276 OHIO STATE ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 



of the plant. All the leaves are more or less falcate ; their falca- 

 tion varies greatly on the same plant. 



A hybrid between 5. nigra and 5. alba has been reported 

 from New York.* It is said to have the catkins of 5. alba and 

 the leaves of 5. nigra x amygdaloides . Such a cross is most 

 surprising in view of the distant relationship of the parents. It 

 has not been reported from Ohio. 



Salix loxgipes Shuttlew. Ward's Willow. 



This species has not as yet been found in the state ; its near- 

 est reported station is at the falls of the Ohio at Louisville. 

 Though this is some distance south of our territory it is possible 

 that it may be found along the Ohio River. I include it here be- 

 cause of that possibility and in order to make the paper more 

 useful outside the state. Its range extends from Missouri to 

 Washington, D. C, and southward to the Gulf. Dr. Olatfelter 

 says that it is not found like 5. nigra sometimes away frcm the 

 banks of the streams but is strictly confined to them. 



Sometimes it grows into a tree like 5. nigra but much more 

 bushy. Around Washington it is a low shrub reembling 5. 

 cordata surprisingly, considering the remotene r ; < f their relation- 

 ships. The leaves have short stout petioles which with the mid- 

 ribs and larger veins are usually hairy. The blades are extreme- 

 ly variable. Frequently in rank growth, they are auriculate at 

 the base; this character when present segregates them at once 

 from any other of our species. Sometimes they are very long, 

 oblong-lanceolate with straight edges narrowing gradually to the 

 tip; and this again is like no other of our species. More often 

 they are lanceolate with upper surfaces varying from shiny and 

 glabrous to dull and hairy. Sometimes they resemble those of 

 vS. nigra closely except for the glaucous under surface. Or they 

 may be so similar to those of 5. cordata as to deceive even the 

 expert ; often this resemblance is especially well borne out by the 

 under surface which is at times gray glaucous and hairy exactly 

 like that species when grown in a dry place. The two can best 

 be distinguished by the venation which is similar to that cf the 

 rest of the Amygdaleneae except that the marginal is hardly ] er- 

 ceptible and in its place the primaries arcend a long way near the 

 margin. 



From printed descriptions Salix amygdaloides might be con- 

 fused with the present species but they are net very similar. 

 Salix amygdaloides is a much cleaner more shapely tree, never 

 shrubby; its leaves are long petioled, decidedly broader, much 



* Bebb, Abrorcscent Willows of North America 3. Gard. & For. 8:42.> 

 1895. Fig. 58. 



