Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/30

 6 HISTORY OF GOODHUE COUNTY vated shade trees which have been induced to grow here are the Balm of Gilead, White Poplar, Scotch Pine, Mountain Ash, White Spruce Balsam, or Fir, and Arbor Vitae. The native trees are as follows : Rock Maple — Not abundant; it is very valuable for fuel, and fine for shade but of rather slow growth. Soft, or Red Maple — A good shade tree, but easily broken by storms. Box Elder — Common in rich woods: a hardy shade tree. Sugar is made from this tree in some parts of the state. Basswood — Abundant in rich woods. One of the most beautiful trees for shade. Its lumber is excellent for furniture. Black Cherry — Very valuable for lum- ber. Some trees are found here which grow to be quite large. White Ash — Well known as a large and valuable forest tree. It is used much for shade. Rc<! Ash — Not common. Grows in low grounds. A small tree which resembles the white ash. Green Ash — Grows near river banks. Upper half of leaves have sharp teeth. Black Ash — Not abundant. It grows in swamps and wet banks along streams. A small tree with tough wood. Red Elm, or Slippery Kim — Well known, and ranks with the better grade of soft wood for fmd. White Elm — Abundant in rich soil along rivers. An elegant shade tree. Rock Elm — Very scarce. Wood very hard and timber valuable. Sugar Berry, or Hack Berry — A small tree hearing sweet fruit, the size of wild cherries. Xot abundant. Grows by river banks. Black- Walnut — A beautiful and valuable tree found along streams. Butternut — Grows in damp, rich soil, with wood softer and lighter than the walnut. Butternut-Hickory — Abundant on moist land. Bark smooth. The nut is small and bitter. Very valuable for fuel. Paper, or Canoe Birch — Grows sparingly on river banks. The Indians use the hark of this species for making canoes. Black Alder — Found at the Big Falls. It resembles the black cherry. Ironwood, or Hophorn Bean — Common in rich' woods, and is excellent for fmd. Has hop-like fruit. Blue, or White Beech — Grows along streams. Its wood is very hard. Burr Oak — Pin oak; abundant. It varies much in size and appearance. Very valuable for timber and fuel. White Oak — Xot common. Trunk more smooth and bark lighter colored than burr oak. Black Oak. or Scrub Oak. or Jack Oak — Grows in dry soil and has deep- eu1 leaves, shining on the upper surface; has a small acorn with a deep ciii). Red Oak — Abundant on rich soil on elevated ground in this vicinity. It resembles the black oak. but the trunk is smoother and more slender and light colored. The leaves are larger, not deeply cut nor shining above. Acorn large and oblong, with shallow cup. It is often mistaken for the black oak. Com- mon Poplar, or Popple — Well known ; grows further north than