100 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



ACORNS OF THE POST OAK (Q<?rriij stellala); WASHINGTON, D. C. 



Fig. 29 Here is another acorn that 

 need not give any trouble; most cer- 

 tainly not if one has the leaves of 

 the oak at hand that furnished the 

 specimens. The tree from which 

 these were taken was very large 

 and tall. 



Gulf States. Some con- 

 sider its wood equal to that 

 of the white oak ; and there 

 is no question but that its 

 bark is one of the best we 

 have in the country for 

 tanning. 



As already pointed out. 

 the remaining genus of 

 trees in the Beech family 

 (Fagaceae) is the type 

 genus, Fagus, created to 

 contain the beech or Fagus 

 grandifolia, of which Gray 

 gives but one variety, F. g. 

 caroliniana. There is an- 

 other species of beech in 

 Europe, with three others 

 in the Orient (Figs. 31, 32, 

 and 33). 



Beech trees, beech leaves, 

 and beech nuts or mast, are 

 all so well known to every 

 one in this country who 

 cares at all about trees, 

 that specific descriptions 

 of them would seem to be 



RED OAK (O. r6ra) IN FLOWER 



AN IMMENSE SCARLET OAK (Quercus coccinea). ON THE FIRST 

 HIGH HILL DIRECTLY SOUTH OF PIERCES MILL, WASHING- 

 TON, D. C. 



Fig. 19 This is one of the finest species of oaks we have. In the autumn, 

 when the leaf-change is well established, it is a marvelous sight to note 

 the royal splendor of their massed, scarlet leaves, among trees whose 

 foliage is principally tans and browns. 



Fig. 30 The tree from .which this 

 was taken in the early spring pre- 

 sented a sigjit not easily forgotten. 

 It has a height of nearly one hun- 

 dred feet, and thousands of these 

 delicate catkins hung from the ends 

 of its twigs. 



quite superfluous. Within 

 miles of city or town, the 

 tree has hardly come to be 

 full grown before its en- 

 tire trunk is covered with 

 carvings of every descrip- 

 tion chiefly the initials of 

 the carvers ; various sym- 

 bols, and other curious 

 dendroglyphs if it be per- 

 missible to coin a word for 

 them. The majority of 

 these generally indicate 

 that, in the spring the 

 young man's mind has a 

 certain gentle inclination 

 that ages ago became pro- 

 verbial. It is the rarest 

 thing to meet with a beech 

 not so dealt with ; and 

 when we do, there is gen- 

 erally some good reason for 

 it as a rule it is under 

 some sort of protection. 



Many rodents and birds, 

 such as blue jays, feed upon 

 these triangular, f our-valved 

 burs, and have done so for 



