(97) 



fluted and often buttressed at the base. It has two kinds of 

 leaves; those on the vigorous young shoots are awl-shaped, 

 about 24 i n - l° n g> an d spreading from the twig. On the old 

 branches the leaves are reduced to tiny scales which are 

 pressed flat against the branches. 



The flowers come out in early spring; those which sub- 

 sequently form the fruits are never found on the same tree 

 as the none-fruiting flowers. The fruits, which are cones, 

 become pressed into a bluish berry-like structure, are %. inch 

 in diameter, and almost smooth. (Plate 133.) 



A single tree of the juniper {Juniperus communis) form- 

 erly grew near the south shore of Staten Island, where it 

 may have been planted; on hillsides from Poughkeepsie 

 northward we find the low juniper {Juniperus nana) as a 

 round shrub scarcely over three feet high. 



Arbor- Vitae Thuja occidentalis 



The arbor-vitae, or tree of life, is popularly much con- 

 fused with the white cedar. It may be readily distinguished 

 by its cones which are oblong and composed of several loose 

 scales, instead of being spherical and with more or less com- 

 pressed scales. In other respects the resemblances are strik- 

 ing and the differences not very apparent. 



In favorable situations it may reach a height of 60 ft. 

 The trunk is continuous or sometimes divided, fluted and 

 often conspicuously buttressed at the base. The horizontal 

 branches frequently curve upwards at the tip. The small 

 scale-like leaves are pressed closely to the frond-like, usually 

 fan-shaped branchlets. 



The flowers are usually reddish-brown, come out early in 

 May and mature during the season. The cones are cin- 

 namon-brown, ripen and shed their seeds in the autumn, but 

 cling to the branches during the following winter. 



Shingles, fence-posts and many other articles are made 

 from the wood of the arbor-vitae, and the highly aromatic 

 twigs and leaves are much prized. It grows in moist situa- 

 tions from New Brunswick to West Virginia and westward 



