Teacher's Leaflet. 787 



(4). What color are the twigs which grew last summer.? Is the young 

 bark dull in tint or glossy and shining ? 



(5). Are the leaf-scars opposite or alternate on the twigs? 



(6). Are there still dry leaves clinging to the branches? If so describe 

 their shape and texture. Are their edges entire or toothed? Are the 

 veins straight or branched? Are the stems short or long? 



(7). Beech-nut burs are sometimes so persistent as to cling to the trees 

 all winter. In such a case study the form of the bur. How many lobes 

 has it? Is it smooth or armed with prickles? What is the texture of the 

 lining of the bur? How many nuts did it contain? 



Photo by O. L. Foster. 



Beech-nuts and burs 



(8). W'here do the winter buds appear? Do they grow singly or in 

 clusters? Are they short and round, or long and pointed? What color 

 are the buds? Are they at all fuzzy or sticky? Have they many scales 

 or few? 



Facts for flic Teacher. — Its beautiful trunk alone is sufficient to identify the beech. 

 No other tree is so smooth and round, and the Quaker graj' l)ark is unmistakable; it 

 is often dappled in varying shades but always gray and never marred by seams 

 or corrugations. The bark is thin, hard and closely knit, being less than a half- 

 inch in thickness even on large trees. The slender, wide-spreading branches are 

 also round and smooth and graceful but darker in color than the trunk, while the 

 numberless small branches and twigs are darker still, those of the past season's 

 growth being a glossy reddish brown. 



The leaf-scars are alternate, but often the leaves themselves cling to the tree 

 till late in the winter and can be studied nearly as well as in their summer green- 



