r 



DECIDUOUS ORNAMENTAL TREES. 215 



several parts of the country ; and the beauty of the tree 

 has thereby been augmented by the interest which it 

 possesses when laden with its long, hairy berries. 



The value of the Paper mulberry, in ornamental planta- 

 tions, arises from its exotic look, as compared with other 

 trees, from the singular diversity of its foliage, the beauty 

 of its reddish berries, and from the rapidity of its growth. 

 It is deficient in hardiness for a colder climate than that of 

 New York ; but further south it is considerably esteemed 

 as a shade-tree for lining the side- walks in cities. In win- 

 ter its light fawn or ash-colored bark, mottled with patches 

 of a darker grey, contrasts agreeably with other trees. It 

 has little picturesque beauty, and should never be planted 

 in quantities, but only in scattered specimens, to give 

 interest and variety to a walk in the lawn or shrubbery. 



The Sweet Gum Tree. Liquidambar. 

 IS'at. Ord. Platanaceae. Lin. Syst. Moncucia, Polyandria. 



According to Michaux,* the Sweet gum is one of our 

 most extensively diffused trees. On the seashore it is seen 

 as far north as Portsmouth ; and it extends as far south as 

 the Gulf of Mexico and the Isthmus of Darien. In many 

 of the southern states it is one of the commonest trees of the 

 forest ; it is rarely seen, however, along the banks of the 

 Hudson (except in New Jersey), or other large streams of 

 New York. It is not unlike the maple in general appear- 

 ance, and its palmate, five-lobed leaves are in outline much 



» a. A. Sylva, i. 315. 



