36 



RANDOM NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



Native Forest Trees of Rhode Island. 



No. XIV. 



BY L. W. RUSSELL. 



21te Hickory. — Carya — Carya alba. 



The hickories, genus Carya., are represen- 

 ted in Rliode Island by four species : C 

 alba., C. tomentosa, C. j^orciua^ and C. 

 amara. The first, C. alba, commonl}- 

 known as the shagbark or shellbark, is found 

 in various localities in most sections of the 

 state, but rarely' in such bodies as to form a 

 woods of the trees as is frequentl}' seen of 

 the chestnuts and some kinds of oak. The 

 tree flourishes well here and is highly prized, 

 as it ought to be, for its wood and its fruit. 

 It is readily distinguished from the other 

 hickories b}- its bark, fruit, and leaves. 

 Its form, also, as seen in the grouping of its 

 limbs, is, to an experienced eye, another 

 means of recognition. The hickories are 

 frequently seen by walls in neglected cor- 

 ners and out-of-the-wa}' places where squir- 

 rels have planted the nuts. Farmers often 

 leave them when cutting other trees for fur- 

 ther growth for timber, or for their fruit. 

 When grown from a seedling where there 

 was room for a natural spread, a shellbark 

 is usually a picturesque object. Without 

 any apparent cause, the limbs divide into 

 several groups, separated bj- vacant spaces, 

 giving that freedom from stiffness in shape 

 which is the delight of landscape artists. 

 With a general cylindrical head they are 

 tall, — often sevent^^ to eight}^ feet, — erect, 

 and firm. The body is not large, two feet 

 in diameter being the average for a full 

 grown tree, but in the forest it retains its 

 size to many feet in height. 



The outer bark is a characteristic feature. 

 Upon old trees it exfoliates and hangs often 

 by a single attachment, in long, loose scales 

 of an iron gray, or dark ashen color. On 

 young trees the bark is smooth. The 

 branches are small but exceedingly tough. 

 The leaves which spring from beautiful 

 flower-like scales, appear late in the season 

 and expand to a length of eighteen or twenty- 

 inches, there being usually five leaflets ob- 

 ovate in shape, the odd very prominent. In 

 autumn these turn to shades of orange, fall- 

 ing early. The male flowers are in long 



slender catkins, pendulous, three on each 

 stalk, the middle one about twice the length 

 of the others. The fertile flowers, which 

 are inconspicuous, are on the ends of the 

 recent shoots, two to four in group. The 

 fruit is globose in shape, varying much in 

 size and quality upon different trees, and is 

 contained in a thick, spong}^ shell, which 

 opens b}- four depressed seams. The nuts 

 are yellowish white, and marked by four dis- 

 tinct angles. The nuts vary considerably 

 in shape, size, and thickness of shell ; some 

 are considerabl}' flattened, and others pro- 

 longed at the end into a prominent tip made 

 by four angular ridges. The kernel is the 

 best of any of our native nuts. The fruit is 

 undoubtedly capable of great improvement 

 by selection and cultivation. The English 

 walnut is naturally a small, poor, thick- 

 shelled nut, but has been wonderfull}' im- 

 proved by cultivation. It seems reasona- 

 ble to believe that the cultivation of this 

 tree for its nuts, might be in Rhode Island 

 a source of sure profit to persons who intel- 

 ligently pursued it. Besides this, its growth 

 for wood and timber would be sure for a 

 high money value. The wood stands at the 

 head for its heating value ; and its agreea- 

 ble odor and freedom from snapping, with 

 its bright livid coals, render it the most de- 

 sirable of all woods for an open fire. Its 

 uses in the making of tool handles, agricul- 

 tural implements, in mill work, for carriage 

 work, etc., are such as to make a demand 

 for the timber which is never fully supplied 

 except at high prices. With its excellencies 

 of toughness, elasticity, strength, and com- 

 pactness should be mentioned two defects, — 

 liabilit}- to warp and twist, and to decay 

 readily when exposed to moisture. 



This species of hickory, as well as the 

 others named, rarely occurs north of Central 

 New England, but is found south to the 

 Carolinas, and frequently west to the Rock}^ 

 Mountains. The hickories do not occur at 

 all in the countries of Europe, the walnut 

 taking the place of them there. The hick- 

 ories flourish finely in Rhode Island, with the 

 exception of localities too sandy or swampy. 



The diflficulties of raising plantations of 

 this tree lie in their slow growth when 

 young, their need of protection from cold 

 winds until large enough to shield each 

 other, and the impatience of farmers in wait- 

 ing for a score and a half of years for a 



