PRUNUS VIRGINIANA, L. 125 



oblong-lanceolate, finely serrate; teeth sharp-pointed, some- 

 times incurved ; apex acuminate ; base obtuse or roundish , 

 midrib depressed above ; leafstalks short, channeled ; stipules 

 falling early. 



Inflorescence. June. Appearing with the leaves, in lateral 

 clusters, the flowers on long, slender, somewhat branching 

 stems ; calyx 5-cleft ; segments thin, reflexed ; petals 5, white, 

 obovate, short-clawed; stamens numerous ; pistil 1; style 1. 



Fruit. About the size of a pea, round, light red, thin- 

 rneated and sour : stone oval or ovate. 



Horticultural Value. Hardy throughout New England ; 

 prefers a light gravelly loam, but grows in poor soils and 

 exposed situations ; habit so uncertain and tendency to sprout 

 so decided that it is not wise to use it in ornamental planta- 

 tions ; sometimes very useful in sterile land. A variety with 

 transparent yellowish fruit is occasionally met with, but is 

 not yet in cultivation. 



PLATE LXIII. PRUNUS PENNSYLVANIA. 



1. Winter buds. 



2. Flowering branch. 



3. Flower with part of perianth and stamens removed. 



4. Petal. 



5. Fruiting branch. 



Prunus Virginiana, L. 

 CHOKECHERRY. 



Habitat and Range. In varying soils ; along river banks, 

 on dry plains, in woods, common along walls, often thickets. 



From Newfoundland across the continent, as far north on the 

 Mackenzie river as 62. 



Common throughout New England ; at an altitude of 4500 

 feet upon Mt. Katahdin. 



South to Georgia ; west to Minnesota and Texas. 



Habit. Usually a shrub a few feet high, but occasionally a 

 tree 15-25 feet in height, with a trunk diameter of 5-6 inches; 



