DECIDUOUS ORNAMENTAL TREES. 147 



nate leaves, however, are much more like those of the Aca- 

 cia's, a family of plants not hardy enough to bear our climate. 

 It is a much finer tree in appearance than the common locust, 

 although the flowers are greenish and inconspicuous, in- 

 stead of possessing the beauty and fragrance of the latter. 

 There is, however, a peculiar elegance about its light green 

 and beautiful foliage, which wafts so gracefully in the summer 

 breeze, and folds up on the slightest shower, that it stands far 

 above that tree in our estimation, for the embellishment of 

 scenery. The branches spread out rather horizontally, 

 in a fine, broad, and lofty head ; there are none of the dead 

 and unsightly branches so common on the locust ; and the 

 light feathery foliage, lit up in the sunshine, has an airy 

 and transparent look, rarely seen in so large a tree, which 

 sometimes produces very happy effects in composition with 

 other trees. The bark is of a pleasing brown, smooth in 

 surface ; the branches are studded over with curious, long, 

 triply-pointed thorns, which also often jut out in clusters, in 

 every direction from the trunk of the tree, to the length of 

 four or five inches, giving it a most singular and forbidding 

 look. In winter, these and the long seed-pods, five or six 

 inches in length, which hang upon the boughs at that season, 

 give the whole tree a very distinct character. These pods 

 contain a sweetish substance, somewhat resembling honey ; 

 whence the tree has in some places obtained the name of 

 Honey locust, which properly belongs to Robinia viscosa. 



Another recommendation of this tree^ is the variety of pic- 

 turesque shapes which it assumes in growing up; sometimes 

 forming a tall pyramidal head of 50 or 60 feet, sometimes a 

 low horizontally branched tree, and at others it expands into a 

 wide irregular head, quite flattened at the summit. It does 

 not produces suckers like the locust, and may therefore be in- 



