OAK. 297 



form, vigorous growth and fine autumn coloring make it es- 

 pecially desirable. No oak of the Northern States is more 

 easily transplanted. The wood, which in trade is not distin- 

 guished from that of the Scarlet Oak, is used for interior finish- 

 ing, furniture and in construction, and has a beautiful grain for 

 finishing. It is often used for fuel, but is generally though not 

 universally considered much inferior to the White Oak for this 

 purpose. 



Quercus coccinea. Scarlet Oak. Black Oak. 



Leaves oblong or obovate, deeply pinnatifid with broad 

 rounded sinuses and slender lobes divergent and divided at the 

 apex into several teeth which are bristle-pointed. When the 

 leaves unfold they are bright red and covered with pubescence, 

 but towards maturity they become shining green and generally 

 glabrous above, the lower side in this section often furnished 

 with tufts of hair in the axils of the veins. The leaves turn a 

 brilliant red or scarlet in autumn, remain on the trees in this 

 section all winter and fall in the spring. The buds are often 

 slightly pubescent, and are smaller and very different from the 

 large tomentose buds of Quercus vclutina. 'The fruit, which 

 ripens in the autumn of the second year, is sessile, or on a stalk 

 which is sometimes an inch long. It is oval or globular ovoid, 

 with a bitter kernel. A common and often large tree in this 

 section, where it is generally termed Black Oak, and is found 

 on gravelly ridges and sandy land interspersed with Bur and 

 Red Oak. 



Distribution. From Maine to the District of Columbia and 

 west to Minnesota and Nebraska. 



Propagation. By fall-sown seeds. 



Properties of wood. Heavy, hard, strong, coarse grained, light 

 or reddish brown with thick darker colored sapwood. Specific 

 gravity 0.7095; weight of a cubic foot 42.20 pounds. 



Uses. The Scarlet Oak is not planted to so great an extent 

 as the Red Oak for ornamental purposes, but is fully as desir- 

 able because of its beautiful scarlet autumn coloring and rapid 

 growth. The wood is largely used in the manufacture of furni- 

 ture, for interior finishing and for fuel, and is not distinguished 

 commercially from that of Red Oak. 



