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HARDWOOD RECORD 



AMERICAN FOREST TREES. 



Bur Oak. 

 Quercus macrocarpa Miehx. 

 This tree is found from New Brunswick 

 and Nova Scotia westward through the St. 

 Lawrence river vallej in Ontario, and along 

 Lake Winnipeg in southwestern Manitoba; 

 in the Penobscot river region of Main.' and 

 along tin- shores of Lake Champlain in Ver- 

 mont; in certain sections of Massachusetts 

 and Pennsylvania ; westward to 

 Montana, western Nebraska, central 

 Kansas; through Texas, Indian Ter- 

 ritory and central Teuness. e 



It is known as bur oak in Ver- 

 mont, New York, Pennsylvania, Del- 

 aware, West Virginia, Alabama, 

 Mississippi, Louisiana. Texas, Ar- 

 kansas, .Missouri, Ohio, Illinois, 

 Kentucky, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, 

 Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, 

 North Dakota and South Dakota; 

 it is called mossycup oak in Massa- 

 chusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, 

 Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Ar- 

 kansas, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, 

 Kansas and Ontario: incorrect!} as 

 overcup oak in Rhode Island, Dela- 

 ware, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, 

 Louisiana, Illinois and Minnesota; 

 as blue oak in Ontario; as scrub 

 oak in Nebraska and .Minnesota; 

 overcup white oak in Vermont ; and 

 mossycup whit!' oak in Minnesota 



The leaves of bur oak are from 

 six to fifteen inches long, simple 

 and. alternate; the petioles are 

 thick with flattened and enlarged 

 bases; the leaves are wedge-shaped 

 at the base, and have from five to 

 seven long, irregular lobes, the ter- 

 minal one very large aud broad. 

 They are dark green in color, and 

 are smooth and shiny above, silvery 

 white and pubescent below. 



Trie staminate flowers grow in 

 slender yellow catkins; the pistil- 

 late in sessile catkins, with hairy red 

 scales and brilliant stigmas. Their 

 fruit is an acorn from half an 

 inch to two inches long, the cup 

 covered with rough pointed scales, 

 those at the top growing long and 

 forming a mossy fringe along the 

 edge of the cup, a distinguishing 

 mark of this species. The nut is 

 oval and large, although nearly cov- 

 ered by the cup. The acorns are 

 usually solitary and variable in 

 shape and size. 



The bark of bur oak is brownish-graj 

 and very deeply furrowed; it scales off 

 with age, and the dark brown branches be- 

 come roughened, with, thick, corky winged 

 ridges, while the younger twigs are smooth, 

 stout and hairy. 



Under favorable conditions the bur oak 

 reaches a height of 160 feet or more, al- 



FORTY-EIGHTH PAPER 



though as a rule it grows to a height of 

 only about 80 feet. When unhampered and 

 in favorable soil, it develops a broad, round 

 head, growing clear of limbs for perhaps 

 70 feet. 



The branches spread out boldly, giving 

 the tree a rugged appearance; about it 

 there is the same semblance of strength and 

 vitality which characterizes many members 



beauty and size, in the .Mississippi basin, 

 although in the rich valley of the Ohio speci- 

 mens nearly 200 feet in height may some- 

 times be found in virgin forests. The sturdi- 

 ness of this tree, its rapid growth in suit- 

 able soil, and its singularly beautiful ap- 

 pearance in summer, due to its size and the 

 continual shading of its abundant foliage 

 from green to silver, should commend it to 

 landscape gardeners and to planters. 

 The bur oak presents a semblance 

 of maturity when very young and 

 blossoms and fruits early. A more 

 beautiful tree ran scarcely be found 

 for cultivation, when given sufficient 

 spare to follow its natural tendency 

 toward expansion. 



As timber, bur oak is rivalled by 

 few North American trees. Its 



u ] is occasionally confused with 



that of Quercus alba or white oak, 

 but is considered superior to it in 

 -i length. It is very close-grained, 

 heavy, hard, strong, tough and dura- 

 ble w hen m contact w ith the soil. The 

 ueartwood is a rich, dark brown; 

 the sapwood much lighter in color; 

 the medullary rays are' broad and 

 conspicuous. A cubic foot of sea- 

 soned wood weighs forty-six pounds. 

 The timber of bur oak is used for 

 the same purposes as is that of the 

 white oak — ship-building, construc- 

 tion work, cooperage, railway ties, 

 i a bi net-making, etc.. and takes a 

 very excellent polish. 



The large half-tone on this 

 page, illustrating forest growth of 

 bur oak, is from a photograph 

 furnished by William II. Freeman, 

 Indianapolis, secretary of the In- 

 diana State Board of Forestry. 



TYPICAL FOREST GROWTH BTJR OAK, INDIANA. 



of the oak family. It is one of the largest 

 types of the genus Quercus, and is more 

 widely distributed than any other. 



Bur oak has a wonderful power of adapta- 

 tion to varied climates and soils, as evi- 

 denced by the fact that it is found as far 

 north as Nova Scotia, and in Texas on the 

 south. Bur oak is most abundant and 

 reaches its maximum development, both in 



Lumber for Crating. 



In reviewing the general uses of 

 lumber, it is common to consider of 

 greatest importance its consump- 

 tion in the construction of bridges, 

 fences, houses, large public build- 

 ings, and other objects conspicuous 

 from their size. However, a rela- 

 tively small percentage of the tim- 

 ber used is devoted to such pur- 

 poses. More lumber is used in 

 making boxes and packing cases 

 of various kinds than in the numer- 

 ous structures above mentioned, 

 and much is wasted. As a rule boxes 

 and crates are used but once, and are de- 

 stroyed 'on arrival at their final destination 

 — perhaps within a few dav r s after their con- 

 struction. The same thing applies to barrel 

 staves and many other forms of wood, and 

 this destruction doubtless aggregates many 

 million feet a month. On the contrary, lum- 

 ber which goes into large buildings, bridges, 

 and even fences, often endures for centuries. 



