RED BIRCH; RIVER BIRCH (Betula nigra, Linn.). 60 to 90 

 feet. Handsome, round-headed tree, becoming irregular 

 and picturesque when aged. Limbs slender, often twisted, 

 drooping below. Bark furrowed, brownish red, with irreg- 

 ular plates coated with silky reddish outer bark, like that which 

 covers the smooth limbs; twigs coated with thick, reddish 

 tomentum the first season. Wood light brown, fine-grained, 

 strong, light, hard, used for furniture, wooden shoes, in turned 

 work of all sorts, and for fuel. Leaves ovate, acute, doubly 

 serrate, 1 to 3 inches long, thin, shining dark green above, 

 yellow-green beneath, petioles short, fuzzy, flat. Flowers 

 before leaves, March, as described in preceding species. 

 Fruit ripe in June, erect, cylindrical cones, hairy, 1 to 2 inches 

 long with bracts 3-fingered at top, and oval, hairy, broad- 

 winged nutlet. Dist.: Along lake shores, swamps, and river- 

 courses, Massachusetts to Florida, west to Texas; following 

 Mississippi River from Minnesota to the Gulf; also in Ohio, 

 southern Wisconsin and eastern Nebraska. Desirable orna- 

 mental tree. Planted in copses to hold banks from washing. 



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