December 27, 1912 123 



with quite as long leaves, while long blunt leaves are not infre- 

 quent on trees of the eastern range." 



In this connection it may be noted that last summer young 

 trees were found near Franktown, Nevada, at at altitude of 5600 

 feet having leaves horizontally spreading, while scattered among 

 them were other trees of the same age, growing under identical 

 conditions, but having their leaves upcurved. 



Britton describes the leaves as "flat, linear, 3 to 6 cm. long, 

 pale bluish green, often with a bloom when young, dull green 

 with age, slightly channeled above, rounded or slightly notched 

 at the apex on the lower branches, shorter, thicker, erect and 

 curved on the upper fertile branches." 



The cones are variously described as yellow, green, purple, 

 or brown. With us they are light brown when fully mature, at 

 least the long-persisting ones sometimes found late in November 

 on young trees about thirty-five years old. These are usually 

 not more than two inches long, about half the size of cones from 

 mature trees. Full grown fiesh cones have a greenish tint, due 

 to the coloring of the dense puberulence amounting almost to 

 down, on the apophyse or small exposed portion of the end of 

 each cone scale. This apparently changes to brown with age 

 on the tree, or may be brown from the beginning in some cases. 

 Both sides of the scale, especially near the base, are more or less 

 arachnoid pubescent. 



Since the description given by Jepson in Silvaof California 

 119, is no doubt drawn wholly from Californian material, I give 

 it in full as it is appropriate for our western tree whether it be 

 called Abies Lowiana or Abies concolor. 



"Forest tree 60 to 150 or 200 feet high, with a narrow crown 

 composed of flat sprays and a trunk naked for one-third to one- 

 half its height and i to 6 feet in diameter; bark smooth, silvery 

 or whitish in young trees, becoming thick and heavily fissured 

 into rounded ridges on old trunks and gray or drab-brown in 

 color, in section showing dull brown areas seperated by a coarse 

 light-colored mesh; leaves 2 to 2 ^ ^commonly i to i ^) inches 

 long, flat, often with a median channel on upper side, or on the 

 uppermost branches keeled, a prominent midrib beneath with a 



