138 



TREES OF NORTH AMERICA 



urinal leaflet more or less decurrent by its wedge-shaped base on a slender stalk or 

 rarely nearly sessile. Flowers : staminate in solitary or fascicled hirsute aments 

 2^'-3' long from branches of the previous year or at the base of branches of the 

 year; calyx covered like the bract with yellow glandular pubescence; stamens 6, with 

 oblong slightly emarginate anthers; pistillate oblong, slightly flattened, 4-angled, 

 glandular-pubescent. Fruit often in 3 or 4-fruited clusters, much compressed, 

 usually broadest above the middle, rounded at the slightly narrowed base, rounded 

 or abruptly narrowed at the apex, conspicuously 4- winged, dark brown or nearly 

 black, covered more or less thickly with bright yellow pubescence, 1^' long, I'-l^' 

 wide, with a thin brittle husk splitting tardily and usually only to the middle; nut 

 flattened, slightly obovate, !'-!' long, nearly as broad, rounded and abruptly short- 

 pointed at the apex, rounded at the narrow base, 4-angled and ridged, dark reddish 

 brown, and longitudinally and very irregularly wrinkled, with thin walls and par- 

 titions containing large irregular cavities filled with dark red bitter powder; seed 

 oblong, compressed, dark brown, irregularly and usually longitudinally furrowed. 



A tree, occasionally 80-100 high, with a trunk rarely exceeding 2 in diameter, 

 slender upright branches forming a narrow head, and slender dark reddish brown 

 or ashy gray lustrous branchlets marked with numerous pale lenticels, at first slightly 

 glandular and coated with loose pale tomentum, glabrous or puberulous during the 

 summer, and marked during the winter with small nearly oval or obscurely 3-lobed 

 slightly elevated leaf-scars, growing dark red-brown and ultimately gray. Winter- 

 buds slightly flattened, acute, dark reddish brown, covered with caducous yellow 

 glands, terminal \'-\' long, often villose; axillary much smaller, frequently nearly 

 sessile, often solitary. Bark '-' thick, separating freely into long loose plate-like 



light brown scales tinged with red. "Wood heavy, strong, close-grained, rather brit- 

 tle, dark brown, with thick light-colored or often nearly white sapwood ; occasionally 

 used for fencing and fuel. 



Distribution. River swamps often inundated during a considerable part of the 

 year from southeastern Virginia southward through the coast regions to Cape Mal- 

 abar and the valley of the Caloosa River, Florida, through the maritime portions 

 of the Gulf states to the valley of the Brazos River in Texas, and northward through 

 western Louisiana to northeastern Arkansas, western Mississippi, and southern Illi- 



