54 



spring make this plant unsurpassed in ornamental value, and it 

 is much used in the North for lawn planting. It should be so 

 used with us. The leaves are poisonous to sheep and cattle when 

 eaten. The Kalmia is plentiful along the southern embankments 

 of Black Creek. The largest specimens in the neighborhood once 

 stood at the mouth of Snake Branch, but these are now mostly 

 gone. The finest are now along the creek below the paper mill 

 and at Laurel Land and above. 



Sour wood (Oxydendrum arbor cum (L.) D C). 



A small tree with gray bark (reddish on the younger parts) 

 and alternate oblong leaves with toothed edges. They are about 

 four and one-half inches long and sour to the taste. The small, 

 white bell-shaped flowers are borne in clustered racemes at the 

 ends of the branches, and are very late to appear, opening in 

 Hartsville about the last of June. They are much like lilies-of- 

 the- valley, and if placed in a bowl with fern leaves, they make 

 a most dainty and attractive centerpiece. The tree is not a com- 

 mon one with us, but it occurs rather plentifully along the 

 embankments of Black Creek and in the adjacent woods. The 

 leaves turn a magnificent scarlet in autumn, and for this and its 

 flowers the Sourwood is very highly prized as a decorative tree 

 at the North. I well remember with what pride a Northern 

 friend once showed me a few specimens that he had succeeded in 

 growing on his lawn. Why should we not give more of our 

 affection to the beautiful things that are with us always, rather 

 than be seeking for things new and strange from beyond the seas ? 

 Rarity and oddity can have no place in a true estimate of artistic 

 value. 



Sparkleberry (V actinium arboreum Marsh.). 



A shrub or small tree with gray bark and small alternate 

 leaves that vary greatly in size. They may be less than one-half 

 inch or more than two inches long, but average about one and 

 one-half inch. They are oblong, gray beneath and with minute 

 teeth on the margins. The fruit is a small, dry, sweetish berry 

 that ripens late and hangs on for a large part of the winter. The 

 plant is plentiful in sandy woods that are not too dry. One of 

 the largest specimens I have seen is shown in Plate XV. It is 

 fifteen feet high and eight inches in diameter. It stands near the 

 creek swamp behind the Upper Farm Place. See also the thicket 

 shown in Plate VI. 



