189i 



ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. 



PART HI. 



jritudinally marked with a few reddish lines ; and 



they are so abundant as sometimes to cover the 



branches. The bear oak is common in the northern 



states, also in New Jersey, New York, and l^ennsyl- 



vania. It is never found insulated, or mingled witii 



other trees and shrubs in the forest; but always in 



tracts of several hundred acres in extent, which it 



covers almost exclusively, a few specimens of the 



chintjuapin oak (Q. Prinus pumila) only i)reaking its 



uniformity. The |)rescnce of this oak is considered 



a sure indication of a barren soil ; and it is visually 



found on tlry sandy land mingled with gravel. This 



oak was first observed by Banister, after whom it 



was named by some authors ; it was not, however, 



till 1800, that it was brought to this country by the 



Messrs. Fraser, to whom we owe the introduction 



of many species of American oaks. The tree is too 



small for the wqod to be of any use ; but the acorns 



afford an abundant supply of food to deer, bears, and 



swine, which, from the low stature of the plant, can " reach them by lifting their 



heads, or rising on their hind feet." The younger Michaux saw it used for 



hedges ; and he suggests that it might be planted as copse-wood, as it would 



afford food, as well as an excellent shelter, tor game ; also, that, as it will grow 



in the most sterile soil, and resist the most impetuous winds, it might serve as 



a nurse to plantations in exposed situations, such as the dykes in Holland. 



The larva of Phalae'na (Orgyia) leucostfgnia Sm. and Abb. Ins., t. 79., the pale 



vapourer moth, feeds on the leaves of this species. 



S 24. Q. heterophv'lla ilfic^x. The various-leaved, or .Bfl?7;-«w'j, Oak. 



Identification. Michx. Amer. Syl., I. p. 75. ; Pursh Fl. Amer. Sept., 2. p. 627. 

 Engraving. Michx. Amer. Syl., t. 18. 



Spec. Char. Leaves on long footstalk,"!, ovate-lanceolate or oblong, entire or unequally toothed. 



Cup hemispherical. Nut roundish. (Michx.) A tree, 30 ft. high. 



Description, Sfc. It is a remarkable fact, that, notwithstanding the apparent distinctness of this 

 oak, only one specimen of it has been found in a wild state, and that was discovered by Michaux, in 

 .1 field belonging to Mr. Bartram, on the banks of the Schuylkill, 4 miles from Phil.idelphia. This 

 was a flourishing tree, 3()ft. high, with a trunk 12in. in diameter. The leaves are of an elongated 

 oval form, coarsely and irregularly toothed, smooth above, and of a dark green beneath. The acorns 

 are round, of a middle size, and contained in shallow cups, lightly covered with scales. It is said to 

 have been introduced, but we do not know where it is to be obtained. 



^ 25. Q. AGRiFO^LiA Willd. The prickly-leaved American Oak. 



Identification. Willd. Sp. PI., 4. p. 434. ; Nees in Ann. des Scien. Nat., 3. p. 271. ; Fisch. Misc. Hisp., 

 1. p. 108.; Pursh Fl. Amer. Sept., 2. p. 627. ; N. Du Ham., 7. p. 156. : Smith in Rees's Cycl., 

 No. 29. 



Engraving. ? Pluk. Phyt., t. 1D6. f. 3. 



Spec. Char., Sfc. Leaves roundish-ovate, somewhat he.irt-shaped ; smooth on both sides, with spinous 

 teeth. Fruit axillary, sessile. Scales of the calyx lax. Nut ovate. {Willd.) A native of the 

 western coast of .Vorth America, near Nootka Sound. It has not been introduced. 



§ vii. Fhellos. Willcw Oaks. 



[± 



Sect. Char., S^c. Leaves quite entire and lanceolate, dying off without much 

 change of colour, in England; but, in America, sometimes persistent for 

 two or three years. Young shoots straight, spreading, and wand-like. 

 Bark very smooth, black, and never cracked. Fructification biennial. Cup 

 . imbricate. Nut roundish, and very small. Large trees and shrubs, the least 

 beautiful in their foli:ige of the oak family. 



Idenlificnti>n. 



It 26. Q. Phe'llos L. The JVi/low Oak. 



Lin. .Sp PI., 1412. ; Willd. Sp. PI., 4. p. 423. ; Ait. Hort. Kew., cd.2.,5. p. 287.'; Pursh 



