64 THE TREE BOOK 



seeds of the nut trees ! "All our common nuts 

 are green when on the tree," says Wallace, "so 

 as not easily to be distinguished from the 

 leaves ; but when ripe they turn brown, so that, 

 when they fall to the ground, they are equally 

 undistinguishable among the dead leaves and 

 twigs, or on the brown earth. Then they are 

 almost always protected by hard coverings. 

 The walnut has a bitter rind, the chestnuts and 

 beechnuts are inclosed in prickly coverings. 

 The hazelnuts are hidden in leafy cases, which 

 seem a part of the foliage and are not readily 

 seen." 



.The large round shelly coverings enable the 

 nuts to roll quite a distance from the mother 

 tree. They serve, too, as sailboats. The cocoa- 

 nut is fond of ocean voyages. Our native nuts, 

 however, cannot stand much sailing. They 

 soon become water clogged. Nor are they even 

 enterprising land travelers. If left on the 

 ground, they are more likely to decay than to 

 sprout. Most of the forest nut trees owe their 

 being to the squirrel's habit of burying nuts. 

 How well this active little chap knows whether 

 a nut is worth saving! The decayed ones he 

 tosses scornfully aside; the doubtful ones he 

 taps on a branch and surmises their promise 

 by the sound. 



