Large trees, or near timber line often only shrubs, usually with rough bark; leaves long, needle-like; flowers appearing very early in spring; cones not maturing until the second season.
Leaves in clusters of 2 or 3; cone scales with short sharp spinelike tips.
Leaves 8 to 20 cm. long; cones 6 to 15 cm. long 1. P. ponderosa.
Leaves 3 to 6 cm. long; cones 3 to 4 cm. long 8. P. contoita murrayana.
Leaves in clusters of 5; cone scales without spinelike tips.
Bark whitish; low stunted tree or shrub, found only about timber line; cones- 5 to 8 cm. long; leaves 4 to 6 cm. long . 3. P. albicaulis.
Bark brown or blackish; usually large trees, most common far below timber line;
cones 8 to 25 cm. long.
Tree low, with a heavy trunk and large top; cones not stalked, spreading, 7 to 20 cm. long, only about twice as long as thick; leaves 3.5 to 7 cm. long.
4. P. flgxilis.
Tree very tall and slender, with a small top; cones distinctly stalked, drooping, 15 to 25 cm. long, several times as long as thick; leaves 5 to 10 cm. long.
fi. P. monticola.
1. Finns ponderosa Dougl. Wkstern yellow fine. A few scattered trees about Lake McDonald; forming stands along the North Fork of the Flathead at low eleva- tions. B. C. to S. Dak., N. Mex., and Mex. (P. scopulorum Lemtnon.)—Large tree with tall heavy trunk covered with large reddish scales, the crown usually
large but narrow; cones spreading.
274 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE NATIONAL HERBARIUM
The yellow pine is one of the common trees of the Rockies, and its scarcity about Glacier Park is due only to the high elevation of most of the country. It is one of the important lumber trees of the West.
2. Finns contorta murrayana (Balf.) Engelm. Lodgepole pine. Very abundant on the east elope at low altitudes and frequent at middle elevations; less common on the west slope, but widely distributed. Alaska to Calif., Colo., and Sask.
(P. murrayana Balf.)—Small or large tree, the trunk covered with reddish brown scales, the top broad or narrow.
At low altitudes on the east slope this often forms dense pure stands, but at higher altitudes, and everywhere on the west slope, the trees are mixed with spruce, fir, and Douglas fir. The seedlings soon spring up abundantly in burnt-over areas, and the species is therefore a valuable means of reforestation. Lodgepole pine, however, has few attractive characteristics, and often seems more like a weed than a forest tree. No one who attempts to cross one of the slopes which are covered with fallen logs and a thick stand of the young trees will ever afterward be able to see anything attractive about this pine. One striking feature of the tree is found in the fact that the cones persist upon the branches for a long time, even after the trees are dead.
In heavy timber the trunks are very tall and slender* and in the wind they sway in an alarming fashion. Indeed, the trees often do fall over and lodge against other trees, and it is this fact that has suggested the name "lodgepole."
8. Pinus albicaulis Engelm. Whitebark pine. Plate 38, A. Common about timber line, associated with alpine fir. Alta. and B. C. to Calif, and Wyo. (Apinue albicautis Rydb.)—Low tree or more often a shrub, the branches often prostrate upon the ground; bark only slightly fissured or smooth; cones purplish, not stalked, remaining closed when mature.
The species is confined to a narrow belt about timber line.
4. Pinus flexilis James. Limber pine. Occasional at nearly all altitudes, usually on exposed slopes or mountain tops. Alta. to Calif, and Tex. (Apinus fiexilU Rydb.)—Heavy tree, usually 1J to 15 meters high, with rough bark.
In some localities the limber pine forms small groves, but usually it is associated with other trees. Some very large trees grow about Granite Park. In exposed places the trees are often lopsided, and frequently the trunks are deformed. On the slopes above Many Glacier Chalets there are numerous dwarfed and gnarled individuals that suggest the trees which are artificially dwarfed by Japanese gardeners. About Sun Camp the limber pine grows with the lodgepole pine, and one scarcely recognizes that there are two species until the number of leaves in a cluster is noticed. This tree is often known in the West as white pine.
5. Pinus monticola Dougl. Western white pine. Common on the west slope at low and middle altitudes, mixed with other trees. B. C. to Calif, and Mont.
(Strobus monticola Rydb.)—Trunk often 30 meters high, covered with brown or grayish purple bark broken into small blocks; crown short and narrow; leaves bluish green.
This is by far the finest pine of the park, and the clean, slender, symmetric trunks have a very attractive appearance. The handsome cones are abundant on the ground along the trails, and often appear to be strangely out of place, for the tops of the trees are so high above one's head that they are not noticed. The tree reaches
the eastern limit of its range in Glacier Park.
STANDLEY—FLORA OF GLACIER PARK. 275
2. T.AitTT Adans. Larch.
Large or small trees with rough bark; leaves resembling those of pines, but shorter, soft, and deciduous; cones short-stalked or sessile; seeds "winged,
Bianchlets glabrous or nearly so 1. L. occidentalis.
Branchlets very hairy ...» 2. L. lyallii.
1, Larix occidentalis Nutt. Western larch. Abundant on the west slope at low and middle altitudes. B. C. to Oreg. and Mont.—Large tree, often 30 meters high or more; bark bright reddish brown, deeply furrowed at the base of the trunk, but only slightly furrowed above; leaves 3 to 5 cm. long; cones 3 to 4 cm. long.
