CHAPTER FIFTEEN 



OAKS 



Full in the midst of his own strength he stands, 

 Stretching his brawny arms and leafy hands, 

 His shade protects the plains, his head the hills commands. 



VERGIL 



OAKS are among the most common and useful of trees. 

 Nearly three hundred kinds of oak are known, of which 

 about fifty grow wild in the United States. There are 

 probably few areas of the size of a county that contain 

 more than ten species of oak, though in one piece of 

 woodland nine different species were found. Because 

 of their abundance and the many valuable properties 

 of their woods, oaks are the most important of all the 

 hardwood trees of our forests. 



Oak leaves. A collection of the leaves of the different 

 oaks that grow near your home is easily made and will 

 help you to know the trees. The leaves of most species 

 are lobed, but the shape of the lobes is different in the 

 different species. Look at Figures 55 and 56 or at 

 specimens, and tell how a white-oak leaf differs from a 

 red-oak leaf. Which species of oak have leaves that 

 closely resemble each other? How can you tell them 

 apart? Does any species of oak retain its leaves long 

 after they have lost their green color ? 



Acorns. The acorns as well as the leaves of different 

 kinds of oaks differ and should also be collected. Pin 

 oaks have small and riearly hemispherical acorns, which 

 in many cases are striped. Bur oaks have large acorns 

 with deep, shaggy cups or cupules, and are therefore 

 also called " mossy-cup " oaks. Red oaks have large 



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