wind puts a great strain
on it just at this point. Illustrate by driving a long slat or lath into
the ground firmly: then catching it by the top, push it over, and it
will break off just at the ground. If a little pine tree could be taken
up, the pupils would be interested in seeing what long, strong, fibrous
roots the pine has.

Let them examine the bark of the trunk and describe its colour and
roughness. The fissures in the bark, which are caused by the enlarging
of the tree through the formation of new wood under the bark, are deeper
at the bottom of the tree than at the top--the tree being younger and
the bark thinner, the nearer to the top we go. How old is the very top,
down to the first whorl of branches? How old is the stem between the
first and second whorls? Between the third and fourth? Let the pupils
find out in this way the age of a little pine that is regular and
unbroken. The whorls of branches near the ground are usually small and
dead in young trees and in old trees have completely disappeared. Relate
the size of the trunk to its age, and also relate the size and length of
the branches to their age. Where are the youngest branches and how old
are they? What branches are oldest? Notice how the branch is noticeably
larger just where it joins the trunk, as this is the point of greatest
strain. Are the branches the same length on all sides of the trunk? If
not, find one where branches are shorter on one side than on the other
and try to discover the cause. Usually, if other trees are near enough
to shade a certain tree, the branches are shorter and smaller on the
shaded side.

Let the pupils look up into the tree from beneath and then go a little
distance away and look at it. They will notice how bare the branches are
on the inside, and the teacher will probably have to explain why this is
so. They will discover that the leaves are nearly all out toward the
ends of the branches. The leaves get light there while the centre of the
tree top is shaded, and the great question that every tree must try to
solve is how to get most light for its leaves. The pupils will now see
an additional reason why the lower limbs should be longer than the upper
ones. The greater length of the lower limbs brings the leaves out into
the sunlight.

Why this tree is called an evergreen may now be considered. Why it
retains its leaves all winter is a problem for more advanced classes,
but if the question is asked, the teacher may