DRUPACEAE 215 



It is sometimes planted for ornament, and two horticultural 

 varieties have been named. The wood is one of the choicest for 

 cabinet-making, interior finish, scientific instruments, etc., but, 

 as in the case of the black walnut, practically all the best trees 

 have been used up, and there is very little of the wood on the mar- 

 ket now. The ])ark, collected in the fall and dried, is officinal. 

 It has tonic and sedative properties, and an infusion of it is ef- 

 ficacious in pulmonary complaints, and for that reason it is an 

 ingredient of various cough medicines. The leaves when partly 

 wilted are said to be very poisonous to cattle. The flowers furnish 

 honey. Birds are very fond of the fruit, and it can be eaten right 

 from the tree by mankind, but is better when made into jelly. The 

 seeds, like most other parts of the plant, contain a little prussic 

 acid, and for that reason it is best not to swallow them. 



For additional information about this species see Circular 94 

 of the U. S. Forest Service. 



The wild cherry grows naturally on l:)luffs and in ravines and 

 hammocks, where it is pretty well protected from fire. Like sev- 

 eral other trees with similar habitats, it is inclined to become a 

 roadside weed (its seeds being dropped along fences by birds) in 

 some parts of its range, especially northward. It is comparatively 

 scarce in natural habitats, and the following are the only indigenous 

 localities for it that I have noted in Alal)ama : 



IB. Colbert County. 



2B. Walker and Tuscaloosa Counties. 



5. Clay, Coosa, Chilton and Elmore Counties. 



6A. Chilton and Elmore Counties. 



6C. Along Alabama River, Elmore and Montgomery Counties. 



7 (?). Second bottoms at Lock 8 on Warrior River, Hale County. 



lOE. Pike and Coffee Counties; rare. 



12. Along Pea River near Geneva. 



Prunus australis, Beadle. (Biltmore Bot. Studies 1 :]()"2, 1902.) 



A tree something like the preceding, but smaller, and said to 

 differ chiefly in having the leaves broader, and rusty-tomentose 

 beneath. Described in 1902 from ''clay soil at Evergreen," Con- 

 ecuh County (region 11?), and not yet known elsewhere, though 

 according to Mr. Ashe it is common enough around there. 

 Whether it grows only in clearings, or in some natural habitat, 

 does not seem to be on record. 



