60 



THE FORMS OF PLANTS 



are maple, beech, and apple trees. The Lombardy poplar 

 (Fig. 97) is columnar or fastigiate. Young spruces and 



firs are conical. Heads 

 may be narrow, wide, 

 flat, symmetrical, irreg- 

 ular or broken. 



129. The general leaf- 

 age or furnishing of the 

 top is different for each 

 kind. The top may be 

 dense or thin. The foli- 

 age may be heavy, light, 

 large, small. Compare 

 maples and elms, apples 

 and peaches, and other 

 trees. 



130. The trunk or 

 bole of the tree is one 

 of its most conspicuous 

 features. Observe the 



strict straight trunk of the palm (Fig. 98), and the fork- 

 ing trunks of elms and maples. Observe that no two 

 trees have trunks which 

 are quite alike. The 

 bark is different for each 

 Mnd of plant. 



131. Plants awaken 

 certain thoughts or feel- 

 ings: they are said to 

 have expression. This 

 expression is the source 

 of much of our pleasure 

 in them. Trees are 

 particularly expressive. One suggests restfulness, because 

 of its deep shady top ; another gaiety, from its moving, 



The unbranched trunks of palms. 



93. The plant form in winter. Russian thistle. 



