50 THE HUMAN SIDE OF TREES 



wind to aid them in their love-making. It is this 

 agency which carries the pollen from tree to tree 

 and so makes reproduction possible. The courtship 

 of trees is brief and beautiful. With the trees in 

 full leaf, the flight of the pollen would be almost 

 entirely arrested and the species would be doomed 

 to premature extinction. With most trees the func- 

 tion of the flowers is over just as the leaves are 

 getting into a good stride; nature does only one 

 thing at a time. You may have wondered in early 

 spring to see the ground under certain trees strewn 

 with catkins and even vaguely regretted the storm 

 which has cast them there. The fact is that they 

 have already done their part, and are no longer 

 needed. 



It should not be imagined, however, that the 

 flowering of the trees is confined to the months of 

 March and April altogether. Mother Nature, as 

 if to distribute her flowers evenly throughout the 

 seasons, has caused some of the trees to postpone 

 their blossoming until late in the spring, summer, 

 and even fall. The witch-hazel blossoms very late 

 in the fall, long after the purple asters and golden- 

 rods of autumn have appeared. Though the elms 

 and dogwoods blossom quite early, the linden waits 

 until late. 



When great masses of bright green leaves fill 



