Chapter VII 

 THE BEECH, CHESTNUT, AND OAKS 



Family Fagacese 



ALTHOUGH the beech, chestnut, and 

 oaks are divided into three separate 

 genera, they all belong to the family 

 FagacecB. It is an interesting family in winter 

 and deserves careful study, particularly the 

 oaks, which have always been more or less 

 confusing at first sight. 



There is one native beech and one native 

 chestnut, and there are eleven oaks in the 

 Northeastern States. 



Amer' ^ oeau ^I u ^ spreading tree 60 to 



Beech 100 feet high, with a clean, close- 



Fagus grandifoiia fitting, smooth, gray bark. Buds 

 narrow and sharp-pointed, with many over- 

 lapping scales. Twigs smooth, slender, and red- 

 dish brown, with alternate leaf-scars. Fruit, 

 a prickly burr inclosing two triangular, sharp- 

 ridged nuts, the burr hanging cm the trees well 

 into the winter. 



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