Forest trees of the Pacific slope . one Asiatic genus. Some of them are large, commercial forest trees, pro-ducing very useful timl^er, and the sap of several yields hard sugar, the makingof which is an important North American industry. Further characters of thefamily are included under the following, its principal genus. AGER. MAPLES. The maples embrace all of our representatives of the family Acerace.^. which,with the exception of box-elders or ash-leafed maples, are universally calledmaples. Maples are characterized by usually simple, siugle-bladed leaves ( to 187) or by compound l
Forest trees of the Pacific slope . one Asiatic genus. Some of them are large, commercial forest trees, pro-ducing very useful timl^er, and the sap of several yields hard sugar, the makingof which is an important North American industry. Further characters of thefamily are included under the following, its principal genus. AGER. MAPLES. The maples embrace all of our representatives of the family Acerace.^. which,with the exception of box-elders or ash-leafed maples, are universally calledmaples. Maples are characterized by usually simple, siugle-bladed leaves ( to 187) or by compound leaves with from 3 to 5 leaflets (fig. 188). Leavesof both types always occur in pairs on the twigs. The leaves of all maples areshed in autumn. The flowers, which appear before, with, or after the leaves,are, in some representatives, male (by abortion of female organs) or arefemale (by abortion of male organs), each kind on sepanitc trees;in other cases, blossoms of these types occur ou diftereut parts of the same tree. 151SS 08. (To face pnfee 386.) FOREST TEEES OF THE PACIFIC SLOPE. 387 or branch. They are not often perfectly bisexual, or strictly of one sex andborne on separate trees. It happens, therefore, that not all trees are seed bear-ing. FloAvers are small or minute. Those of some maples are borne in long,conspicuous, mauy-flo^Yered clusters, while those of others appear in small few-flowered bunches. All maples are dependent for the fertilization of their flowersupon insects, which throng about their nectar and pollen-bearing blooms. The fruit (of our representatives) is readily recognized. It is composed of apair of one-winged seeds, joined together but more or less easily separable whenmature. The fruit is ripened in spring or late summer, and is disseminatedmainly by wind and flood waters, and to some extent by animalfe. Seed maturedin spring falls shortly after ripening and germinates, while that ripened in latesummer remains on the branches through w
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