632 Junior Naturalist Monthly. 



tree; if planted and grown under favorable conditions, it will some day 

 become a tree. Plant an acorn and watch the first growth of a great tree. 

 Acorns sometimes grow on new wood, that is on the latest growth 

 of the tree. In other cases they grow on the wood of last year. See 

 whether you can find these two conditions, — acorns growing on the new 

 wood and acorns growing on old wood. Notice very carefully whether 

 the acorn has a stem or whether it grows close to the branch. Taste the 

 dififerent acorns that you find. Some are bitter while some taste very 

 good. Notice whether the bitter acorns grow on the trees with the leaves 

 that have sharp-pointed lobes, or on one of the trees with round- 

 lobed leaves. 



Little housekeepers will probably 



enjoy the acorns of the red oak, 



which belongs to one of the sharp- 



lobed group. You can make small 



cups and saucers out of these 



acorns, because the cup of the 



acorn is deep and the saucer broad 



Fig. 5. — A cup and saucer made from an and flat. If you will rub each on 



acorn of the red oak. The acorn at the a stone to remove the point from 



right is also from a red oak and makes ^j^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ f^.^^^ the 



a good top. .,,-,, , 



saucer, you will find that you have 



a little cup and saucer for the playhouse. The acorns of the scarlet oak 



also belong to the sharp-lobed group, and make very good tops because 



they are so well balanced. I wish the boys would try to spin them and 



tell us what success they have. 



THE BUSY ALDER TREE. 



(For the older Junior Naturalists.) 



Ada E. Georgia. 



On my desk lies an alder twig about eight inches long. At its tip, 

 springing from the base of a leaf, on wood which grew this year, is a 

 pendulous cluster of scaly, shining green catkins, each about an inch 

 long. Here are cradled the staminate flowers, of next spring, all ready 

 to " tassel out " before the snow is oflf the ground and shake out millions 

 of pollen grains — almost the earliest invitation to the bees. At the base 

 of the next leaf is another cluster of tiny cone-like buds, so small that their 

 scales can barely be seen with the naked eye ; these enfold the pistillate 

 flowers, and they hold themselves out stiffly, ready to receive the pollen 

 from the nodding catkins. Still below, at the base of the next leaf is 

 another bud, about the size of a grain of wheat, dull grayish brown, and 



