JUGLANDACE^E WALNUT FAMILY 



BLACK WALNUT 



Juglans nigra 



Jitglans is contracted from Jovis, Jove's, and glans a mast, or 

 acorn ; and was applied by the Roman writers to this tree on 

 account of the excellence of its fruit as food, compared with other 

 masts or acorns ; the only species that was known to the Romans 

 having been the Juglans regia, the tree bearing the walnut of 

 commerce. 



Generally distributed, least common in the Atlantic states, 

 abundant in the middle Mississippi valley. Prefers rich bottom 

 lands and fertile hillsides. Deep perpendicular roots ; grows 

 slowly ; reaches the height of one hundred feet with a trunk four to 

 six feet in diameter. Bark and husk contain tannic acid. 



Bark. Dark brown, slightly tinged with red, deeply divided into 

 broad rounded ridges, broken on the surface into thick scales. 

 Branchlets hairy, dull orange brown, later becoming darker brown. 



Winter Buds. Terminal buds ovate, slightly flattened, one-third 

 of an inch long, covered with silky tomentum. Axillary buds obtuse, 

 one-eighth of an inch long, covered with silky tomentum ; two to four 

 together. 



Wood. Dark purplish brown ; heavy, hard, close-grained, strong. 

 Very durable in contact with the soil ; used for furniture, interior 

 finishing of houses, gunstocks. Sp. gr., 0.6115 '> weight of cu. ft., 

 38.11 Ibs. 



Leaves. Alternate, compound, unequally pinnate, often equally 

 pinnate, one to two feet long. Fifteen to twenty- three leaflets. 

 Leaflets ovate-lanceolate, three to three and a half inches in length, 

 often unequal at base, serrate, long-pointed, and sessile on the cen- 

 tral stem. They come out of the bud shining, yellow green, smooth 

 above, tomentose beneath, when full grown are thin, bright yellow 

 green, smooth. In autumn they turn bright yellow and fall early. 

 Petioles minutely downy. 



269 



