16 
a round-topped head and is sometines one hundred feet high, although 
specimens of this size have not been produced in America. It has com- 
paratively smooth bark, smooth pale branches, and lustrous leaves 
with pointed lobes which in the autumn turn clear bright yellow. The 
flowers, which open before the leaves, are greenish yellow, and are 
arranged in compact round clusters. The fruit, which is also in clus- 
ters, is smooth with horizontally spreading wings. This tree is now 
in bloom, and among the trees of large size which can grow in this cli- 
mate only the Red Maple and some of the Willows are more conspicu- 
ous in early spring. It is not surprising that this tree has been such 
a favorite in the United States for it is handsome throughout the year; 
it bears well the hard conditions of city life, and grows better at the 
seashore than most of the native trees. The seedlings of few trees 
have shown a greater tendency to variation, and many of the varieties 
of the Norway Maple have been largely propagated by European nur- 
serymen. There are a dozen of the most distinct of these varieties in 
the Arboretum collection, and among them are some handsome plants. 
The variety coLumnare is one of the best of the trees with fastigiate 
branches although it is broader and less columnar than the form of the 
Sugar Maple with erect growing branches {Acer saccharum, var. mon- 
umentale). One of the handsomest of dwarf trees is the variety glo- 
bosum, a round-topped bush branching from the ground. There is a 
good specimen in the Arboretum collection planted in 1888, and now 
about eight feet high, and broader than tall. Forms of this tree with 
deeply divided leaves are var. dissecta and var. cvcullata, the Eagle 
Claw Maple. These are small trees which are more curious than beau- 
tiful. The most popular of the varieties of the Norway Maple is the 
variety Schwedleri. Early in the season this tree has bright red leaves 
which before summer are dark dull green. The color of the spring 
leaves attracts nurserymen, and this tree has been planted largely in the 
neighborhood of eastern cities. The dull unnatural color of the mature 
leaves makes this, however, an undesirable tree for general planting. 
More attractive is the variety StoLlii with large three-lobed leaves, pur- 
ple as they unfold but later dark green. This is one of the most dis- 
tinct of all the forms of the Norway Maple in the Arboretum collection. 
The Sugar Maple {Acer saccharum) is also in bloom and, although 
the flowers do not make so much show as those of the Norway Maple, 
as they are paler in color and arranged in drooping clusters, they are 
more delicate and better worth close inspection by the lovers of beau- 
tiful flowers. 
An illustrated guide to the Arboretum containing a map showing the 
position of the different groups of plants has been published. It will be 
found useful to persons unfamiliar with the Arboretum. Copies of this 
guide can be obtained at the Administration Building in the Arbor- 
etum, from the Secretary of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 
300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, from The Houghton, Mifflin Com- 
pany, 4 Park Street, Boston, and at the office of the Harvard Alumni 
Bulletin, 18 Plympton Street, Cambridge. Price, 30 cents. 
