The name Laurel applies locally or botanically to a number of American plants, several of which attain to the dignity of trees. The Big Laurel or Magnolia (_M. grandiflora_) is an ornamental tree of the highest rank, extensively planted in parks and gardens of American cities as far north as Washington, and also grown in Europe. The wood is suitable for interior finish and is also used for fuel. The California Laurel (_Umbellularia californica_) and the Madroña or Madroña Laurel (_Arbutus menziesii_) are Pacific coast species of beautiful appearance, the strong, heavy, hard woods of which are of economic importance. Professor Sargent considers[58] that the former is the most valuable interior or cabinet wood produced by the forests of the Pacific coast. The wood of the Madroña has little or no place in construction, but its charcoal is used in the manufacture of gunpowder. The wood of the Great Laurel or Rose Bay (_Rhododendron maximum_) has been used as boxwood. The gnarled roots of the Mountain Laurel or calico bush (_Kalmia latifolia_) are used for rustic hanging-baskets, seats, and the like. All of the kinds here noted have evergreen foliage. [p109] FOOTNOTE [Footnote 58: Page 69, "Catalogue Jesup Collection," Sargent.] CALIFORNIA LAUREL, MOUNTAIN LAUREL. _Umbellularia californica Nutt._ Nomenclature. (Sudworth.) California Laurel, Mountain Laurel (Cal., Nev.). California Bay Tree, Spice Tree (Cal., Nev., Oreg.). Laurel, Bay-tree, Oreodaphne (Cal.). Myrtle-tree, Cajeput, California Olive (Oreg.). Californian Sassafras. Locality. California and Oregon. Features of Tree. Seventy-five to one hundred feet in height, three to five feet in diameter. Evergreen foliage, beautiful appearance. Color, Appearance, or Grain of Wood. Heartwood light rich brown, sapwood lighter brown. Close-grained, compact structure. Structural Qualities of Wood. Heavy, hard, strong, receives beautiful polish. Representative Uses of Wood. Ship-building, cabinet-work, cleats, crosstrees. Weight of Seasoned Wood in Pounds per Cubic Foot. 40. Modulus of Elasticity. 1,510,000. Modulus of Rupture. 11,400. Remarks. A valuable Pacific coast cabinet wood. [p110] MADROÑA, MADROÑA LAUREL. _Arbutus menziesii Pursh._ Nomenclature. (Sudworth.) Madroña, Madroña Laurel (Cal., Oreg.). Laurel, Laurelwood, Madrone. Madrone-tree, Manzanita (Oreg., Cal.). Madrove (Cal.). Locality. Pacific coast from British Columbia to southern California. Features of Tree. Fifty to seventy-five feet in height, occasionally higher. Two to four feet in diameter. Straight well-formed trunk. Evergreen foliage. A shrub in the South. Color, Appearance, or Grain of Wood. Thick heartwood reddish, thin sapwood slightly pink. Close-grained; numerous and conspicuous medullary rays. Structural Qualities of Wood. Heavy, hard, strong, checks badly in seasoning. Representative Uses of Wood.