004 



AMERICAN FOREST TREES 



South Carolina. It follows the coast to Texas, and runs north through 

 Louisiana to central Arkansas. Its range has been greatly enlarged 

 by planting, and the northern winters do not kill it on the southern 

 shores of Lake Erie. The largest trees are about thirty feet high and six 

 inches in diameter, but the growth in most places is shrubby. Leaves 

 are four or five inches long and three or four wide. Flowers are one inch 

 long and are borne in profusion. They constitute the tree's chief value 

 as an ornament, though the foliage is attractive. The bloom lasts a 

 month or six weeks, from the middle of March till the last of April. 

 The fruit has two wings instead of four, as with silverbell, but occasional- 

 ly two rudimentary wings are present. The wood is light, soft, strong, 

 color light brown, with thicker, lighter sapwood. The small ness of the 

 trunks makes their use for lumber impossible. The species is valuable 

 for ornamental purposes only, and has been planted both in this country 

 and Europe. It has a number of names by which it is known in different 

 localities, among them being cowlicks in Louisiana, and silverbell tree 

 in the North where it has been planted outside of its natural range. 



