174 TREES OF MINNESOTA. 



making and furniture. The nuts, which ripen in October, con- 

 tain a large amount of oil, are delicious when fresh and are 

 generally preferred to the nuts of the Black Walnut, but like 

 them they become rancid with age. The unripe nuts are 

 sometimes gathered early in June when they are tender and 

 after removing the clammy pubescent by scalding and rub- 

 bing with a coarse cloth make excellent pickles. The inner 

 bark is white but becomes light yellow and ultimately dark 

 brown upon exposure to the air. It possesses mild cathartic 

 properties; that from the root being especially valued as a 

 safe cathartic. The acrid leaves have been used as a sub- 

 stitute for Spanish flies. Sue~ar of excellent quality has teen 

 made from the sap and a dye for coloring cloth a yellow or 

 orange color is obtained from the green husks of the fruit 

 and from the bark, and formed the butternut color commonly 

 used in the early history of this country. 



Genus HICORIA. 



Leaves alternate, odd-pinnate with few leaflets. Flowers 

 monoecious, apetalous; the staminate in clustered lateral cat- 

 kins, each cluster on a terminal peduncle; the pistillate 2 to 6 

 together on a terminal peduncle; stigmas 2 to 4, large. Fruit 

 a smooth or angled nut covered with a f our-valved husk which 

 generally separates at maturity. The leaves of most if not 

 all the hickories are aromatic and astringent and the bark is 

 astringent and bitter. The bark has been successfully used 

 in the treatment of dyspepsia and intermittent fevers and in 

 homeopathic practice. The Indians used an oil made from 

 the nuts. 



Hicoria ovata. ( Carya alba. ) Shellbark Hickory. 



Shagbark Hickory. 



Leaves 8 to 14 inches long: leaflets 5 (rarely 7), obovate 

 to oblong-lanceolate, ciliate; fruit globose, depressed at the 

 apex; nut pale or nearly white, more or less flattened, 4- 

 angled, thin or thick shelled, covered with thick husk; meat 

 highly flavored. Bark of old trees is very shaggy, separat- 

 ing into wide, rough strips and often falling away 

 in large pieces. A sturdy, beautiful tree, often 70 to 90 feet 

 high in forests, in the open forming an inversely conical top 

 with pendulous branches. 



