642 Obdbb 119.— CUPTJLIFERjE. 



and a comparatively small kernel di£Boult of extraction. Taste inferiol' to the 

 shellbark. Wood with a small duramen, excellent for fuel. Apr., May. 



7 C. glabra Torr. Piondt. Lfts. 5 orl, ovate-lanceolato, subacuminate, serrate, 

 nearly glabrous both sides; fruit roundish-oiovate or pyriform, half i-valved; nut 

 smooth and even or slightly angular, hard, thin-shelled, with a bitterish but eatable 

 kernel. — Forests TJ. S. and Can., growing to the height of 60 — lOOf. Trunk 1 to 

 2\C diam., covered with a, moderately even bark. Lfta mostly 7, often 5, some- 

 times 9, the odd one tapering to a short stalk. The fruit is considerably variable 

 in form and quality, often pear-shaped, then obovate or roundish, always some- 

 what bitter. Wood exceedingly tough and hard, and excellent for fuel Mar., 

 May. (Juglans, Muhl. C. porcina Kutt.) 



8 C. microcdrpa Nutt. Lfts. 5 or 1, oblong-lanceolate, glabrous, glandular be- 

 neath, serrate, conspicuously acuminate; aments glabrous; fr. roundish-ovoid, 

 valves thin, united below ; nut thin-sheUed, smoM, slightly quadrangular. — A large 

 tree 60 to 80f high, in moist woodlands, Penn. to Ky. and Tenn. ? Trunk 1^ to 

 2f diam. with an even bark. Lfts. mostly 5, often 7, 4 to 8' by 2 to 3', the under 

 surface tufted iu the axils of the veinlets, and sprinkled with dark glandular dots. 

 Fruit about the size of a nutmeg. Nut with a thin shell, not mucronate, eatable. 

 May. 



Order CXIX. CUPULIFER.zE. Mastworts. 



ZVees or shrubs. Leaves alternate, simple, straight- veined, with deciduous stipules. 

 Flowers monoecious, the sterile in aments which are racemed or capitate, i Calyx 

 scale-like or regular, with 5 to 20 stamens inserted at ita base. 5 Oalyx tuba 

 adherent to the ovary, the toothed limb crowning its summit. Ovary 2 to 3 to 6- 

 celled, with sessile stigmas and 1 or 2 ovules in each cell. Fruit a 1-celled, 1-seeded 

 nut, soUtary or several together invested by an involucre which forma a scaly or 

 eoliinate cupule. Seed destitute of albumen, filled by the embryo with its large 

 cotyledons. lUust. in figs. 6, 7, 8, 9, 71, 138, 139, 140, 202, 418, 438, 471, 472, 473, 

 474. 46. B. 



Genera 8, species 265, constituting a large portion of the forests of the northern temperate 

 regions, and of mountainous tracts within the tropica. 



Properties. — The bark of the oak and other genera is well known for its astringent qualities. 

 ITje edible fruit of the hazel-nut, chestnut, beocb, &c., are too well known to require description. 

 Cork is the h.irk of Quercus Suber. Nutt galls are produced from the petioles of Q. infectoria of 

 Asia Minor, being caused by wounds made by insects. But the timber Is of the highest quality 

 aad value. 



GENERA. 



§ Sterile flowers in aments, fertile, solitary, or few together. (*) 



* Involucre of many scales, valveless, cup-like, partly enclosing the 1 nut QuBRCtre. 1 



* Involucre of prickly scales, 4-valved, enclosing 3 or 3 nuts Castanea. 2 



* Involucre of soft, prickly scales, 4-Taivedi enclosing 2 nuts. Fagus. 8 



* Involucre of 2 or 3 large, lacerated, united scales, valveless, with 1 — 2 nuts . . CoETLua 4 

 § Sterile flowers and fertile, both kinds in pendulous aments. {*) 



* Involucre scales in pairs, with their edges united, inflated Ostkta. 5 



* Involucre scales in pairs, distinct, S-lobed, becoming leaf-like Caepintjs. 6 



1. QUER'CUS, L. Oak. (Celtic ywer, fine, cuez, tree. The Celtic 

 name is drys, hence druid.) $ Fls. in loose aments ; calyx mostly 5- 

 cleft ; stamens 5 — 10. ? Cupule cup-shaped, scaly ; ovary 3-celled, 

 6-ovuled (Fig. 418), 2 of the cells and 5 of the ovules abortive ; stigmas 

 3 ; nut (acorn) coriaceous, 1-celled, 1-seeded, surrounded at the base 

 by the enlarged, cup-shaped, scaly cupule. — A noble genus of trees, 

 rarely shrubs. Aments axillary, pendulous, filiform, with the flowers 

 teparate, in one section, not maturing fruit until the second year (fniit 

 biennial). Timber invaluable. Fig. 420. 



