The Magnolia Family.
This is a group of trees whose flowers are usually large and white, green, or pink in color. Some of this family are cultivated as ornamental trees on lawns. The Swamp Magnolia, or Sweet Bay, grows in swampy and damp places. Although specially a southern tree, it is found as far north as Massachusetts. It blooms in June, having a cream-color fragrant flower, and these blossoms are sold by florists and street pedlars.
LEAVES AND KEYS OF A MAPLE TREE.
Tulip Tree or Yellow Poplar is a large tree of this family that blooms especially abundantly upon the southern shores of Lake Erie. It has greenish-yellow, tulip-shaped flowers. The Indians made their dugout canoes from these trees.
The Maple Family.
There are more than one hundred species of this family. Maples are especially abundant in North America. The Sugar Maple grows in eastern North America. From its sap is manufactured maple sugar. The method of making this sugar was learned by the American colonists from the Indians. In the early spring, when this sap begins to flow, and while it is flowing, the trees are tapped, the sap gathered and boiled down. Certain varieties of maple-wood have beautifully spotted grain known as Bird's-eye Maple. This grain, it is claimed, is produced by wounds made by woodpeckers. This wood is prized for the manufacture of furniture. The Red Maple is found growing along the edges of streams. It is covered in the spring with tufts of crimson flowers and its foliage is a brilliant red in the autumn. The leaves of the Silver Maple show no reds in the fall, but are a uniform yellow. The Canadians have adopted the maple leaf as their national emblem.
The Horse Chestnut Family.
The Horse Chestnut is a native of Asia. In May or June it is covered with upright spikes of white blossoms. The Buck-eye is the native Horse Chestnut. The leaves of the Buck-eye are five-fingered, while those of the tree commonly called the Horse Chestnut are seven-fingered. Ohio is called the "Buck-eye" state and is named after this tree.