94 



Winter buds long and slender, at least 4 times as long as wide; 

 staminate flowers in globose heads on drooping peduncles; 



nuts sharply 3-angled 1 Fagus. 



Winter buds not long and slender and less than 4 times as 

 long as wide; staminate flowers in slender catkins; nuts 

 not as above. 

 Staminate catkins erect or spreading; nut flattened on one 



side and enclosed in a spiny, woody husk 2 Castanea. 



Staminate catkins drooping; nuts not flattened on one side, 



seated in a scaly, woody cup 3 Quercus. 



1. FAGUS. THE BEECH. 



Fagus grandifolia Ehrhart. BEECH. Plate 38. Large tall trees 

 with bark from light to dark gray; twigs densely covered at first with 

 long hairs, soon becoming glabrous and turning to a reddish-brown; 

 terminal winter buds about 2 cm. long; leaves ovate to ovate-oblong, 

 long taper-pointed to merely acute, wedge-shape to cordate at base, 

 regularly and usually minutely serrate, average blades 7-12 cm. long, 

 silky when young, becoming at maturity glabrous above and nearly 

 so beneath except on the veins; flowers appear in May; fruit a bur, 

 supported on a club-shaped pubescent penduncle about 1.5 cm. long, 

 covered with short recurved prickles, densely rufous-pubescent, its 4- 

 valves enclosing the two triangular brown nuts; nuts edible ; wood very 

 hard, strong, usually tough, difficult to season, close-grained, takes a 

 high polish, sap wood white, heart wood reddish. 



Distribution. Nova Scotia, southern Ontario to Wisconsin, south 

 to the Gulf States and Texas. It is found in every county of the State, 

 although it is local in the prairie and dry sandy regions of the north- 

 western part of the State. It is a frequent to a very common tree on the 

 high ground in many parts of the State. If the high ground and hills 

 of the State are not forested with white and black oak, beech is almost 

 certain to be the prevailing species. Wherever beech is found it is 

 usually a frequent to a common tree, and it is not uncommon to see 

 areas which are almost a pure stand of this species. It is also a fre- 

 quent to a common tree in southern Indiana in what is called the 

 "flats." Here it is associated with sweet gum and pin oak. On the 

 slopes of hills of the southern counties it is associated with a great 

 variety of trees. In the central part of the State its most frequent 

 associate is the sugar maple. In the northern counties it has a wider 

 range of associates, including white oak, ash, slippery elm, buckeye, 

 ironwood, etc. It should be added that tulip is a constant associate 

 except in the "flats." In point of number it ranks as first of Indiana 

 trees. 



