190 PROCEEDINGS: BOSTON "SOCIETY NA'ITIIAL HlS'lOliV. 
ance of the valleys and to a certain extent also that of the slopes of the 
mountains. In 1828; according to Bascom (Appearance and Dis- 
appearance of Plants, Proceedings of the Berkshire Historical and 
Scientific Society, 3: 301-315, 1S99), there were in Berkshire 185 
sawmills and 38 tanneries. Pine, Hemlock and Spruce have dimin- 
ished more than the hardwoods. The only places where the original 
flora has remained unaltered are the peat hogs around small ponds and 
deep gorges and steep cliffs where lumbering was impossible. 
The introduction of plants foreign to the County, either from Europe 
or from other parts of the New World, is chiefly noticeable in towns 
and about farm land. Certain weeds, however, follow every highway, 
and even wood roads, and other introduced species have invaded the 
rocky summits of the remotest hills. On the summit of Grey lock, one 
can count a dozen introduced species. Three introduced species 
have spread so widely that they have become characteristic features 
of the landscape. These are the Buttercup {Ranunculus acris), the 
Daisy {Chrysanthemum leucanihemum, var. pinnatifidum) and the 
White Willow {Salix alba, var. vitellina). 
In many parts of the County the clearings and hillside pastures are 
reverting to brush and small timber. Steeple-bush {Spiraea tomen- 
tosa) and Raspberries {Rubus idaeus, var. strigosus) first cover the 
ground, then Birches and White Pines spring up. A rough estimate 
by Mr. Cook, the State Forester, puts the percentage of forested area 
in five Berkshire towns as follows : — 
Touni 
Total 
area in acres 
Per 
centage forest 
Pittsfield 
27,000 
30% 
Sheffield 
32,000 
40% 
Savoy 
25,000 
60% 
Sandisfield 
24,000 
70% 
Florida 
12,800 
85% 
The plants in the following groups are those which reach the limits 
of their ranges in or near Berkshire County. The list is confined to 
species or well-marked varieties whose distribution is well known. 
The geographical range is based on published records and on an exam- 
ination of the collections of the New England Botanical Club and the 
Gray Herbarium. 
(1) Plants that occur in Berksliire County, but have not been 
found native east of the Connecticut River, ranging northwestward, 
westward, or southwestward, and in the case of certain calciphiles 
