HOSACE.E 395 



length. Flowers \'-}-,' long, appearing in early spring before or as the leaves unfold, on 

 pedicels i'-|' in length, in short nodding silky tomentose racemes, their bracts and bract- 

 lets linear-lanceolate, villose, bright red; calyx-tube campanulate, glabrous or densely 

 hoary-tonientose, the lobes ovate, acuminate or nearly triangular and acute, glabrous or 

 hoary-tomentose on the outer surface, tomentose on the inner surface, reflexed after the 

 petals fall; petals oblong-obovate, rounded or nearly truncate at apex, about ' wide; 

 summit of ovary glabrous. Fruit ripening in June and July, maroon-purple, dry and 

 tasteless, about \' in diameter. 



A tree, occasionally 50-70 high, with a trunk 12'-18' in diameter, small erect and 

 spreading branches forming a narrow round-topped head, and slender branchlets thickly 

 covered when they first appear with long white hairs, soon glabrous, bright red-brown 

 during their first year, becoming darker in their second season, and marked by numerous 

 pale lenticels; usually smaller, and in the south Atlantic and Gulf states sometimes a 

 shrub only a few feet tall. Winter-buds green tinged with brown, \'-\' long, about T V 

 thick. Bark \'-\' thick, dark ashy gray, divided by shallow fissures into longitudinal 

 ridges covered by small persistent scales. 



Distribution. At the north usually on dry exposed hills, on the borders of woods and 

 in fence rows, southward often on the banks of .streams and the borders of swamps; valley 

 of the Penobscot River (Winn and Milford, Penobscot County) and Washington County 

 (Pembroke, M. L. Fernald), Maine; Quebec (near Longueuil, Bro. M. Victorin); valley 

 of the Connecticut River (central Vermont, southern New Hampshire, Massachusetts and 

 Connecticut), and westward through western Massachusetts, New York, southern On- 

 tario, southern Ohio, southern Michigan, and Indiana and Illinois; in central Iowa and 

 southeastern Nebraska (Nemaha County, J. M. Bates), and southward to western Florida, 

 southern Alabama, south central Mississippi, Louisiana westward to St. Landry Parish 

 (near O'pelousas, R. S. Cocks), northwestern Arkansas and northeastern Oklahoma; rare 

 and of small size in the south Atlantic coast-region ; ascending the southern Appalachian 

 Mountains to altitudes of about 2200, not common; abundant and probably of its largest 

 size in western New York and southern Michigan. 



Occasionally cultivated, and the first of all the cultivated species to flower in the spring. 



2. Amelanchier laevis Wieg. Service Berry. 

 Amelanchier canadensis of many authors, in part, not L. 



Leaves ovate to elliptic or rarely lanceolate, acute or acuminate and often abruptly 

 short-pointed at apex, rounded and occasionally slightly cordate or rarely cuneate at 

 base, and sharply and coarsely serrate with subulate callous-tipped teeth, covered when 

 they unfold with long matted pale hairs more abundant on the lower surface than on the 

 upper surface, soon glabrous, dark red-brown until nearly half grown, and at maturity 

 dark green and slightly glaucous above, paler below, usually 2'-2|' long and I'-l^' wide, 

 rarely 3' '-3|' long and not more than 1' wide, with a thin midrib and primary veins, 

 rarely deep green and lustrous above (f. nitida Wieg.); petioles slender, slightly villose 

 at first, soon glabrous, %'-!' in length. Flowers i'-f' long, appearing when the leaves are 

 nearly half grown on pedicels |'-1' in length, in open few-flowered nodding racemes, be- 

 coming much lengthened before the fruit ripens, their bracts and bractlets linear-lanceo- 

 late, slightly villose,' tinged with rose color; calyx-tube campanulate, glabrous, the lobes 

 lanceolate or subulate, long-acuminate, glabrous on the outer surface, tomentose on the 

 inner surface, usually reflexed before the petals fall; petals oblong-obovate, rounded at 

 apex, about $' wide; summit of the ovary glabrous. Fruit ripening in June and July, obo- 

 void to subglobose, usually rather broader than long, about |' in diameter, purple or 

 nearly black, glaucous, sweet and succulent, on pedicels often l|'-2' in length. 



A tree, sometimes 30-40 high, often with a tall trunk 12'-18' in diameter, small spread- 

 ing branches forming a narrow round-topped head, and slender glabrous branchlets red- 

 dish brown when they first appear, rather darker during their first winter and dull grayish 



