204: FAMILIAR TREES AND THEIR LEAVES. 



find a specimen with five lobes. Compare my draw- 

 ings, and this difference of type will at once become 

 apparent. The flowers, which precede the leaves, are 

 lio-ht yellowish-lavender ; the seeds follow some time 

 in July ; their wings are large, and set at right an- 



gles. 



This maple I consider remarkable for its beau- 

 tiful details ; its branches are long, spread- 

 ing, and frequently droop enough to 

 serve the term " weeping " — in fact, 

 certain cut-leaved and weeping 

 varieties are sold by the nurs- 

 erymen. The silver maple 

 is most common along river 

 banks, and is found from 

 Maine to western Florida ; 

 westward it extends to the 

 Dakotas and Indian Territo- 

 ry. Its seeds, taking root in 

 sandy river margins, quickly 



, , „ ,, "*•" Cut-Leaf Silver Maple. 



sprout, and before the sum- 

 mer is done the budding leaves contribute a deli- 

 cate ruddy tint to the monotonous buff of the sand. 

 It is a curious fact that dying leaves are often stained 

 with the same ruddy hues in which they appeared at 

 birth. 



The silver maple grows to a height of from 90 to 



