454 



The Thorn Trees 



slightly hair}' above when young, becoming smooth, thick, dull gray-green; midrib 



and veins strongly sunken in the upper 

 surface; leaf-stalks shghtly winged, i to 

 2 cm. long. The flowers are about 15 

 mm. wide in many-flowered, woolly-hairy 

 cor}'mbs; calyx-tube short-hairy, the lan- 

 ceolate pointed lobes less so; stamens 

 about 20; anthers white to pink; styles 3 

 to 5. The fruit ripens late; it is short- 

 oblong to subglobose, 12 to 25 mm. thick, 

 dull red, yellowish green to bright yellow, 

 dotted; calyx-lobes spreading; flesh firm, 

 dr}-; it contains 3 to 5, usually 3 or 4 

 nutlets, 8 to 9 mm. long, 8 to 10 mm, 

 thick, with ridged backs and pointed ends. 

 This species is also ver)^ variable. 

 The variety aurea Aiton, has yellow fruit, 

 lighter anthers, and slightly smaller nutlets than the type. Variety canescens Brit- 

 ton is a form with whitish woolly-hairy leaves and corj^mbs. 



Fig. 398. Large-fruited Thorn. 



9. CAUGHNAWAGA THORN - Crataegus suborbiculata Sargent 



This thorn occurs about the hmestone ridges of the Caughnawaga Indian 

 reservation and on the island of Mon- 

 treal, Quebec. It is a tree from 5 to 

 6 meters high, with spreading branches, 

 forming a broad flat-topped crown; 

 the twigs are smooth and are armed 

 with straight or curved chestnut-brown 

 spines, from 3 to 5 cm. long. 



The leaves are ovate-orbicular, 

 from 2 to 7 cm. long, and from 2 to 6 

 cm. wide, the apex pointed, the base 

 broadly wedge-shaped, doubly toothed 

 or often lobed above the middle, thin, 

 smooth with impressed veins and dull 



Fig. 399. Caughnawaga Thorn. 



dark green above, paler beneath; leaf-stalks winged above, glandular, i to 2 cm. 

 long. The flowers are about 2 cm. broad in several-flowered smooth corymbs, 

 calyx- lobes Hnear, long- pointed, with remote glandular teeth; stamens about 20; 

 anthers rose; styles 4 or 5. The fruit ripens very late, is subglobose, about 2 cm. 

 thick, dull green becoming tinged with red; flesh yellow, dry and hard; calyx- 

 lobes spreading; it contains 4 or 5 nutlets from 6 to 7.5 mm. long, the nest from 8 

 to ID mm. thick, the nutlets shghtly ridged on the back. 



