Leaves, Buds, Blossoms, and Branches 67 



each successive pair directly over the pair below? 

 Do you see any advantage in this arrangement? 



Leaves and leaflets. Ash, 

 walnut, locust, and a number 

 of other trees have compound 

 leaves ; that is, each leaf con- 

 sists of several parts, any one 

 of which taken by itself looks 

 like a leaf. Instead of being 

 called a leaf, however, the 

 smaller part is called a leaflet. 

 Leaves and leaflets may be FIG. 39- Paimateiy compound leaf 

 distinguished by the fact that 

 where a leaf is attached to a 

 branch there is a bud ; at the base of a leaflet there is 

 no bud. Buds grow into branches or flowers the follow- 

 ing season, and if there were buds at the base of the 

 leaflets they would fall when the leaves are shed. 



Leaf scars. Examine closely the twigs of maple, 

 elm, buckeye, hickory, or any other trees you may find 

 near your home. You will find on all of them scars 

 left by leaves that were once attached to the twig. 

 Does the size of this scar differ in different kinds of trees? 

 How do you account for the difference ? 



The dots which are so plain on some leaf scars show 

 where bundles of tiny fibers and vessels passed from the 

 stem into the leaf to support the leaf, and to supply it 

 with sap and carry away the food which it has manu- 

 factured to feed the other parts of the tree. These 

 bundles spread out in the leaf to form the principal 

 veins. In compound leaves one bundle may go to each 



