242 THE MAGAZINE OF HORTICULTURE. 



which the Black spruce exceeds it. One remarkable appear- 

 ance to be observed in the spruces, with the exception of the 

 hemlock, is their pendulous foliage, that swings gracefully 

 from their horizontal branches. The hemlock has a droop of 

 the extremities of the branches, without any appearance of 

 formality. The other spruces extend out their horizontal 

 branches stiffly, and from these the smaller branches, clothed 

 with foliage, hang down almost perpendicularly, like fringe. 

 This appearance relieves it of a portion of that stiffness which 

 is so apparent in the young trees, and which marks the Bal- 

 sam fir through all periods of its growth. 



The foliage of the Black spruce is more dense than that of 

 any other species, as the leaves grow very closely upon all 

 parts of the surface of the branches, and are remarkably per- 

 sistent. They do not fall, until, by the growtli of the branch, 

 they are set an inch or more apart. Hence this tree does not 

 exhibit that baldness which we observe in the Balsam fir and 

 the White spruce, as they advance in age. Its whorls, con- 

 sisting of about four branches, are distinct, while the tree is 

 young ; but as it grows older and larger, some of the branches 

 in the whorl become abortive, and irregular ones, between 

 the stages, increase and fill up the intervening spaces. The 

 principal branches at first spring from the tree at a wide but 

 not a right angle. They become gradually horizontal, and 

 lastly, when the tree is old, they bend downwards, but with- 

 out any curve. 



The Black spruce is not a large tree, though in higher lati- 

 tudes, and in a favorable soil, it sometimes exceeds sixty feet 

 in height. Its trunk, which is very straight, tapers gradually 

 from the root to its extremity. The bark is somewhat rough 

 and scaly, of a light brown color, and not furrowed. The 

 cones are pendulous, egg-shaped, about an inch in length, and 

 of a fine purple hue before they are mature. This tree is 

 found in its perfection and in its greatest abundance in high 

 northern latitudes, and forms a large proportion of the forests 

 of the whole tract corresponding in latitude with Maine and 

 Lower Canada. 



The wood of the Black spruce, especially of that variety 



