PINACE^ 95 



Abies concolor, Lindlcy and Gordon. (Fig. 15.) 

 Colorado White Fir. 



Picea concolor, A. Murray ; P. lasiocarpa, Balfour [not Hooker] ; 

 Pinus concolor, Parlatore. Balsam Fir ; Colorado Fir ; Colorado Wliite 

 Balsam ; White Balsam ; Silver Fir ; White Fir. 



A fir 100-150 ft. high, with a gu-th of 9-12 ft. Bark of young 

 trees furnished with resin blisters as in A. halsamea. Young 

 shoots without down, olive-coloured, the second year's shoots 

 greyish or silvery. Winter huds usually larger than in ^. Lowiana, 

 covered with resin which conceals the scales. Leaves curving 

 outwards and upwards or almost vertically arranged on the 

 shoots, 2-3 in. long and i^j-iV in. broad, flattened, glaucous on 

 both surfaces, apex short- pointed or rounded, upper surface 

 slightly convex, not grooved, with faint lines of stomata, lower 

 surface with two faint bands of stomata separated by a green 

 band. Resin canals marginal. Cones 3-5 in. long by IJ in. in 

 diameter, cylindrical, greenish or purple when growing, brown 

 when mature ; scales about 1 in. wide by | in. long. Bracts con- 

 cealed, minutely mucronate. Seed-wing about | in. long. 



Var. violacea. 



The foliage is more glaucous than in the type. 



This fir is closely allied to A. Loiviana and the two are re- 

 garded as forms of one species by some American botanists. In 

 A. concolor, however, the leaves are more obliquely arranged than 

 in A. Loiviana, have entire points, are convex and not grooved 

 on the upper surface and are more uniformly glaucous in colour. 

 In A. Lowiana erect leaves do not occur on the centre of the 

 branch. The cones are similar in size and shape, but in cultivated 

 specimens of A. concolor the immature cones are purple and not 

 chestnut-brown. The distribution of the two trees in America 

 is quite different. 



A. concolor grows wild in the Rocky Mountains of S. Colorado 

 and extends southwards over the mountains of New Mexico and 

 Arizona into N. Mexico. It also occurs in Utah and the extreme 

 S. of California. It was introduced into cultivation about 1873. 



Wood light, moderately strong, without odour, easy to work, 

 whitish in colour, finishing with a good surface, and useful for 

 joinery. It is suitable for boxes for butter, lard, and other 

 provisions that become tainted by contact with odorous woods. 

 The timber is chiefly reserved for home use, but is obtainable 

 from Californian ports. Timber from old trees is often affected 

 by heart-rot. Liquid resin obtained from bark blisters possesses 

 similar properties and uses to Canada balsam. 



It is tolerant of shade and can be used for underplanting thin 

 woods. Its use in Britain is purely decorative. As a garden tree 



