TREES GRCJWlNCi IN MOIST SOIL. 



141 



almost sessile, long ovate or lanceohite Icaricts, tai)er-poiiitecl at the apex and 



Eointed or rounded at the base. Finely st;irate; Ijriglit green above; i)aler 

 elow and glabrous on botli sides. Mcwc-rs : small; wliite; growing in large 

 flat cymes, as many as a hundred blossoms in some clusters. I'rttit : b'ight 

 red scarlet berries about the size of large peas with a black spot at the apex. 



It is not only in the spriiij^ tliat there is so much of beauty 

 about the trees ; although they tl •■■ seem to be having their 

 revel of mirth and lavishncss. '1.,^, autumn, with its line of 

 purple in the sky, its many tinted mountains and hills, its 

 richly-coloured frnits that are busy scattering their seeds, 

 so beautifully fulfils the promises of early spring that there 

 seems to be about it an even greater charm. I'.ut there is a 

 note of sadness in the autumn, for it sings that the sumn-ier is 

 past. Grim Winter is on his way, and who woidd stay his 

 unerring step as he returns to reclaim his own ? At this season 

 of the year the berries of the mountain ash are cheerful things 

 to look upon. Their shower of scarlet is abundant, and they 

 remain on the trees for a long time. In cultivation the tree is 

 now so frequent and familiar that it is almost a surprise to 

 meet it in its natural habitat. It then grows in low or moist 

 ground ; sometimes even in swamps and cold mountain woods. 

 An identical form of the tree occurs in Japan. 



S. sambucifolia^ Western mountain ash, or elder-leaved 

 mountain ash, has broader and shorter leaflets than those of 

 Sorbus Americana which are doubly toothed and have blunt 

 points. It also grows in moist soil. 



S. aiicuparia, Rowan tree or European mountain ash, differs 

 again in having leaves that are pubescent on both sides, espe- 

 cially so when young. The calyx of its flowers and the pedicels 

 are woolly. 



Rowan tree as it is generally called is reported to have 

 escaped from cultivation on Prince I'Alward Island. Just how 

 it did so is not related ; but it probably hoodwinked the 

 officials or tossed a sleeping draught to the gate keepers, for it 

 has a long established reputation for witchcraft and the power 

 to dispel evil spirits. 



