386 FOKEST TREES OF THE PACIFIC SLOPE. 



A popularly little known evergreen species, occurring mainly as a very low 

 bush producing dense thickets, and only occasionally and in protected places 

 becoming a tree from 10 to 20 feet high, with a very short, stocky trunk from 

 8 to 15 inches through ; sometimes taller and thicker. The crown, open and 

 irregular, is composed of many wide-spreading limbs and stiff twigs. Year-old 

 twigs are clear red-brown and more or less downy — densely so at first. Mature 

 leaves (evergreen) are thick, leathery, usually of one simple blade (fig. 181) ; 

 sometimes (compound) consisting of three leaflets (fig. 181) ; borders of leaves 

 slightly curled toward tbe under side ; smooth on their top sides, paler yellow- 

 ish green beneath and somewhat downy on the veins and leaf stems. Leaves of 

 one season's growth persist about two years. Mature fruit (fig. 181), ripe in 

 late summer and few in number, is circular or oval in outline, flatfish, and 

 densely covered with deep red, fine down, the thin, sticky, resinous pulp covering 

 a smooth, hard, pale brown stone (fig. 181). Wood red, heavy, hard; with very 

 thin, light colored layer of sapwood. It is sometimes used locally for firewood, 

 for which it is said to be very excellent. The beautiful, rich, red color and good 

 working quality of the heartwood renders it suitable for small ornamental work. 



The shrubby form is useful as an enduring chaparral cover on exposed sea- 

 coast sands, where few other shrubs are able to exist. 



Longevity. — Not fully determined. One tree 2l£ inches in diameter showed 

 an age of 62 years. 



RANGE. 



Coast of southern California (from Santa Barbara) to southern Lower California 

 (Magdalena Bay) ; Santa Barbara and Cedros Islands. 



OCCURRENCE. 



Low mountain and foothill slopes, and on exposed seacoast bluffs : in dry sandy and 

 gravelly soil ; also in sheltered coves and gulches. Forms extensive dense thickets of 

 pure growth (low shrub) in very exposed places; in groups or small patches as tree in 

 protected sites; sometimes with Rhus laurina. 



Climatic Conditions. — Similar to those of Torrey pine. 



Tolerance. — Undetermined : probably very tolerant. 



Reproduction. — Abundant seeder. Seedlings frequent, sparsely distributed, or often 

 very numerous where washing has covered seed. 



Family ACERACE^. 



This family consists mainly of trees, comprising such widely distributed 

 and well-known economic and ornamental representatives as the maples, and 

 also one Asiatic genus. Some of them are large, commercial forest trees, pro- 

 ducing very useful timber, and the sap of several yields hard sugar, the making 

 of which is an important North American industry. Further characters of the 

 family are included under the following, its principal genus. 



ACER. MAPLES. 



The maples embrace all of our representatives of the family Aceracene, which, 

 with the exception of box-elders or ash-leafed maples, are universally called 

 maples. Maples are characterized by usually simple, single-bladed leaves (figs, 

 182 to 187) or by compound leaves with from 3 to 5 leaflets (fig, 188). Leaves 

 of both types always occur in pairs on the twigs. The leaves of all maples are 

 shed in autumn. The flowers, which appear before, with, or after tbe leaves, 

 are, in some representatives, male (by abortion of female organs) or are 

 female (by abortion of male organs), each kind being borne on separate trees; 

 in other cases, blossoms of these types occur on different parts of the same tree 



