514 NEW ENGLAND TREES IN WINTER. 



KENTUCKY COFFEE TREE 



Coffee Nut, Coffee Bean, Nicker Tree, Mahogany. 



Gymnocladus dioica (L.) Koch. 



G. canadensis Lam. 



HABIT A medium sized tree 30-60 ft. in height, trunk generally soon 

 dividing into 3 or 4 slightly spreading limbs or less frequently with a 

 continuous trunk, forming a narrow obovate head with thick branchlets 

 devoid of spray; the large stout pods often remaining on tree through- 

 out the winter. 



BARK Dark brown, characteristically roughened with thin tortuous 

 recurved scale-like ridges which are distinct even upon comparatively 

 young branches. 



TWIGS Very stout, more or less contorted, blunt, Drown or slightly 

 greenish, generally white-crusted, smooth or often velvety-downy. 

 LENTICELS rather numerous, large, generally more conspicuous on 

 second year's growth. PITH wide, salmon-pink to brown. 



LEAP-SCARS Alternate, more than 2-ranked, large, pale, raised, 

 broadly heart-shaped. STIPULE-SCARS absent. BUNDLE-SCARS 

 large, raised, generally 3-5. 



BUDS Terminal bud absent, lateral buds small, bronze, silky pubes- 

 cent, partially sunken, scarcely projecting beyond the surface of the 

 twig, surrounded by an incurved downy rim of the bark; axillary bud 

 in the depression at top of leaf-scar, one or sometimes 2 superposed 

 buds present. BUD-SCALES sometimes 2 lateral scales visible. 



FRUIT A reddish-brown, large, broad, flat, oblong, abruptly pointed 

 pod, 4-10 inches long by l%-2 inches wide, frequently remaining 

 unopened on tree during winter, generally somewhat larger than shown 

 in the photograph. Seed, dark brown, flattish. 



COMPARISONS A superficial glance at the habit of the Kentucky 

 Coffee Tree might lead one to mistake its stout branchlets for those of 

 the Ailanthus. Its curious narrow ridged bark, however, should at 

 once prevent any confusion between the two trees. The silky bronze 

 superposed buds partially sunken in downy dimples of the bark in 

 connection with the stout twigs and salmon-colored pith are sufficient 

 characters to distinguish this tree from all other forms. 



DISTRIBUTION Not native in New England but frequently cultivated 

 as an ornamental tree; grows wild in rich deep soil from central New 

 York and southern Minnesota southward to Tennessee and the Indian 

 Territory. 



WOOD Heavy, though not hard, strong, coarse-grained, very durable 

 In contact with soil, rich light brown tinged with red, with thin lighter 

 colored sapwood of 5-6 layers of annual growth; it takes a fine polish 

 and is occasionally used in cabinet-making and for fence-posts, rails 

 and in construction. Its seeds were formerly used as a substitute for 

 coffee. 