Often known as tamarack. Western larch appears to be absent on the east slope, but soon after crossing the pass, along the railroad, it becomes a conspicuous feature of the lansdcape. About Belton it is the most abundant tree, and it is common all about Lake McDonald and well up toward Sperry Chalets. It reproduces abund- antly, in many places the young trees form dense, almost impenetrable thickets. The leaves turn bright yellow in late summer. The wood is valuable for lumber. The species reaches the eastern limit of its range in Glacier Park.
8. Larix lyallii Parl. Alpine larch. Said to grow in a few places about timber line, but not seen by the writer, Alta. and B. C. to Oreg. and Mont.—A small, often stunted tree, with slightly furrowed bark; leaves 3 to 4 cm. long; cones 4 to 5 cm.
long.
3. PICE A Link. Spruce.
Large trees with dark rough bark and narrow croons; leaves pointing in all direc- tions, stiff; cones maturing the first season, the scales thin; seeds with thin wings.
Twigs glabrous 1. P. canadensls.
Twigs finely hairy 8. P. engelmaani.
1. Picea canadensls (Mill.) B. S. P. White spruce. Frequent at middle alti- tudes. Alaska to Lab., N. C., Wis., Wyo., and B. C.—Tree 10 to 20 meters high, with dark scaly bark; leaves bluish green, 1.5. to 2.5 cm. long, curved; cones 3 to 5 cm. long, the scales entire or finely toothed.
8. picea MicrfmftniH (Parry) Engelm. Engelmann spruce. Common, especially on the east slope, at middle altitudes. B. C. and Yukon to N. Mex. and Ariz.—
Large tree, often 25 to 30 meters high, with a narrow pyramidal crown composed of short branches; bark dark purplish brown, with small loose scales; leaves 2 to 3 cm.
long, bluish green; cones 3 to 6 cm. long.
Engelmann spruce is usually associated with fir and Douglas fir, but occasionally it forms almost pure stands. It is a very handsome tree.
4. ABIES Hill. Fir.
Large or trees; leaves leaving rounded scars on the twigs, each leaf with 2 longitudinal resin ducts and a solitary fib ro-vascular bundle; cones maturing the first year; seeds winged.—The trees of this genus are often known as balsam firs.
Leaves of the lowest branches arranged in 2 rows (on two sides of the twigs), usually notched at the end; resin ducts of the leaves (as seen in cross section) close to the epidermis on the lower side 1. A. giandls.
Leaves more or less crowded on the upper sides of the twigs, not notched at the end;
resin ducts within the soft tissue of the leaf, remote from the epidermis.
£. A. lasiocarpa.
1. Abies grandis Lindl. Great silver fir. Occasional on the west slope at low altitudes. B. C. to Calif., Wyo., and Mont.—Large tree, often 50 to 75 meters high;
twigs finely hairy or glabrous; leaves 2 to 5 cm. long, green above, white beneath;
cones 5 to 10 cm. long.
2048—21 4
276 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE NATIONAL HERBARIUM.
S. Abies laslocarpa (Hook.) Nutt. Alpine fir. Common about timber line, and on the east elope at middle altitudes; infrequent on the west slope. Alaska to Oreg., N. Mex,, and Alta.—Tree, often 30 meters high, at timber line stunted and usually a shrub, often with long prostrate branches; trunk short, the crown (at low altitudes) long, narrow, and pointed; leaves blue-green, 2.5 to 4 cm. long; cones 5 to 10 cm*
long, purplish.
Associated on the east slope with spruces and Douglas fir. The firs are easily recognized in the heavy timber by their smooth, pale bark, all our other evergreen trees (except whitebark pine) having rough, dark bark.
The Blackfoot Indians used the resin for incense in their ceremonials, for perfume, for poultices in the treatment of fevers and colds, and, when mixed with grease, as hair oil.
6. PSET7DOTSUGA Carr.
1. Pseudotsufa muoronata (Raf.) Sudw. Douglas fir. Common in the forested areas of both slopes, nearly throughout the timber belt. B. C. and Alta. to Mex.
(P. laxifolia Britton.)—A large tree with heavy trunk covered with deeply furrowed, dark brown bark; crown pyramidal and sharp-pointed or sometimes broad and rounded; lower branches often drooping and with long pendent side branches; cones maturing the first year.
Sometimes known as red fix or Douglas spruce. Excepting only the giant sequoias of California, this is the largest tree of the United States, but in Glacier Park the trees do not attain the size of those which grow in the humid regions of the Pacific coast. In some places within ttie park there are large trees, especially about St.
Mary, where there are dense stands. Near timber line Douglas fir is often stunted and shrubby, but these low shrubs are sometimes loaded with cones. A striking feature of this tree is its habit of bearing cones on the lower as well as on the upper branches;
in the firs and spruces the cones are borne only near the top of the tree. Very young plants at low altitudes sometimes bear cones. In late summer cones cut bom the trees by squirrels are plentiful on the ground.
6. TSTJGA Carr.
X. Tsuga heterophjrlla (Raf.) Saig. Western hemlock. Abundant on the west slope at low altitudes. B. C. to Calif, and Mont.—Large tree with gradually tapering trunk, covered with dark brown, somewhat reddish, ridged bark; crown usually narrow and pointed, the branches with slender drooping branchlets; leaves soft, apparently 2-ranked; cones maturing the first year.
The tree reaches the eastern limit of its range here. It grows mixed with giant cedar, white pine, Douglas fir, and larch. Seedlings are abundant in the heavy forest and often form dense underbrush in association with the yew.