BLACK SPRUCE. HE BALSAM. LASH HORN. TAMARAC. 133 



and clustered on the ends of the thick scaly branchlets. They 

 remain on healthy trees about 3 years, but on boxed trees only 

 about two. Tlie sterile flowers are rose colored, appearing about 

 the lirst of April, and tlie large silky winter-buds are white. The 

 cones are light brown, cylindrical or conical-oblong, 6 to 10 

 inches long, and have thick scales armed with a stout blunt spine. 

 A tap-root is developed in early life and is often forked. The 

 root system of old trees' tends to be heart-shaped with the lateral 

 roots penetrating deeply. 



The wood is heavy, hard, strong, tough, coarse-grained, and 

 durable; light red or orange in color; the thin sapwood nearly 

 white. It is widely used for construction of all kinds, interior 

 finish, fencing, railroad ties, etc. Turpentine, tar, pitch, rosin, 

 and spirits of turpentine are obtained almost exclusively from 

 this species. 



The largest bodies of standing long-leaf pine are in Moore, 

 Montgomery, Cumberland, Robeson, and Bladen counties, and 

 probably not more than 50,000 acres still remain unboxed. Wil- 

 mington has for a long time been an important centre for 

 the manufacture of lumber from this species, and much has also 

 been cut in tlie Aberdeen district in Moore and Cumberland 

 counties. 



Picea nigra, Link. 



(black spruce. he balsam. lash horn. TAMARAC.) 



A tree, with spreading branches which form a conical cro\vn, a 

 long cylindrical trunk, and dark brown scaly bark, reaching a 

 height of 90 and a diameter of 4 feet. (Plate XVIII.) 



It occurs trom Newfoundland to Hudson bay, the mouth of 

 the Mackenzie river, and the eastern slopes of the Rocky moun- 

 tains, and south through the northern states to Pennsylvania, 

 Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, and along the Appalachian 

 mountains to North Carolina. 



In this State, where it is confined to the upper slopes of the 

 highest peaks, above an elevation of 5,000 feet, from Elk Knob 

 in Ashe to Clingman's Dome in Swain county, it forms pure 

 forest or toward the summits is mixed with Carolina fir and 



