"Arborvitae stretch their palms like Holy Men in Prayer." 



THE ARBORVIT^: 



Arborvitae. Leaves are flat as though 

 they had been pressed. 



The Indians used to call this tree 

 the feather tree, because it has 

 flattened branches, with flattened 

 leaves. The leaves are very small 

 and look as if they had been 

 pressed; they appear somewhat 

 like a fan or feather. We often 

 hear the arborvitae spoken of as the 

 cedar or the tree of life, because it 

 looks somewhat like that tree. On 

 close examination, however, we 

 find that the arborvitae has leaves, 

 larger, flatter and more spreading 

 than the cedar. The cedar has no 

 cone, but a berry-like fruit of a 

 brownish-purple color, which we 

 call cedar berries or Juniper berries, 

 while the arbovitae has very small, 

 true cones of a light brown color. 



We generally see the arbovitae 

 grown in hedge rows and very 

 often in cemeteries. The name of 

 this tree means the tree of life (ar- 

 bor, tree; vitae, of life). The flaky, 

 stringy bark is another good sign 

 for recognition. The leaves and 

 wood have a charactertistic odor 

 which is very pleasing to man, but 

 not to the moth, and so it is used 

 for making chests and closets. 



Its native home is in cool, moist 

 areas and it is therefore often 

 found in swamps, but it will do well 

 in drier soils. The arborvitae can be 

 well recommended as a hedge plant 

 and as an ornamental tree. If 

 properly treated it will grow from 

 cuttings. 

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