The Heaths: the Rhododendrons and the Mountain Laurel 

 3. Genus ARBUTUS, Linn. 



Madrona (Arbutus Men{iesii, Pursh.) Evergreen shrub 

 or tree 40 to 100 feet high, with smooth, reddish brown bark, and 

 smooth red branches. Wood heavy, hard, strong, reddish brown, 

 close grained. Leaves alternate, persistent, entire, rounded or 

 heart shaped at base, oval or oblong, 3 to 4 inches long, smooth, 

 shining above, glaucous beneath. Flowers white, in erect panicles, 

 5 to 6 inches long, monopetalous, ovate, J inch long, perfect. 

 Fruit a globular, many-seeded berry, ^ inch long, orange red, 

 edible. Preferred habitat, well-drained soil in situations protected 

 from dry winds. Distribution, coast region, British Columbia to 

 California; on mountain slopes becoming shrubby. Uses: 

 Valuable ornamental tree in warm-temperate climates. Wood 

 used for furniture, charcoal, and bark for tanning leather. 



"The Madrofia, clad in thin, smooth, red and yellow bark 

 and big glossy leaves, seems in the dark coniferous forests of 

 Washington and Vancouver Island, like some lost wanderer 

 from the magnolia groves of the South." 



No American tree of considerable size equals this one in 

 beauty the year around. It bears large conical clusters of white 

 flowers, above the vivid green of its leathery leaves. The tree is 

 further lightened by silvery leaf linings. The red-brown trunk 

 and bright red branches add a rich colour note, which is intensi- 

 fied when the copious scarlet fruits appear and the two-year-old 

 leaves turn to scarlet or orange in the autumn. Even among 

 the redwoods this arbutus is a tree that commands attention and 

 admiration at every season. The wood tempts the charcoal 

 burner to chop down trees whose beauty ought to save them 

 from destruction. The Japan Current makes them hardy in the 

 west coast regions, and they thrive in the gardens of western 

 and southern Europe. 



The Mexican Madrofia (Arbutus Xalapensis, H. B. K.), 

 similar to the previous species in essential characters, but small 

 in stature, has wandered up along the mountains from Mexico, 

 and grows scattered along the limestone hillsides of western 

 Texas. Handsome as it is, this tree is not yet known in cultiva- 

 tion. The Mexicans use its wood to make stirrups. It is also 

 used for tool handles and mathematical instruments. 



The Arizona Madrona (Arbutus Ari^onica, Sarg.) is strik- 



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