28 FLORA OF MICHIGAN. 



the deep green. The soil and degree of moisture, the nature of the season, 

 the age and thriftiness of a tree, all tend to modify its appearance. 



To acquire hints as to what trees to set out, and how to arrange them 

 for producing the best effect, one should note the colors assumed in autumn 

 by our trees and shrubs, then like an artist, he can study all the compli- 

 cated or simple combinations possible. 



The favorite views in the case of woody plants will most likely be found 

 along the edge of marshes, or, if viewed at a distance across an open field 

 or a valley, as the trees rise on the hills beyond. 



"Everyone has noticed, in the case of the sugar maple, that on some indi- 

 viduals the leaves are all golden, while on others a portion are scarlet, 

 or that sometimes the leaves on a single branch turn scarlet while the 

 remainder of the tree is still green. Individuals of the scarlet maple differ 

 even more than sugar maples in this respect. On some the leaves are pale 

 yellow; on others they are green with scarlet margins; others are brilliantly 

 scarlet. In western Massachusetts there is one tree of this species, now 

 known from one end of the commonwealth to the other, whose leaves turn 

 from green first to deep, dark purple, and then to the most brilliant scar- 

 let. The leaves upon some trees of white ash turn to a deep, bronzy pur- 

 ple, while in others they turn pale yellow. 



"If the leaves on a particular branch of a maple tree assume a particular 

 color one year, they will continue to do so, year after year, as long as the 

 branch exists. If the leaves of a certain oak are more brilliant than those 

 of any of its associates, they will continue to be so year after year. 



"Planters, therefore, can well select and perpetuate these individuals as 

 the purple beech, pyramidal oak, have been propagated. The nurseryman 

 who will propagate by grafting maples or oaks or elms, selected with refer- 

 ence to autumnal tints of their foliage, will open the way to more effect- 

 ive plantations than have yet been made in this country, and will reap the 

 reward of his intelligence and enterprise. The field, so far as we know, is 

 entirely a new one." Garden and Forest, 1888, p. 410. 



Aside from the deep green colors retained till the hard frosts of autumn 

 by many thrifty specimens, most of our cone-bearing trees, known as 

 evergreens, are the most certain to remain green. Some of these should 

 \)9 selected for autumn planting as a background or "setting" for the 

 picture to be produced by trees of different colors. 



NATIVE TREES AND SHRUBS ^SELECTED FOR THE COLOR OF THEIR LEAVES 



IN AUTUMN. 



a. Green. 



Abies balsamea, Miller. Balsam Fir. After fifteen years it usually loses its beauty. 

 Juniperus Virginiana, L. Red Cedar. Becomes brown in winter. 

 Picea alba, Link. White Spruce. 



" nigra, Link. Black Spruce. A slow grower. 

 Pinus Banksiana, Lambert. Jack or Scrub Pine. 



" resinosa, Ait. Norway or Red Pine. Better than the Austrian. 



" Strobus, L. White Pine. 



Thuya occidentalis, L. Arbor Vitas. White Cedar. 

 Tsuga Canadensis, Carr. Hemlock. Needs protection from the strongest winds. 



b. Brown. 



Fraxinus Americana, L, White Ash. 

 Myrica asplenifolia, Endl. Sweet Fern. 

 Prunus Pennsylvania, L. f. Wild Red Cherry. 

 Pteris aquilina, L. Brake or Eagle Fern. 

 Quercus alba, L. White Oak. 

 Quercus rubra, L. Red Oak. 

 And many more trees and shrubs. 



