Handbook of Trees of the Nokthern States and Canada. 



305 



The American Smoke-tree is a larger tree 

 than the European species, as it sometimes 

 attains the height of 30 or 35 ft., with a clear 

 trunk 12-14 in. in tliickncss and firm spreading 

 branches. The trunk divides at 8 or 10 ft. 

 from tlu' ground into a few large branches, wliicli 

 form a broad open top. The bark of trunk is 

 of a grayish color and very rough with thin 

 oblong somewhat imbricated scales. It is one 

 of the rarest American trees, being found on 

 rocky slopes singly or in small groves scat- 

 tered among other trees in the limited re- 

 gions indicated on the accompanying map. 

 The Venetian tree with its beautiful plumose 

 bunches of sterile pedicels and fruit, making 

 its top suggestive of a puff of smoke or spray, 

 is a familiar object in ornamental shrubberies. 

 It is a tree vastly improved by selection and 

 propagation upon its native condition, and tlie 

 American tree, while now less profuse in its 

 display of " smoke." than the European tree 

 may be susceptible ^f like improvement, while 

 it has the additional advantage of greater 

 size and more ornamental foliage. 



The wood is ratlier light, a cu. ft. weighing 

 when absolutely dry 40.04 lbs., soft, durable 

 and of a light yellow or orange color and very 

 thin white sap-wood and is used locally for 

 dying orange color.2 



Lrnvrx oval to ohovato. 4-C, in. lonsj. thinish. 

 mostly potiolate hut the lowormost of the season's 

 growth subsessilo, docurrent on the petioles, 

 ronnfled or emarpinate at apex, entire, glabrous, 

 dark green above, paler and pubescent on the 

 midribs beneath. Flntrrrx (.\pril-Ma.v> Vs in. 

 across greenish, in panicles r>-(5 in. long. Fruit 

 drupelets about Vs in. long and prodtioed sparingly 

 among the plumose steril pedicels.' 



1. Syn. lihiis cotinoidcs 

 noidcs (Nutt.) Britt. 



2. A. W., XI, 256. 



3. For genus see p. 445. 



Nutt. 



Cotiniis 



