Handbook of Trees of the Xortjikkx States and Canada. 



55 



The Water Hickory is economically the least 

 important of the Hickories. It is usually a 

 small or medium-size tree from 50 to 70 ft. 

 in iieiglit, but in forests of the bottom-lands 

 of the lower Mississippi valley it attains the 

 height of 80-100 ft. with straight columnar 

 trunk 2-2i/_. ft. in diameter, and narrow ir- 

 regular toj). When isolated it develops an 

 oblong or obovoid top of long rigid branches 

 of which the lowermost are drooping. 



As its name implies it is distinctly a water- 

 loving tree, being confined mostly to low 

 swamps in the southern states, inundated dur- 

 ing a considerable portion of the year, in com- 

 pany with the Planer tree, Swamp Privet, 

 Water Locust, Water and Pumpkin Ashes, 

 Cotton Gum, Red Titi, Cypress, Red Maple, 

 etc. Its dark-colored angular nuts possess a 

 kernel usually too astringent and bitter to be 

 eaten, but I have seen a tree of this species 

 in southeastern Arkansas yielding nuts of 

 sweet delicious flavor. 



The wood of the Water Hickory is heavy, a 

 cubic foot weighing 40.16 lbs., hard and brittle, 

 suitable ciiiefly for fuel. In sectioning this 

 wood we have found it to be permeated with 

 numerous dark-colored flecks and streaks of 

 some substance of such hardness as to turn 

 the edge of the hardest steel. 2 



Leaves S-16 in. long, with slender scurfy-pubes- 

 rent petiole and rachis and 0-1.''. lanco-ovate leaf- 

 lets the lateral more or less falcate, spssilo. 

 usually unequally wed?e-shaped at base, acuminatr. 

 2-'3 in. long, thinnish. glandular-dotted, glabrous 

 dark green above. Floirers: staminate aments 

 glandular-pubpscent : calyx-lobes about equal. 

 Fruit romi)rossed. obovoidoblong. commonly ob- 

 lique with winced sutures, thin yellowish pubcs 

 cent husk and flattened brown prominently ridged 

 nut and very rugose thin shell much conyoluted 

 and usually bitter kernel. 



1. Carya aquatica Nutt. 



2. A. W., V, 115. 



