PRUNUS NIGRA 185 



friend, Professor Charles A. Davis, of Michigan, finds 

 two forms, which he distinguishes a> follows: "The 

 large-flowered Form is the more common, and blooms 

 about a week or even ten days before the other, and 

 usually before the leaves begin to appear. The small- 

 flowered form I have never found until this spring, 

 when I came upon a clump of it in full bloom, and at 

 once became interested in it because of its decided dif- 

 ferences from the other and common form. The trees 

 were larger, more spreading, and with a much rougher 

 bark than the large-flowered form; and a number or' 

 the trees bore flowers with a decidedly yellowish tint, 

 which was very noticeable from a shorl distance. The 

 fruit was late, maturing the middle of September, and 

 was reddish, almost purple in very ripe specimens, with 

 a whitish bloom, Bmall and rather palatable." 



Aiton described his Prunus nigra in "Hortus 

 Kewensis," in 1789, from a tree growing in England. 

 Il< did not know Marshall's previous description. In 

 1808, John Sim- figured what he supposed to be the 

 same plant in the "Botanical Magazine." There is 

 little in either of these descriptions which can be con- 

 strued as delimiting the plant from Marshall's Prunus 

 Americana. Perhaps tin- onlj designative characters 

 at-f tin- "petiolis glandulosis," ami tin- "glandular- 

 toothed" calyx segments. Sis years ago, in my 1ml- 



rtbed Prunu followi Hort.Kew.il II 



ovatli tenmlnatls, 

 - biglaodnli 



Block Cbi 



' 'imily .•■ 1 1 . 1 : 

 n. April 



■ ti in tli<' N:iinr;il Hlitory UoMoni, nt South 



nd a dowering branch 



lillng I'runuM 

 niyra. 



