152 THE BOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



tree, a start in the first instance. The two most common species 

 of oak are the sessile-acorned oak (Quercus sessiliflora), and the 



stalked variety (Q. pedunculata} ; al- 

 though the former has practically 

 sessile acorns, the leaf-stalks are from 

 h a ^ an i* 10 * 1 t an inch long. This is 

 the species present in the Forest of 

 A B Dean, and generally in the west. Al- 



FIG. 43.-A, Staminate flower of though Q. pedunculata is very abun- 

 Oak ; /, perianth. B, Pistillate dant in the deep marls and clay of 



flower of Oak with bracts Somerset it is the soil that deter . 

 forming the capsule. . 



mines the question; Q. sessik flora can 



thrive in shallow soil ; Q. pedunculata likes rich, deep, moist 

 ground. The branching of the oak is characteristic, and gives 

 the tree its gnarled and rugged appearance, so that it is easily 

 recognised ; the branches are less twisted in the sessile-acorned 

 oak than in the stalked species. 



The oak flowers in April or May. The staminate flowers are 

 arranged in long, hanging catkins, but they are not nearly as 

 closely packed as those of the hazel, and as they are green, not 

 yellow, they are less conspicuous. Each staminate flower has 

 from six to twelve stamens. 



The pistillate flowers are far fewer, and are borne on short 

 erect stalks; they are situated above the stamina,te flowers of 

 the same branch ; the pollen from the pendulous catkin is carried 

 by the wind to the pistillate flowers of the branch beneath. Each 

 pistillate flower has a three-celled ovary ; as a rule only one ovule 

 develops, so that the acorn is one-seeded. 



The beech is in most respects a contrast to the oak. Its 

 bark is smooth, that of the oak fissured. Its colouring too is 

 different ; in the beech there is a greyish tinge more marked in 

 some trees than in others, whilst the bark of the oak is a decided 

 brown. The leaves are different ; the beech has a simple leaf 

 with a delicately fringed margin, that of the oak is wavy and 

 irregular in outline ; when opening in spring, the delicate green 

 of the beech is a decided contrast to the yellower colouring of the 

 oak. The staminate flowers of the beech hang down in long 

 stalked tassels, the anthers are yellow, and these blossoms are 



