John Grimshaw wrote: " There is of course a continuum between shrubs and trees in terms of growth form and the distinction is very artificial." Another example of just how artificial this distinction is became apparent to me from some recent reading. It seems that the cottonwood trees which cloak so many western North American mountainsides are, technically, not really trees. Or at least not all of them. Why? Because these cottonwood trees are said to spread by underground growths to form connected colonies. In effect, the tree we see is actually part of what is really a shrub, the diagnostic connecting parts being underground and not immediately apparent. This also reminded me of the structure of the flowering stems of Erythronium multiscapoideum: what appear to be multiple flowering stems are actually one stem which typically branches below ground to give the impression that there are several stems. John also mentioned the botanical term frutex. Derived from this is frutescens (becoming shrubby), which is sometimes used to translate subshrub. And this reminds me: I still have plants of Bulbine frutescens (the "subshrubby" Bulbine)if anyone would like a piece. Jim McKenney jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7, where we are experiencing unseasonably mild weather - temperatures might reach 70 degrees F in this area this week. My Virtual Maryland Garden http://www.jimmckenney.com/ BLOG! http://mcwort.blogspot.com/ Webmaster Potomac Valley Chapter, NARGS Editor PVC Bulletin http://www.pvcnargs.org/ Webmaster Potomac Lily Society http://www.potomaclilysociety.org/