THE OAKS 51 



silky hairs. It is a spectacle that seems unreal, because it 

 is so lovely and gone so soon. The protecting hairs and 

 pigments disappear, and the green leafage takes its place, 

 brightened by the yellow tassels of the stamen flowers, and 

 the growing season is on. 



In autumn the pale-lined leaves of the white oak turn 

 slowly to sombre violet and dull purplish tones. Clinging 

 there, after the acorns have all fallen and been gathered by 

 squirrels, the foliage fades into the gray of the bark and 

 may persist imtil spring growth sets in. 



The Bur Oak 



Q. macrocarpa, Michx. 



The bur oak {see illustration, page 39) is called the mossy- 

 cup on account of the loose, fringed scales about the rim of 

 the cup that holds the large acorn — largest in the whole 

 oak family. Often the nut is completely enclosed by the 

 cup; often it is small. This variable fruit is sweet, and it 

 is the winter store of many furry wood-folk. 



The leaf has the rounded lobing of the family, with the 

 special peculiarity of being almost cut in two by a pair of 

 deep and wide opposite sinuses, between the broad middle, 

 and the narrow, tapering base. Not all leaves show this 

 odd form, but it is the prevailing pattern. The dark green 

 blade has a pale, fuzzy lining, that lasts until the leaves 

 turn brown and yellow. 



The bur oak is a ruf::ged, ragged tree, compared with the 

 white oak. Its irreguhir form is picturesque, its wayward 

 limbs are clothed in a loose garment of untidy, half-shed 

 bark. The twigs are roughened with broad, corky wings. 



