20. ABIES NIGRA BLACK SPRUCE. 69 



20. ABIES NIGRA, Pom. 



BLACK SPRUCE, DOUBLE SPRUCE, RED SPRUCE. 



Ger., Schwartztanne; Fr., Epinette noire; Sp., Abeto negro. 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS: Leaves short, needle-shaped, about 6 lines (1.27 cm.) or 

 slightly more in length, 4-sided, and scattered thickly over the branches, pointing 

 every way. Sterile flowers appear in May, having anthers tipped with a rounded, 

 recurved appendage, and cells distinct, opening lengthwise. Fruit an ovoid or 

 ovoid-oblong cone, 1-lf in. (2.5-4.5 cm.) in length, usually recurved, persistent, with 

 inconspicuous bracts and elliptical-obovate scales, which are rigid and persistent on 

 the axis, with thin scales, usually eroded or ragged tip. 



(The specific name, nigra, is the Latin for black.) 



A tree commonly attaining the height of 80 ft. (24 in.), with a straight, 

 columnar trunk of 2 ft. (0.61 m.) or more in diameter, covered with a 

 rather smooth, bluish-brown bark, which flakes off when old in small 

 scales. The top often develops in a pyramidal form, with branches 

 falling below a horizontal line growth. 



HABITAT. Northern United States, Canada and northward, forming 

 in some localities large tracts of forest. It occurs southward as far as 

 Pennsylvania, and sparingly among the mountains to North Carolina. 



PHYSICAL PROPERTIES. Wood light, soft, elastic, strong, compact 

 and satiny, often of slightly reddish tint, and with lighter, nearly white, 

 sap-wood. Specific Gravity, 0.4584; Percentage of Ash, 0.27; Relative 

 Approximate Fuel Value, 0.4572; Coefficient of Elasticity, 109987; Modu- 

 lus of Rupture, 747; Resistance to Longitudinal Pressure, 407; Resist- 

 ance to Indentation, 77; Weight of a Cubic Foot in Pounds, 28.57. 



USES. This timber is of great value in the manufacture of lumber 

 for many uses, especially for flooring, coping, general house-building, 

 ship-building etc. It is used largely for piles and for the spars of ves- 

 sels it is considered invaluable. One very important use is in the manu- 

 facture of sounding-boards for pianos, violins and other stringed instru- 

 ments, for which use the "quarter" grain lumber, i. e., lumber cut on 

 radial section, is always used. It is said by instrument makers that few 

 if any timbers equal the Spruce in value for this use. It is one of the 

 best of timbers on account of its combined lightness and stiffness for 

 canoe paddles, oars for shells, etc. 



A resinous exudation from this tree is valued as a chewing-gum, and 

 meets with such ready sale that the gathering of it is quite an industry, 

 at least in the vicinity of our home in northern New York, from which 

 section hundreds of pounds are gathered annually and shipped to market. 



MEDICINAL PROPERTIES. An essence of Spruce is made by boiling 

 the young branches of this tree in water and evaporating the decoction. 

 It is used in the manufacture of spruce beer, which is a pleasant and 



