157 



Buds silky white pubescent; leaves entire; fruit fleshy, de- 

 hiscent 1 Magnolia. 



Buds glabrous; leaves lobed; fruit a cone of dry carpels, in- 

 dehiscent 2 Liriodendron. 



1. MAGNOLIA. THE MAGNOLIAS. 



Magnolia acuminata Linnaeus. CUCUMBER TREE. Plate 66. 

 Large trees with furrowed bark which is gray and much resembles the 

 tulip tree except the ridges are shallower and closer; twigs downy at 

 first, becoming glabrous or nearly so and a light to a cherry brown by 

 the end of the season ; leaves oval, average blades 15-22 cm. long, rounded 

 to truncate at the base, abruptly short-pointed, pubescent on both 

 sides at first, becoming glabrous above, and remaining pubescent be- 

 neath, rarely entirely glabrous; flowers about 6 cm. long, bell-shaped, 

 pale yellowish-green; fruit cylindrical, 5-7 cm. long, 1-2 cm. diameter, 

 the large scarlet seeds begin to push out of their receptacle in September; 

 wood light, soft, not strong, close-grained and durable. 



Distribution. North shore of Lake Erie, western New York, 

 eastern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois and along the Ap- 

 palachian Mountains to southern Alabama and west to Arkansas. 

 It doubtless occurred in all or nearly all of the counties in southern 

 Indiana south of a line drawn from Franklin to Knox Counties. It no 

 doubt was extremely local. For instance a pioneer 81 years old who 

 had always lived in Washington County told me that there were two 

 trees on his farm near Pekin, and these were the only two trees he knew 

 of in the vicinity. These trees were popular because the neighbor? 

 came for the fruit to put into whisky for making bitters which were a 

 specific for all ailments. I have seen only a shrub on the Forest Reserve 

 in Clark County. On a beech and sugar maple ridge about 4 miles 

 northwest of Medora in Jackson County on the Geo. W. Scott farm two 

 trees were still standing in 1915. Mr. Scott, a pioneer, said the species 

 was found on the ridge for about 2 miles and that there were about a 

 half dozen trees to the acre, and the largest was about a meter in diam- 

 eter. It is known in two other places in this county. A tree is still 

 standing in Lawrence County on the Sam Mitchell farm 2^ miles 

 south of Bedford. Mr. Mitchell is a pioneer and says that a few trees 

 were found in the vicinity on the ridges. It has been reported for 

 Franklin, Floyd and Jefferson Counties. There is hearsay evidence 

 that it occurred in other counties. 



Remarks. The cucumber tree has been too rare in Indiana to be of 

 economic importance. The greatest interest with us is its distribution. 

 The uses of the wood are similar to that of tulip with which it is bo- 



