water oak, 

 red or sweet gum — in such perfection as this tre(> attains only in the 

 Atlantic forests of the lower latitudes — beech, mockernut {Hiroria 

 alha)^ and bitternut hickory {Ilicoria minima)^ all draped with Spanish 

 moss. A fine elm is also frecpiently met with here of a stui'dy growth, 

 often fully 2 feet in diameter, the branchlcts covered with corky fiat 

 expansions of the bark. Although not seen in flower or fruit this 

 tree certainly is distinct from the Avhite elm {Vhiotx (imericdna)^ and 

 is doubtless identical with the Southern white elm lateh^ discovered by 

 Messrs. Sargent and Canby near Huntsville, and described in the suc- 

 ceeding catalogue. With the rise of the land above overflow tulip 

 trees, linden, mulberry, stately magnolias, hackberr}-, and red bay 

 {Persea horhanica) mingle with the trees of the bottom. The diversitj' 

 of the arboreal vegetation increases further on the broad swells of the 

 uplands with a rich dark soil, as is apparent from the rather scanty 

 remains of their tree covering observed between Uniontown and De- 

 mopolis. On these rich uplands the Texas white oak ( Quercus hrevilolxi)^ 

 commonly known in this section as pin oak, is found most frequent and 

 in the same perfection as in the rich bottom lands of southern Texas, 

 rivaling in size the common white oak. This ))eautiful oak is at once 

 recognized b}" the diverse shapes of the leaves, which frequentl}' vary 

 on the same tree from oblong-lanceolate and entire to broadly ovate or 

 obovatc and obtusely three-lobed at the apex; and also by the small 

 fruit. The post oak, in its best-developed state, is frequently associated 

 with the above. Black walnut, frequently mentioned in the records 

 of earlier times, is at present extremely scarce; in fact, as a timber 

 tree it has disappeared from these forests. The pecan {Hico7'ia pecan) 

 and nutmeg hickory {Hicoria Tnyristicaefonnis) are frequently scat- 

 tered among the oaks throughout the woodlands of this region in the 

 basin of the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers. There can be no doubt 

 about the pecan being indigenous to this region, although heretofore 

 not regarded as a native of the eastern Gulf region outside of the 

 Mississippi and Yazoo deltas. Groves of full-grown trees, which must 

 have been in existence before the arrival of the first white settlers, are 

 remembered by very old inhabitants. A few of these landmarks of 

 the original forest growth still survive, surrounded by their ofispring 



