The live oak (Quercus Virginiana), the laurel oak (Q. lauri- 

 folia), tlie willow oak [Q. phellos), and the water oak {Q. nigra) 

 are eoinmon street or park trees, and have leaves more or less 

 evergreen. All but the last have oblong or oval leaves whieh 

 are entii'e, that is, without lobes, except on young shoots. 



Live and laurel oaks. The live and the laurel oaks are 

 the only ones in the city which are thoroughly evergreen. Of 

 tiie live oak's leaves only a small portion is shed each year. 

 Some trees of the laurel oak seem to lose more leaves than others, 

 particularly the young or the poorly nourished, but a healthy 

 tree will remain a bright green all winter. Particularly beauti- 

 ful laurel oaks may be found forming an avenue at Magnolia 

 Cemetery. The live oak has foliage of a darker green than the 

 laurel oak. The leaves of the two trees may be also dis- 

 tinguished l)y examining their under surface. That of the live 

 oak has a whitish green tinge, a hoariness, it might be called. 

 But the laurel oak leaf presents a shining green surface of about 

 the same shade above and below. The bark also furnishes a 

 distinction. No laurel oak has the very deeply furrowed pale 

 gray or brown bark which is characteristic of the live oak. 

 Another striking difference may be seen in the acorns. At this 

 season the live oak acorns have been largely gathered by child- 

 ren or animals, who eat the sweet kernel. The acorn is dark 

 glossy brown, longer than it is wide and set in a top-shaped, 

 stemmed cup. These acorns ripen in one year, therefore prov- 

 ing the hve oak to belong to the group known as the white oaks, 

 which have no bristles on the tips or the lobes of their leaves. 

 The laurel oak, on the other hand belongs to the red or black 

 oak group whose acorns recjuire two years to ripen and whose 

 leavc'S are generally bristle-tipped, though the bristles, especially 

 at this season, freciuently fall or are worn away. But the laurel 

 oak acorns always have the squat, plump form and stemless, 



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