153 



CERASUS, 



CHERRY TREE. 



GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 



CHERRY TREE is a generic term common to a family that covers different species & 



varieties, all of which have the following properties: 



1°. The trunk & branches of all cherry trees are covered with four layers of bark. 

 The first one that covers all of the others is tough, strong, & firm. The second is also 

 tough but thinner & not as hard as the first. The third is very thin, spongy, & has almost 

 no body. The fibers in these three layers of bark are oriented transversely, circularly, or 

 spirally. The fourth one is a white spongy material in which the fibers are oriented 

 lengthwise along the branches. 



2°. All cherry trees have three kinds of buds: vegetative buds, leaf buds, & 

 fruiting buds. The vegetative buds are smaller & more pointed than the others & usually 

 are located more or less at the tips of the branches that bear them, depending on the vigor 

 of the tree. Since they're there only to propagate the branches, this is the only kind of bud 

 found on a young tree. The leaf buds are a bit bigger & blunter than the vegetative buds. 

 They're located all along young branches & mainly on small branches that are short, 

 thick, not very smooth, or somewhat uneven. Eight or ten leaves emerge from these buds. 



