330 SYCAMORE 



f essor C. S. Sargent J declares it to be " the most massive 

 if not the tallest deciduous-leaved tree of North America." 



The heartwood is yellowish brown, with thin and light- 

 colored sapwood. It is of medium weight, close-grained, 

 rather tough, very difficult to split, and with very numer- 

 ous, small, but decidedly distinct and conspicuous medul- 

 lary rays. None of our timber trees surpass it in this respect, 

 and when quarter-sawed it is susceptible of a very beauti- 

 ful finish, and hence it is, latterly, being used for cabinet 

 and interior work. Until within the last score of years it 

 was used almost exclusively for butcher's blocks and plug- 

 tobacco boxes. It is difficult to season because of its tend- 

 ency to warp, and it decays quickly when exposed. 



It is an early and prolific seed-bearer. Its well-known 

 ball-shaped fruit hangs on nearly all winter, disintegrating 

 in the spring, the winds scattering the seeds far and wide. 

 Falling in the running streams, they lodge along the bor- 

 ders, in the sand and gravel banks and exposed bars, and 

 large numbers of plants spring up, but they are mostly de- 

 stroyed by the freshets of the succeeding spring. These 

 young seedlings frequently attain a height of eight to twelve 

 inches by fall, and may be secured and planted at once or 

 heeled-in until spring. Spring gathering would be better, 

 but there is danger of their destruction by freshets if left 

 until then. The young plants are well supplied with fibrous 

 roots and their removal and subsequent* treatment are not 

 at all difficult, if set in proper ground. The tree can be 

 grown from cuttings. These should be gathered in the fall 

 and cut about twelve inches long from the current year's 

 growth. They should be heeled-in in a moist place and pro- 

 tected from frost. In such a situation they will callus by 

 spring and growth will generally occur. The callused cut- 

 tings should be planted where the trees are to grow, as 

 plants from cuttings do not generally bear transplanting. 



If the plants cannot be obtained, the seed can be gath- 

 ered in the fall or winter, separated by crushing the ball, 

 1 Manual of the Trees of North America, page 345. 



