Upland Willow Oak 



305 



localities, is considered to be a cross with the Black oak, Q. velutina Lamarck; a 

 cross with the Black jack oak, Q. marylandica Muenchausen, and another with 

 the Pin oak, Q. palustris DuRoi, have been reported from near St. Louis, Missouri. 



22. UPLAND WILLOW OAK — Quercus cinerea Michaux 

 Quercus brevijolia (Lamarck) Sargent. Quercus Phellos brevijolia Lamarck 



This tree of sandy uplands occurs from North Carolina to Florida and Texas, 

 mostly not far from the coast. It attains a maximum height of about 30 meters, 

 with a trunk diameter of 5 dm. 



The branches are stout and stifF, forming a more or less irregular head or at 

 times a broad round tree. The bark 

 is up to 4 cm. thick, fissured into 

 small angular plates, covered with 

 brown to nearly black scales. The 

 twigs are stiff, woolly at first, soon 

 becoming smooth and dark reddish 

 brown. The winter buds are ovoid, 

 sharp-pointed, the scales brown. The 

 leaves are oblong, lanceolate or oblan- 

 ceolate, 5 to 12 cm. long, entire, wavy- 

 margined or sometimes toothed or 

 shallowly lobed, slightly bristle-tipped 

 at the pointed or sometimes rounded 

 apex, narrowly wedge-shaped or rarely 

 rounded at the base, somewhat thick- 

 ened on the margin. They are firm, 

 pale green and shining, with yellowish 

 midrib above, grayish woolly beneath, 

 often long persisting, falling irregularly 

 during the winter. The leaf-stalk is 

 stout, grooved, 3 to 8 mm. long. The 

 flowers appear with the leaves, the staminate catkins woolly, 5 to 8 cm. long; the 

 flower buds are bright red; the 4 or 5 calyx- lobes are ovate, sharp-pointed, red, 

 or yellow. The pistillate flowers are on short, stout, hairy stalks; involucral scales 

 and calyx-lobes about equal in length and hairy; styles long, reflexed and dark 

 red. The fruit, ripening in the autumn of the second year, is usually sessile and 

 often very abundant; nut oblong to subglobose, 1.5 cm. long, light brown and 

 striped, the apex hairy; cup saucer- shaped, i to 1.5 cm. across, reddish brown 

 with shining hairs inside, thin, embracing about one fourth of the nut and covered 

 by thin, ovate-lanceolate bluntish hairy scales, with reddish margins. 



The wood is hard and strong, close-grained and light reddish brown; its specific 

 gravity is about 0.64. It is used for fuel. 



Fig. 257. — Upland Willow Oak. 



