THE WILLOW FAMILY. 113 



are flattened laterally; deltoid-ovate, taper-p(iinted at the apex and scjuartd at the 

 base. Irregularly and coarsely serrate, with incurved teelii ; when young, stickv, 

 fragrant like balsam ; occasionally pubescent underneath ; at maturity bright green.' 

 smooth and glossy above, paler below ; ribs whitish on both 'sides ; tliick, 

 Fhnotrs : dioecious: growing in catkins, and apjjearing before the leaves; the 

 fertile ones sometimes a foot long ; their scales cut-fringed. Sloilc calliiis : 

 growing on stout stems ; dense. Sccu/s : covered with a whitish or rusty coloured 

 substance. 



We nuist indeed be tip with the early birds to learn in the sj^rin:^- the 

 ways of the poplars. Then they so stuklenly cast off their btid scales ; 

 develop their downy flowers ; and altogether chani^e their appearance as 

 they come into leaf that one is fairly in a whirl with watciiin^- them. The 

 pendtilous aments of the Cottonwood have in fact for some time a i];-ood turn 

 in the wind before the leaves begin to show; while these latter as they tmfold 

 emit a balsam-like fragrance and are covered with a gummy substance. With 

 its ashy grey stem and bright, fluttering leaves which turn in t!ie autumn to a 

 brilliant yellow, the tree appears among our silva an individual so striking 

 and beautiful that it must call largely upon the admiration of all. It grows 

 in a wild state along the banks of streams where it rapidly attains a free and 

 full development. In cultivation it is also seen having been extensively 

 chosen for planting, As the wood it bears is soft and not suitable for many 

 purposes it is largely made into paper pulp. 



DOWNY POPLAR. RIVER OR SWAMP COTTONWOOD. 



rdpuliis heto'opJiylla. 



FAMILY SHAPE HEIGHT RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Willow. C>('7v>i nii>>-07i\ rou'i-l- 40-8 lyVc/. Crorff/n, Louisiana and Aprils May. 



topped : branclics, irregular. Mississippi to Connecticut. 



Bark : reddish brown ; rough ; and broken into long, narrow plates. LcoTm : 

 large; with long, round i)etioles ; rounded ovate, with blunt apex and squarely- 

 cordate base, the lobes of the base often overlapping a small portion of the leaf-stem ; 

 serrate, with obtuse and incurved teeth. When young the leaves are covered with 

 a white wool which falls as they mature ; the veins and petioles, however, always 

 retain traces of this down. Siaminat,- catkins : very large ; dense ; drooping. 

 Pistillate ones : raceme-like ; loose. Capsules : splitting when rijie into two re- 

 curved sections and allowing the tufted seeds to escape. 



Besides the strong, attractive personality of these trees there is little in 

 nature more beautiful than the aments of the pistillate ones when their cap- 

 sules are opening that the seeds may escape. WMth tufts of cream coloured 

 white hairs which are silky and soft these minute seeds are enveloped, and 

 so they are borne on the breezes in much the same way as sails uphold a 

 ship. When ripe the capsules are golden brown while a peep into them 

 shows that they are lined with lemon-yellow. The black poplar as the tree 

 is also popularly called was early known to science, it having been des- 

 cribed by Mark Catesby in 1731. One striking characteristic it possesses 



