BEECH FAMILY 



grown, above dark shiny green, below yellow-green, 

 brownish or tawny, with some short, soft hairs; petioled; 

 the stems long, yellow, generally flattened on the upper 

 side. The leaves very variable in outline, usually seven 

 lobed and sometimes divided nearly to the middle by 

 wide rounded sinuses into narrow lobes with stout bristle- 

 pointed teeth, or sometimes the lobes are nearly entire, 

 each lobe tipped with a bristle; or the sinuses are shallow, 

 and the heavy part of the leaf is toward the apex, but the 

 lobes are always tipped with a bristle. The end lobe is 

 oblong, acute, with, large or small teeth. 



THE FLOWERS: minute, in catkins, appearing when the 

 leaves are half-grown; the staminate hairy, four inches to 

 six inches long; the pistillate on short, hairy stems; stigmas 

 bright red. 



THE FRUIT: a nut, stemless or on stalks, solitary or in 

 pairs; the "acorn" somewhat ovate or hemispherical, 

 broad and rounded at the base, rounded at the apex, 

 light reddish-brown, frequently covered with short, soft 

 hairs, from one half inch to one inch long, the cup embraces 

 one third to one half of the "acorn" and is covered with 

 brown scales which at the base are closely flattened, but 

 above are loose and at the rim form a fringe-like border. 



Five other members of the Beech Family have been 

 reported. 



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