RED-BUD 



The red-bud, commonly called the Judas tree, takes its generic name 

 Cercis from a Greek word for a weaver s implement to which its fruit bears a 

 fancied resemblance. 



There are seven species of Cercis in the world, three of which occur in 

 North America. The eastern species reaches a height of forty to fifty feet, 

 while the western species are smaller and more shrub-like. All species are 

 very ornamental with a profusion of bright pink pea-shaped flowers that adorn 

 the black-barked branches before the leaves appear. The sudden change from 

 bare branches to those covered with beautiful blossoms swinging on little 

 delicate stems is very striking Californians go many miles in the springtime 

 to see the red-bud in bloom and to gather its blossoms. 



After the blossoms go, the heart-shaped leaves and flat brown pods ap 

 pear. The hold of these pods upon the limb from which they hang is very 

 slight, so that a mere breath is sufficient to make them fall to- the ground. 



The California species (Cercis occidentalis) is rarely over fifteen feet 

 in height. It is often cultivated as an ornamental tree, and is used to good 

 effect in grouping with other small trees and shrubs. It is easily handled 

 and thrives best on well-drained soils in semishaded situations. 



RUBBER TREES 



The rubber trees belong to the genus Ficus of which the curious banyan 

 tree, the sacred fig of India, is a member. This tree has a peculiar form of 

 growth, its branches sending out aerial roots which become multiple trunks 

 when they reach the ground. Lateral branches are sent out from these trunks 

 and the tree continues to expand outward until it becomes a forest in itself, 

 the haunt of birds and monkeys who feed on its fruit, a sort of red fig, the size 

 of a cherry. There is a banyan tree in the botanical gardens of Calcutta 

 which has a central trunk over 50 feet in circumference and about 200 pro 

 gressive trunks. On an island in the Nurbudda River in Western India is a 

 tree with 350 large trunks and 3000 smaller ones under which an army of 

 7000 men is said to have encamped. 



The Hindus regard the banyan tree as a symbol of the Deity due to its 

 long endurance and overshadowing beneficence. Solemn festivals are held 



(101) 



