20 BULLETIN 909, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



As a rule, however, the quality of the walnut available in the State 

 is comparatively poor. 



In general, the walnut of extreme eastern United States has many 

 defects, including knots, decay, wormholes, and black streaks. Be- 

 cause of its open growth, however, the heartwood gives a figured 

 effect when it is cut into veneer, and the different colors often pro- 

 duced by the eastern timber make it desirable for this use. 



West of the Mississippi River the walnut timber does not on the 

 average grow so large in size as the timber of the East, and the trees 

 are apt to be more defective. Western timber often has a large 

 proportion of hollow and rotten butts, and this defect may run the 

 entire length of the butt log. Knots on the outside of the logs often 

 indicate decay that extends to the interior. Logs cut from the upper 

 portion of the tree are generally small and knotty. Notwithstanding 

 the defectiveness of much western walnut, the general run of the 

 timber is better than that of the eastern, especially in the more 

 remote sections of the country. This is because the western timber 

 has not been cut over so much as the eastern. Western walnut 

 as a rule has more figure than eastern, and this makes it desirable 

 for the manufacture of veneer. It is also said to be harder in general 

 than eastern walnut. 



The Missouri timber, except that from the southeastern part, is 

 somewhat above the average in quality. That from low, wet loca- 

 tions is very defective. 



The walnut of Iowa does not vary greatly in quality from that 

 of Missouri. In the best locations for its growth in the State, along 

 stream courses, it averages somewhat better than the Missouri wal- 

 nut. The walnut of Kansas is similar in quality to that of Missouri ; 

 where the land has not been so greatly cut over the trees run larger 

 and are less defective. The walnut of southeastern Nebraska is of 

 very good size and quality, because the land has not been cut over 

 to the extent to which it has in a large part of Missouri and Kansas. 



The walnut of northwestern Arkansas is also said to be of a better 

 quality than that from Missouri, the former being largely forest 

 growth, and the latter, in a large measure, open growth. The hitherto 

 greater inaccessibility of the Arkansas timber has contributed to 

 produce this superiority. South of the Arkansas River the quality is 

 more like that of the walnut of Oklahoma and Texas. Walnut from 

 these two States is very inferior, especially that grown on the up- 

 lands. The main defects are crooked grain, windshake, sap pockets, 

 wormholes, and large, loose knots. Logs from this region are, as a 

 whole, not suitable for the manufacture of lumber. On account of 

 these irregularities of growth, such logs produce a considerable 

 amount of figure in veneer and are valued largely for this purpose. 

 Different shades of color are often produced by the Texas walnut, 



