176 



VERMONT AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



county (Brainerd) and thence south through Rutland and Bennington 

 counties. It probably occurs in the southeastern part of the state also. 



The acorns are large, one inch or more in length. The wood is hard 

 and tough and is frequently used for railroad ties. 



red oak. Quercus rubra Linn. 



RED OAK 



Leaf and fruit, X H. 



yellow oak ( black oak ). Quercus velutina Lam 



The yellow oak is a southern 

 species which reaches its northern 

 limit in Vermont. It is not uncom- 

 mon in light, dry soils in the Cham- 

 plain valley and it occurs also in the 

 southern part of the Connecticut val- 

 ley. The two common and appar- 

 ently incompatible names, yellow oak 

 and black oak, arise from the diverse 

 colors of the inner bark and the outer 

 bark. The former, which is used in 

 tanning, is yellow, while the latter 

 is very dark. The leaves are rather 

 large, dark, shiny green with yellowish 

 petioles. The acorns do not ripen 

 until the second autumn. The wood 

 is hard and tough like that of the 

 white oak and is used in manufac- 

 turing. 



The red oak is the most northern of 

 all the oaks, ranging from Nova Scotia 

 to Tennessee. It is generally distributed 

 through the Champlain and lower Con- 

 necticut valleys where it is the most 

 common oak. It is less common in the 

 northern part of the Connecticut valley. 

 The flowers appear in May but the ses- 

 sile, shallow-cupped acorns do not ripen 

 until the second autumn. 



The wood is lighter in weight and 

 more brittle than that of the white oak 

 but when quartered shows a beautiful 

 grain and is used for furniture. It is 

 also valued for bridge posts where there 

 is to be exposure to water. The wood 

 drys out slowly and is inferior as fuel. 



Q. coccinea tinctoria Gray. 



YELLOW OAK 

 Leaf and fruit, X V* 



