THE OAKS 57 



California White Oak 



Q. lobatay Nee. 



The California white oak far exceeds the Eastern white 

 oak in the spread of its miglity arms. The dome is often 

 two hundred feet m breadth and the trunk reaches ten 

 feet in diameter. Such specimens are often low in pro- 

 portion, the trunk breaking into its grand divisions within 

 tw^enty feet of the ground. The ultimate spray is made of 

 slender, supple twigs, on which the many-lobed leaves 

 taper to the short stalks. Dark green above, the blades 

 are lined with pale pubescence. The acorns are slender, 

 l^ointed, and often exceed two inches in length. Their cups 

 are comparatively shallow, and they fall out when ripe. 



The bare framework of one of these giant oaks shows a 

 wonderful maze of gnarled branches, whose grotesque 

 angularities are multiplied with added years and com- 

 plicated by damage and repair. 



It is hard to say whether the grace and nobility of the 

 verdure-clad tree, or the tortuous branching system re- 

 vealed in winter, appeals more strongly to the admiration 

 of the stranger and the pride of the native Calif oniian, 

 who delights in this noble oak at all seasons. Its com- 

 paratively worthless wood has spared the trees to adorn the 

 park-like landscapes of the wide middle valleys of the 

 state. 



Pacific Post Oak 



Q. Garryatia, Hook. 



The Pacific post oak is the only oak in British Columbia, 

 whence it follows down the valleys of the Coast Range to 



