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NUT TREES IN LANDSCAPE WORK 



place where deciduous trees are needed. It is raised 

 extensively in some nurseries, while the other hickoris 

 are raised very sparingly, and some not at all. 



Many consider the beech the most beautiful of all the 

 nut trees. Its comparatively smooth, bluish-gray bark 

 makes it a distinctive tree at all seasons. Its branches, 

 spreading straight out from the trunk, give it an appear- 

 ance of strength. Its fine branches from a specially 

 pleasing skyline, its sharp buds are trim and neat in 

 appearance, its leaves are beautiful in shape and texture. 

 Their fall coloring, while not as brilliant as that of the 

 maples, is really beautiful, being either yellow or a rich 

 brown. The leaves are apt to hang on all winter, espe- 

 cially on the younger growth, and then they often turn a 

 beautiful straw color. If a list of beautiful trees for 

 February were to be made, I am rather inclined to think 

 that the beech would stand at the head of the list. A 

 young beech, with its bluish-gray bark, its straw-colored 

 leaves, and flecks of snow here and there, seems to me 

 the most beautiful of all deciduous trees in winter. The 

 young leaves also are especially attractive when they 

 first appear and the blossoms are sometimes objects of 

 interest, although not showy in color. 



Often in old pastures one finds forlorn, scraggly look- 

 ing bushes and is told they are hazel nut bushes. One 

 would not pick out bushes like these to plant in his front 

 yard, and yet, when given a chance, there is scarcely a 

 more attractive shrub than the hazel. It is one of the 

 first shrubs to blossom, the staminate flowers hanging in 

 slender graceful yellowish-brown catkins, while the pis- 

 tillate flowers are little points of purplish-red protruding 

 from the buds. These blossoms appear long before the 

 leaves. The latter, when fully developed, are beautiful 

 in outline and soft in texture and they have a rich coloring 

 in the fall including various shades of yellow and red. 

 The hazel should certainly be used extensively in land- 

 scape work. The nuts, with their leaf-like involucres, 



FINE EFFECT OF HORSE CHESTNUT PLANTING ON A WASHINGTON STREET 



THE INCOMPARABLE BLACK WALNUT, ALWAYS BEAUTIFUL 



are attractive in appearance in August and September. In 

 connection with our own hazel one would naturally think 

 of the filbert, which is a European relative. The filbert is 

 often planted for ornament, and a variety with purple 

 leaves is quite popular. 



Of all our native trees I think the oak excels in beauty 

 of foliage. By many, oaks might not be considered nut 

 trees, but nearly all of the acorns 

 are eaten by squirrels or other 

 wild animals and so it would be 

 proper to mention oaks when 

 speaking of nut trees in the 

 landscape. In the northern 

 states we have two groups known 

 as the white oak group and the 

 red oak group. The trees of the 

 former have soft, dull green 

 leaves with rounded lobes, while 

 those of the latter have shiny 

 leaves with lobes ending in 

 points or filaments. The former 

 mature their acorns in one year, 

 while the latter require two years 

 to bring them to maturity. The 

 acorns of the white oak group 

 are sweet, while those of the red 

 oak group are more or less bit- 

 ter. The foliage of all oaks is 

 attractive when it first appears, 



