4o 



TREES GROWING NEAR WATER. 



Magnolia Virginiana. 



difference which is owing to their lo- 

 cality is that in the north as soon 

 as the leaves are touched by the 

 early frost of November they fall to 

 the ground, while in the south they 

 remain on the tree to welcome the new 

 and unsophisticated ones of the next 

 year. Magnolia Virginiana is one of the 

 very lovely features of the deep New 

 Jersey swamps. Its wood is soft and of 

 no great value, although throughout the 

 southern states it is sometimes used for 

 the making of small wooden utensils 

 and broom handles. 



SOUR GUM. BLACK GUM. TUPELO. 



(Plate IX.) 



Nfssa sylvdtica. 



PEPPERRIDGE. 



FAMILY 



Dogivood. 



SHAPE 

 Branches, horizontal. 



HEIGHT 



30-50 /eel. 



RANGE 

 Southern Maine to 

 Michigan and south- 

 ward to Florida. 



TIME OF BLOOM 

 April-June. 



Bark : grey ; rough ; much broken in small pieces. Leaves : simple ; alter- 

 nate ; entire; with short petioles which are downy when young; ellipti- 

 cal ; dark green above, lighter below ; thick ; the midrib slightly pubescent 

 when young. Flowers: greenish; clustered at the end of an axillary pedun- 

 cle. Staminate flowers : small ; numerous. Pistillate flowers : from three to 

 fourteen and larger. Fruit : dark blue or nearly black ; about one half an 

 inch long and enclosing an ovoid and slightly ridged stone ; acrid to the taste 

 until touched by the frost. 



Although the sour gum tree is of frequent occurrence in the 

 north, it seems to be much better known and loved throughout 

 the south. It is there incidental in many amusing stories and 

 anecdotes. In the north the tree is frequently mistaken 

 for a beech as their spray and foliage are somewhat similar. 

 Quite as early as August its leaves begin to turn a brilliant 

 crimson which almost rivals that of the scarlet maple. The 

 negroes of the south regard the tree with very tender affection 



