State Board of Forestry. 327 



(Collins); Delaware (Phinney); Fountain (Brown); Franklin 

 (Meyncke); Gibson (Schneck); Jay (M'Caslin); Jefferson (Coulter); 

 Knox (Ridgway); Kosciusko (Clark) and (Scott); Lake (Higley 

 and Radden); Miami (Gorby); vicinity of New Albany (Clapp); 

 Noble (Van Gorder); Parke (Hobbs); Posey (Schneck); Steuben 

 (Bradner); Wayne (Petry and Markle). 



Additional records are: Monroe (Blatchley); Montgomery (Ev- 

 ans); Posey (MacDougal and Wright); Putnam (Cook), (Grimes) 

 and (Lewis and Bridges); Tippecanoe (Coulter) and (Dorner); 

 Blackford, Clark, Decatur, Delaware, Harrison, Huntington, Jack- 

 son, Madison, Marion, Morgan, Parke, Putnam, Ripley, Scott, 

 Steuben, Shelby, Wells (Deam). 



Economic uses. Wood heavy, hard, tough, strong, close-grained, 

 brown, takes a high pohsh. It was used by the pioneers for wedges, 

 mallets, handles for tools and for fuel. No place was found in 

 Indiana where it is now bought for commercial purposes. The 

 bark of the root is used in medicine and the fruit is freely eaten 

 by some species of birds. 



Horticultural value. It is adapted to a moist rich soil; is not 

 easily transplanted; crown depressed hemispheric. In flower it is 

 the most showy of our native trees and for this reason it is much 

 desired for ornamental planting. Several horticultural varieties 

 have been developed, but they are not as hardy as the type. It 

 is used in the planting of borders and because it is shade enduring 

 is well adapted for planting between large trees. 



EBENACE^. The Ebony Family. 

 DIOSPYROS. 



(From the Greek, dios, Jupiter, and pyros, fruit: meaning heavenly fruit). 



Diospyros virginiana Linnaeus. Persimmon. Plate 121. Bark 

 dark reddish-brown to black, deeply and irregularly fissured; buds 

 acute with lustrous purplish scales; leaves alternate, entire, oval, 

 short pointed at apex, narrowed, rounded or cordate at the base, 

 hairy when young, smooth at maturity, at least above, 8-16 cm. 

 (3-6 inches) long and 5-8 cm. (2-3 inches) wide; flowers appear 

 in May or June when the leaves are half grown, greenish yellow, 

 the staminate on one tree and the pistillate on another; fruit de- 

 pressed globose to oval in shape, 2-3 cm. (%-13^ inches) in diameter, 

 reddish-brown or yellow, matures late in the fall, flesh very astring- 

 ejit when immature, sweet when ripe. The fruit varies greatly in 



