8io 



Yearbook^ of Agriculture 1949 



150. Quaking aspen. 151. Plains cotton- 152. Black cotton- 153. Red alder, 

 wood. wood. 



smooth above, finely hairy beneath. Key fruits in crowded clusters, 1 to 2 inches long, with 

 wing at end. 



Principal uses: Handles, cooperage, and furniture. Shade tree. 



RR. Leaves and usually branches borne singly (alternate). 



U. Leaves aromatic when bruised CALIFORNIA-LAUREL (Umbellularia}. 



149. CALIFORNIA-LAUREL, Umbellularia californica (Hook. & Arn. ) Nutt. (Oregon- 

 myrtle, mountain-laurel, spice-tree). 



Medium-sized to large tree of Oregon and California. Bark dark reddish brown, thin, 

 with flat scales. Leaves aromatic, evergreen, elliptical or lance-shaped, 2 to 5 inches long, 

 short-stalked, wedge-shaped at base, short-pointed, with smooth edges, leathery, shiny 

 dark green above, dull beneath. Flowers yellowish green, %e inch long, in clusters. Fruits 

 rounded, 1 inch in diameter, greenish or purplish. 



Principal uses: Veneer for furniture and paneling. Novelties and woodenware, cabinet 

 work, and interior trim. Ornamental. 



UU. Leaves not aromatic. 



V. Winter buds 1 or none at tip of twig; fruit not an acorn. 

 W. Leaves thin, with edges toothed, shedding in fall. 



X. Leafstalks more than 1 l /z inches long, slender, leaves more or less 

 triangular, rounded at base and pointed at apex; seeds cottony, in long- 

 clustered capsules POPLAR (Populus; see also No. 79). 



150. QUAKING ASPEN, Populus tremuloides Michx. (aspen, quaking asp, trembling 

 poplar, poplar, popple, golden aspen, mountain aspen ) . 



Small to medium-sized tree, widely distributed in Northeastern, Rocky Mountain, and 

 Pacific coast regions and across Canada to Alaska. Bark yellowish green or whitish, smooth, 

 thin; on large trunks becoming black, thick, with furrows and flat ridges. Leaves nearly 

 round, 1 J4 to 3 inches long, short-pointed, finely toothed, smooth, shiny green above, dull 

 green beneath. Leafstalks flat. Seeds rarely produced in the West. 



Principal uses: Pulpwood, boxes and crates, excelsior, and matches. 



151. PLAINS COTTONWOOD,, Populus sargentii Dode (cottonwood, plains poplar). 

 Large tree of Great Plains and eastern border of Rocky Mountains north into Canada. 



Bark gray, deeply furrowed. Leaves broadly oval, often wider than long, 3 to 4 inches long 

 and wide, long-pointed, coarsely toothed with curved teeth, smooth, light green, shiny. 

 Leafstalks flat. 



Principal uses: Fuel. Shade tree. Shelterbelts. 



