WHAT OUR CHRISTMAS TREES ARE 



741 



leaves persist much longer after the trees are cut than on 

 many of our other conifers. The leaves appear to be 

 arranged in two horizontal rows, one on each side of the 

 twig, but a close examination of the twigs will show that 

 they originate along a spiral line which extends around 

 the twigs, but assume a two range position in order to 

 get as much light as possible. 



There is another characteristic by which the Balsam 

 Fir may be distinguished. A careful examination of the 



HOLLY FOR CHRISTMAS 



The leaves of the Christmas holly are deep green, 

 armed with spines along the margin. 



stiff, and 



trunk of a tree will reveal a large number of little blister- 

 like sacs of balsam. If one takes a knife and punctures 

 them the balsam will flow forth freely, or if a knife is 

 lacking, one may take the finger nail and push it into the 

 little blisters and there will flow forth immediately a 

 small quantity of balsam, as clear as crystal. This bal- 

 sam when refined is used in making microscopic slides 

 in our scientific laboratories. It is used chiefly to at- 

 tach cover glasses to microscopic slides. 



In some localities the balsam is collected for medicinal 

 purposes by the inhabitants. It is regarded as an ex- 

 cellent medicine in the treatment of throat and pulmon- 

 ary troubles. I have observed many mountaineers col- 

 lecting the balsam from the blisters on the trees and then 

 store it away for family use. Such home-made remedies 

 are prized far more highly, and are actually of greater 

 value, than many city people appreciate, for the people 

 who use them often live many miles from the nearest 



physician and consequently must depend upon home- 

 made remedies. 



The buds and cones of the. Balsam Fir are also very 

 distinctive. The buds are almost round in outline, about 

 one-sixth of an inch long, clustered at the end of the 

 twig and appear to be covered with a coating of varnish. 

 The cones are from two to four inches long, cylindrical- 

 in outline, and stand erect on the twigs. Their scales 

 fall off soon after they reach maturity and leave a bare 

 central axis. This is an unusual habit among our ever- 

 green trees. 



It is a common practice in the Northwoods to collect 

 large quantities of leaves and use them in filling pillows 

 and cushions, for the leaves when dried emit a very 

 fragrant balsam odor. The wood is soft, does not con- 

 tain resin passages and ranges in color from white to 

 brown. It weighs about 24 pounds per cubic foot and is 

 used extensively in the manufacture of papf r pulp, crates 

 and packing boxes. 



The Balsam Fir is a tree which satisfies many human 

 wants, but the greatest of all its gifts is the Christmas 

 tree. As a Christmas tree it has no superior, and in many 

 localities no other native tree has Christmas tree quali- 

 ties that even approach it. The European Fir, so com- 

 mon throughout many parts of Continental Europe, has 



many charac- 

 t e r i s t i c s 

 in common 

 with our Bal- 

 sam Fir. It, 

 too, has been 

 used for cen- 

 t u r i e s as a 

 Christmas tree. 

 The similarity 

 between 

 these two trees 

 is very 

 marked, which 

 may have 

 helped develop 

 our high re- 

 gard for the 

 Balsam Fir 

 and rate it as 

 the foremost 

 Christmas tree 

 of the eastern 

 United States. 

 There are 

 twenty differ- 

 ent kinds of 

 Spruce trees in 

 the World. All 

 of them are 

 BALSAM FIR BARK beautiful 



evergreen 

 The bark of the Balsam Fir is smooth and , , 



of a grayish tint. trees. T h e i 



