Vermont Shrubs and Woody Vines 93 



relationships among the thorn apples in a single rocky pasture 

 may present questions impossible of satisfactory answer at pres- 

 ent. While every beginner in botany should early make the 

 acquaintance of the rose family, it need not discourage him, or 

 even the most advanced student, if forms are found which de- 

 part from the accepted descriptions of species. 



With this warning, an attempt is here made to reduce the 

 characterization of the commoner shrubb-" species to such simple 

 terms as well suffice for their recognition : 



KEY TO GENERA OE ROSACEOUS SHRUBS. 



1. Pistil single, maturing into a single cherry-like fruit. .. .Cherries. 



1. Pistils several, fruit not cherry-like 2 



2. Leaves simple 3 



2. Leaves compound 4 



3. Fruit inconspicuous and dry Hardhacks. 



3. Fruit conspicuous, fleshy 5 



4. Fruit inconspicuous and dry Cinquefoil. 



4. Fruit conspicuous, fleshy (blackberry and raspberry) Rubus. 



4. Fruit conspicuous, a rose hip Roses. 



5. Seeds with hard, bony covering Thorn apples. 



5. Seeds with thin, membraneceous covering 6 



G. Fruit black, flesh puckery and dry Chokeberries. 



G. Fruit red, sweet and juicy Serviceberries. 



CHERRIES. 



There are seven species of cherries and one plum spontane- 

 ous in Vermont, aside from the numerous garden varieties. The 

 plum and five of the cherries were included in bulletin 'jt^, "Trees 

 of Vermont." One kind, the choke-cherry, discussed in the 

 former bulletin, is better described as a shrub but since it was 

 there described and is so familiar a plant it will simply be 

 figured here. The wild red cherry also has often a habit as well 

 termed shrubby as tree-like but that too was described in the 

 tree bulletin and so will here be omitted. There are. however 



