78 Muhlenbergia, Volume 9 
THE CONIFERS OF THE CHARLESTON 
MOUNTAINS, NEVADA 
By A. A. HELLER 
The period between July 25 and August 7, 1913, was spent 
by me in Lee canyon in the northern part of the Charleston 
mountains, Clark county, southwestern Nevada, where camp 
was established at an abandoned sawmill site, altitude 8000 feet. 
Since I intend to publish a full report on the flora of that re- 
gion, no description of the vicinitv will be given here, further 
than the statement that it is probably the most favorable place 
for botanical work, being in the heart of the mountains, sur- 
rounded by the culminating peaks, which average close to 
11000 feet, with Charleston peak running up to 11800 feet. 
PINUS PONDEROSA Dougl.; Lawson, Man. Agr. 354. 1836. 
This species begins to appear at a little under 8000 feet on 
the floor of Lee canyon, and is the prevalent tree up to 9500 
feet. It forms an open forest in the canyon. Nearly all of the 
easily accessible trees have been cut in the vicinity of the saw- 
mill site, and a number of fine logs four and five feet in diaim- 
eter are lying near the ruins of the mill, which was destroved 
by fire several years ago. Hundreds of other logs are scattered 
through the forest, all apparently sound and fit for lumber. 
The trunks in general display the characteristic broad 
plates of fonderosa, but there are many examples of the “black 
jack” tyye with darker bark, deeper fissures, and less regular 
plates. There is great diversity in the thickness of the bark, 
some of the largest trunks having it barely an inch thick, while 
on others it is three or four inches thick. The cones vary con- 
siderably in size, the largest observed being four inches long, 
two and three-fourth inches broad at the base, the sinallest two 
and three-fourth inches long, two inches broad. There is also a 
corresponding diversity in the prickles of the cone scales. On 
many of the larger cones the prickle is exceptionally well de- 
veloped, gradually tapering to a slender point from a broad and 
stout base, the whole forming a prominent cusp. Certain of 
the small cones have very small and slender prickles with a nar- 
