The tamarack, or American larch, Larix laricina K. Koch, resembles the bald cypress in growing in swamps and in shedding its leaves in autumn. This tree is found in Illinois growing in bogs in Lake and McHenry counties. The leaves are flat, soft, slender, about one inch long and borne in clusters. The cones are only ½ to ¾ inch long. The European larch, Larix decidua Mill., may be distinguished from the native species by having slightly longer leaves and larger cones that are more than an inch long.
RED CEDAR Juniperus virginiana L.
RED cedar, the most plentiful coniferous tree in the State, is very valuable, growing on a great variety of soils, seeming to thrive on hills where few other trees are found. It is more common in the southern counties.
RED CEDAR
Natural size.
There are two kinds of leaves, often both kinds being found on the same tree. The commoner kind is dark green, minute and scale-like, clasping the stem in four ranks, so that the stems appear square. The other kind, often appearing on young growth or vigorous shoots, is awl-shaped, quite sharp-pointed, spreading and whitened beneath. The two kinds of flowers, appearing in February or March, are at the ends of the twigs on separate trees. The staminate trees assume a golden color from the small catkins, which, when shaken, shed clouds of yellow pollen. The fruit, ripening the first season, is pale blue with a white bloom, ¼ inch in diameter, berry-like with sweet flesh. It is a favorite winter food for birds.
The bark is very thin, reddish-brown, peeling off in long, shred-like strips. The tree is extremely irregular in its growth, so that the trunk is usually more or less grooved.