THE SHELLBARK OR SHAGBARK HICKORY 



THE Shellbark Hickory is perhaps the most easily determined of the four species 

 of Hickory that are commonly found in eastern America. At any season good- 

 sized trees are known by the scaly bark of the trunk, which has given the species 

 its common names of Shellbark and Shagbark Hickory. In summer it may also be known 

 by the glabrous petioles and large leaves, the latter usually having five leaflets, of which 

 the outer three are very broad. In autumn it may be identified by the fact that the husk 

 of the fruit is nearly spherical and splits clear to the base along the four sutures. In winter 

 it is easily distinguished by the loose, blackish outer scales on the buds, the bark of the 

 twigs being smooth and not downy. 



The fruit of the Shellbark Hickory is one of the favorite American nuts. Through- 

 out the great regions in which it is found the gathering of these nuts is a recognized part 

 of the autumn experiences of many boys, who sally forth with bags after the first frosts of 

 October have sent the nuts to the ground. Nor is it the boys alone that find reward and 

 nourishment in the fruit of these trees. The Hickory groves are the favorite resorts of the 

 squirrels in October. James Russell Lowell pictured a familiar autumn sight when he 

 wrote of the squirrel that 



" on the shingly shagbark's bough 

 Now saws, now lists with downward eye and ear, 

 Then drops his nut." 



The Shellbark Hickory is as famous for the quality of its wood as for its nuts. On 

 account of its toughness, lightness, and elasticity, it has long been a favorite material 

 for axe-handles and other implements in which these qualities are required. Unfortunately 

 the supply of trees for lumber purposes has been greatly diminished, and many other 

 woods which are less desirable are now being utilized in place of the Hickory. Large 

 trees reach a height of more than a hundred feet and a trunk diameter of three or four feet, 

 but generally the trees are only about two- thirds this size. When grown in the forest the 

 trunk is notable for clear length without branches, it frequently being fifty feet from the 

 ground to the lowest branch. 



The natural range of the Shagbark extends on the north from Maine to Michigan 

 and Minnesota and on the south from Florida to Texas. Along the eastern seaboard it is 

 found chiefly in the mountains in the region south of Delaware. On account of its long 

 tap-root the Hickory is proverbially difficult to transplant. When once established it 

 grows rather rapidly and has many claims for a place in landscape planting, although it 

 is not one of the trees which is most desirable on small grounds. 



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