S 



HEMLOCK 



(Tsuga Canadensis) 



EVEN hemlocks are known in the world, four of them in America. 

 Two of these are in the East, two in the West. The eastern species 

 are the Canadian and Carolinian. The former is Tsuga canadensis, the 

 latter Tsuga caroliniana. The western species are, mountain hemlock 

 (Tsuga mertensiana), and western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla). The 

 word tsuga is Japanese and means hemlock. 



The hemlock lumber in eastern markets is practically all from one 

 species, which is known as hemlock in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, 

 Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, 

 Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, 

 Kentucky, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Ontario. In Ver- 

 mont, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West 

 Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina; in England it is called hem- 

 lock spruce; spruce tree in Pennsylvania and West Virginia; spruce pine 

 in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia; to the 

 New York Indians it was known as oh-neh-tah, which being interpreted 

 means "greens on the stick." 



The range of hemlock extends east and west more than fifteen 

 hundred miles, from Nova Scotia to western Wisconsin; south to Dela- 

 ware and southern Michigan, and along the Appalachian mountains to 

 northern Alabama and Georgia. The original quantity of timber was 

 enormous, for large areas were covered with dense stands. The largest 

 trees are found near the southern part of its range, among the mountains 

 of Tennessee and North Carolina ; but the bulk of the timber has always 

 been in the North. It thrives best in well drained soil, but it likes cool 

 situations and often develops dense forests on northern slopes or in 

 deep ravines; but it maintains a foothold on ridges, on the banks of 

 streams, and around the borders of swamps. 



The cones are very small, about a half inch in length, growing 

 singly from the lower side of the branchlet. Then* scales are rounded 

 and thin, light brown in color. The seeds are winged and even when 

 ripe the cones do not spread apart perceptibly. The seeds escape, 

 however, slowly during the winter following then* maturity. They are 

 very small, and their wings distribute them a hundred feet or more. The 

 seeds germinate best on leaf mold, but the seedling takes several years to 

 thrust its roots deep into the mineral soil. During that time, growth is 

 very slow. A seedling five years old may not exceed five inches in 

 height ; but when its roots have developed, growth is fairly rapid. The 



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