Handbook of Trees of the Northern States and C^ 



99 



The Lunco li'iif Cottonwood is the least 

 abundant iopie«oiitative of tlio giMius within the 

 United States. Jt is a tree of medium stature, 

 rarely if ever surpassing 50 or tiO ft. in height 

 or 2 or 3 ft. in tliiekness of trunk, with rounded 

 or pyramidal top of stout spreading brandies. 

 The bark of branches and upper trunk is of a 

 pale grayisii brown eolor fissured into narrow 

 Hat ridges. Like the Narrow-leaf Cottonwood, 

 with which this tree was confounded until 

 recently separated by jNIr. Rydberg. the bark of 

 hranches and upper trunk is very smooth and 

 of a pale ash-gray color, but that of the branch- 

 lets differs in being of a light greenish brown 

 color, rather than orange-brown, and its buds 

 are larger, more resin-coated and more curved. 

 It is confined in its distribution, as far as now 

 known, to the banks of streams along the 

 eastern dry foot-hills of the Rocky Mountains 

 from Assiniboia to New Mexico. It is occasion- 

 ally planted as a shade-tree in cities and vil 

 lages of Colorado and Wyoming. 



The wood is light, soft, not strong and suit- 

 able for the uses to which the common Cotton- 

 wood is applied. 



Leaves rhombic-lanceolate, 2-5 in. long:, cnnpa(<- 

 or rarely rounded at base, acnminatc. coarsely 

 crenate-serrate exceptinK at ba.se and apex which 

 arc mostly entire, lustrous dark green above, d.'li 

 green beneath; petioles slender, terete, l-:{ in 

 long. Floircrs rather open loose aments ; staml 

 nate IVj-.l in. long; disk of flower oblique saucer 

 shaped with numerous stamens ; pistillate aments 

 becoming .'5-4 in. long, drooping ; disk ciii)-shaped : 

 stigma laciniate-lobed. FriiH in rather loose 

 drooping aments with oblong-ovoid distinctly 

 pediceled and usually 3-valved capsules. 



