80 TREES OF NEW ENGLAND. 



downy beneath; outline obovate to oblong, varying from 

 irregularly and deeply sinuate-lobed, ('specially near the cen- 

 ter, to nearly entire, base wedge-shaped ; stalk short; stipules 

 linear, pubescent. 



Inflorescence. May. Sterile catkins 3-5 inches long ; calyx 

 mostly 5-parted, yellowish-green ; divisions linear-oblong, more 

 or less persistent ; stamens 10 ; anthers yellow, glabrous : 

 pistillate flowers sessile or short-stemmed ; scales reddish ; 

 stigma red. 



Fruit. Maturing the first season; extremely variable ; ses- 

 sile or short-stemmed : cup top-shaped to hemispherical, f-2 

 inches in diameter, with thick, close, pointed scales, the upper 

 row often terminating in a profuse or sparing hairy or leafy 

 fringe : acorn ovoid, often very large, sometimes sunk deeply 

 and occasionally entirely in the cup. 



Horticultural Value. Hardy in New England ; in general 

 appearance resembling the swamp white oak, but better 

 adapted to upland ; grows rather slowly in any good, well- 

 drained soil ; difficult to transplant ; seldom disfigured by 

 insects or disease ; occasionally grown in nurseries. Propa- 

 gated from seed. A narrower-leafed form with small acorns 

 (var. olivceformis) is occasionally offered. 



Plate XXXIX. Quercus macrocarpa. 



1. Winter buds. 4. Sterile flower, front view. 



2. Flowering branch. 5. Fertile flowers. 



3. Sterile flower, back view. 0. Fruiting branch. 



Quercus bicolor, Willd. 



Quercus platanoides, Sudw. 



Swamp White Oak. 



Habitat and Range. In deep, rich soil ; low, moist, fertile 

 grounds, bordering swamps and along streams. 



Quebec to Ontario, where it is known as the blue oak. 



Maine, York county ; New Hampshire, Merrimac valley 

 as far as the mouth of the Souhegan, and probably through- 



