64 THE PRINCIPAL SPECIES OF WOOD. 



( Castanea dentala {Marsh] Borkh. 

 Chestnut. < Castanea vesca var. amer-icana Michx. 



( Castanea vulgar is var. americana A. de C. 



Nomenclature. 



Chestnut (local and common name). 



Locality. 



New England, New York to Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi. 

 Kentucky, Missouri, Michigan. Best on western slope of 

 Alleghany Mountains. 



Features of Tree. 



Seventy-five to one hundred feet in height, five to twelve feet 

 in diameter. Fine characteristic shape, not easily distin- 

 guished from Red Oak in winter. Blossoms in midsummer. 

 Prickly burrs contain three thin-shelled nuts. 



Color, Appearance, or Grain of Wood. 



Heartwood brown, sapwood lighter, coarse-grained. 



Structural Qualities of Wood. 



Light, soft, not strong, liable to check and warp in drying. 

 Easily split. Very durable in exposed positions. 



Representative Uses of Wood. 



Cabinet-making, railway ties, posts, fencing, sills. 



Weight of Seasoned Wood in Pounds per Cubic Foot 



28. 

 Modulus of Elasticity. 



1,200,000. 

 Modulus of Rupture. 



9800. 

 Remarks. 



The nuts of the foreign species (C. vesca) as well as those of the 

 domestic species are much prized. The former are larger and 

 the latter sweeter. One of the latest trees to blossom. Foreign 

 species are cultivated in California for their nuts. 



