THE OAKS WITH ACORNS. 



167 



Spanish Oak. The Spanish oak is distinguished by 

 Quercusfaicata. its broad-ended, three- to five-divi- 

 sioned leaf, which is always downy underneath and 

 of a somewhat dull -green color above. 

 The acorn has a saucer-shaped cup with 

 a top -shaped base, and a round- 

 ish nut with a bitter kernel ; 

 it is nearly stemless. The tree 

 grows from 40 to 70 feet high, 

 and is found in dry or sandy 

 soil from Long Island through 

 New Jersey to Florida ; * west- 

 ward it extends from southern 

 Indiana and Illinois to Mis- 

 souri and Texas. The bark is 

 blackish brown and is deeply furrowed. It contains 

 a large amount of tannin, and is therefore valued by 

 the tanner. 



The Spanish oak and the four species preceding it 

 complete the list of black and red oaks which are 

 common. Their acorns require two years in which 

 to ripen. 



The water oak, as its name implies, is 

 Water Oak. . 



found m wet situations. It grows 



Quercus aquatica. & 



from 30 to 40 and occasionally 80 



Spanish 



It is also reported from Bucks County, Pa. 



