122 PLANT LIFE OF ALABAMA. 



of casttTii NOrtli ("iiioliiia :iihI extends wcstwaid ahm^'' llic (Julf coast 

 to ct'iitnil 'l\'.\us and norllicrn Mexico. In tlie(iult" States the live 

 oak is rarely found al)o\'e the thirty-tirst parallel of latitude. Of tlic 

 nia^nilicent j^ion cs which once lined the .shores of the Gulf and its 

 numerous inlets, hut few remain. Fi'om its native hammocks this tree 

 was transplanted to adorn and shade the abodes of the i-arliest settlers. 

 Trees planted about .seventy-five years ago, now f re(juently met with in 

 the suburbs of Mobile and at the older country seats, are from 2 to 3 

 feet in diameter and from <!0 to TO feet in height, their sturdy trunks 

 sending out massive horizontal limbs at a distance of from 10 to .some- 

 times 15 feet above the ground, their shade frequently covering an 

 area nearly 100 feet in diameter. 



In these hammocks the magnolia attains its highest development, in 

 diameter rivaling the Cuban and loblolly pines, with which it is often 

 associated, and accompanied by the laurel oak, water oak, and beech, 

 all draped with the wreaths of Spanish moss. 



Of small trees and shrubs occurring here may be enumerated: 



OaiiKuiflais americanus (American olive, P;/ri(s anguslifoUa {?<outhern crab apple) .^ 



devil wood). Crat(iegu.s (tpiifolia (haw).' 



Ilex vomitoria (yaupon).' Cndaegus viridis (haw).* 



i/er opara (common holly).' CInonanthus nrginica (Northern fringe 



Myrica cerifera (wax myrtle) .' tree) .' 



Zanthoxylum dava-herculis (Southern Vaccinium arboreum {iarkleherry) .^ 



prickly ash) . Ilex caroliniana (holly) . 



Pruiim umbellaia (prairie plum) . Ilex coriacea (holly). 



The evergreen American olive, rarely seen among the pine hills, 

 occurs here frequently. The last two hollies are shrubs which, 

 together wuth the others mentioned, form a dense undergrowth. 



Where the hammocks merge into the alluvial lands, the soil becom- 

 ing of a semi-swampy condition, the silver-bell tree {Mohrodendron 

 {IlalexHi) dipturmii) is found, most frecjuently with swamp dogwood 

 {CcyiTius stricta)^ interspersed with titi {C'liftouia iiLonoplujlla)^ leather- 

 wood {Oyrilla racemiflora), holly {flex cassine) and blue palmetto 

 {Sahal adansonll), evergreen fetter])ushes {Pieris nit Ida ^ Leiicothoe 

 axiUarls) forming the brushy soil cover. In the liana formation, Vltis 

 cinerea mostly takes the place of the smnmer grape, and Sagaretia 

 '//u'c/iau:ru\ which in the open and in dr}' soil is a straggling shrub 

 ♦) to 8 feet high, and is not rare on the coast from South Carolina to 

 Florida and Mississippi, in these woods assumes the habit of a robust 

 climl)er, ascending trees of great height. The stout root clim])ers 

 Decumaria harhara and the Virginia creeper are common. The 

 American wistaria {Krauhnia fnitescens)^ with its compound racemes 

 of sky-blue flowers, adorns the lower borders of the hammocks, which 

 are further enlivened b}' the flame-colored flowers of the woodbine 

 {Lonicera sempei'vireTis)^ and, very early in the spring, by the golden 



' Found also in the Carolinian area. 



