Am.  Jour.  Pliaroj. 
March.  1893. 
Local  Indigenous  Plants. 
15/ 
in  its  entirety  ;  it  is  very  large,  numerous  and  long,  and  seems  to  extend  in 
almost  a  perpendicular  manner  towards  the  earth's  centre,  as  they  never  return 
nor  twist  in  any  other  direction. 
In  the  order  Urticaceae  we  have  commonly  around  us  by  riversides,  the  Celtis 
occidentalis  or  hackberry,  and  Ulmus  fulva  or  slippery  elm,  both  trees  of 
medium  size.  The  latter  is  pretty  quickly  noticed  by  boys.  The  former 
resembles  it  in  general  appearance,  but  has  a  characteristic  rough  bark  that 
cannot  be  mistaken.  We  have  also  on  our  waste  places  a  good  American 
representative  of  the  foreign  hemp,  and  we  call  it  Cannabis  sativa,  variety 
Americana.  It  resembles  the  species,  though  we  think  the  seeds  of  our  plant 
are  larger  and  the  markings  darker  and  larger.  The  numerous  digitate  leaves, 
slightly  drooping,  give  a  very  graceful  appearance  to  the  tall  plant.  Humulus 
Lupulus,  the  hop,  is  supposed  to  be  growing  native  along  the  lower  Susque- 
hanna. Urtica  dioica,  the  nettle,  always  gives  an  unpleasant  welcome  or 
rather  rebukes  smartly  the  passerby,  hence  we  will  let  them  remain  as  they 
grew,  in  neglected  places. 
Another  tree  order  is  that  of  Juglandacese,  and  the  principals  are  Juglans 
cinerea  of  Linne,  and  J.  cathartica  of  Micheaux,  the  butternut  or  white  wal- 
nut, which  yields  an  active  drug  for  us,  and  Carya  alba  or  shell-bark  hickory 
one  for  the  Hahnemann  School.  The  butternut  resembles  the  black  walnut, 
but  its  bark  is  smoother  and  with  leaves  lighter  green  and  fruit  very  clammy 
instead  of  smooth  and  oblong  against  the  round  ones  of  the  nigra. 
The  shell-bark  hickory  is  well  known  to  boys  and  who  don't  forget  it  when 
they  become  men. 
Myrica  cerifera,  wax  myrtle,  and  Comptonia  asplenifolia  are  shrubby  plants 
of  the  order  Myricaceae,  very  strongly  aromatic  of  leaves  and  fruit,  the  comp- 
tonia very  pleasantly  so;  hence  its  common  name,  "  sweet  fern."  The  wax 
myrtle  has  its  fruit  covered  with  a  wax-like  incrustation.  Both  plants  are 
abundant,  particularly  in  New  Jersey. 
Betula  lenta  or  sweet  birch  is  another  of  the  hillside  friends  of  our  youth  ; 
by  that,  we  mean,  by  way  of  explanation,  the  appreciation  of  its  spicy  bark, 
and  not  the  application  of  its  virgate  bunches  to  the  back  ;  but,  we  know  full 
well  all  about  birch  oil. 
Alnus  serrulata,  swamp  alder,  and  Fagus  ferruginea,  the  beech,  are  also 
useful  in  medicine  to  some  extent  and  also  very  common.  The  oaks  are  as 
noble  as  ever  and  as  useful.  Quercus  alba,  white  oak,  Q.  rubra,  red  oak,  and 
Q.  tinctoria  of  Bartram,  furnish  us  with  all  the  oak  bark  we  can  use  ;  they  are 
also  some  of  our  grandest  specimens  of  forest  trees.  Cowper  says  :  "  Lord  of 
the  woods,  the  long  surviving  oak." 
Castanea  vesca  var.  Americana  is  the  well-known  chestnut  tree.  This, 
unlike  the  oak,  prefers  colonies  of  its  own  to  appearing  by  itself  in  remote 
places. 
Our  next  and  last  order  for  the  present  is  Salicaceae,  consisting  of  two 
genera,  Salix  and  Populus,  the  latter  furnishing  us  balm  of  Gilead  buds  from 
Populus  balsamifera,  and  the  former  salicin,  from  almost  any  willow  you 
may  use. 
