THE VIBURNUMS 115 



berries, on branching red stems, is an attractive color 

 contrast, and the birds flutter in the trees until they have 

 eaten the last one. The fragrant white flowers light up 

 the tree from April to June with their flat clusters three 

 to five inches across. The opposite arrangement of the 

 leaves and that short- winged petiole identify the little 

 tree, whether it grows by the swamp borders, along the 

 streams, or in parks and gardens. At any season it is 

 good to look upon. Its range covers the eastern half of 

 the country, extending almost to the Gulf of Mexico and 

 west into Wyoming. 



The Rusty Nannyberry 



V. rufidulum. Raff. 



The rusty nannyberry is easily distinguished by the 

 rusty hairs that clothe its new shoots and the stems and 

 veins of the leaves. White flower clusters are succeeded 

 by bright blue berries of unusual size and brilliance, ripe 

 in October, on red-stemmed pedicles. The handsome 

 pohshed leaves are rounded at the tips. The wood of this 

 little tree has a very unpleasant odor, but this trait has no 

 bearing upon its merits as a garden ornament. It is 

 found wild from Virginia to Illinois and southward. In 

 cultivation it is hardy in the latitude of Boston. 



The Black Haw 



V. prunifolium, Linn. 



The black haw has the characteristic flowers and fruit 

 of its geniLs, but is smaller throughout than the other two, 

 and its branches are stout. In Euroi>ean parks and gar- 



