OAK FAMILY 



single specimen or mingled with otlier trees but always in 

 tracts wliicli it covers almost exclusively. Evidently it can 

 flourish where other species cannot. 



BLACK JACK. BARREN OAK 



Qnt'irns ntiU ihhtdita. Qiic'rcns iilt^ni. 



A small shrubby tree, with small trunk, sprcadini; and contorted 

 branches. Grows on sandy barrens, and ranges from southern New 

 York westward to Kansas and Nebraska and southward to the Flor- 

 ida coast. Rare in the north, but abundant in the south where it 

 is often found on hea\-y clays. Hybridizes freely. 



Bark. — Dark brown almost black, divided into rectangular plates 

 which are covered with small scales. Ijranchlets stout, at first light 

 red and scurfy, later reddish brown, finally dark brown. 



I food. — Dark brown, sapvvood lighter ; heavy, hard, strong, used 

 for fuel a.nd in manufacture of charcoal. Sp. gr., 0.7324; weight of 

 cu. ft., 45.64 lbs. 



]]'intiT Binis. — Light reddish brown, angled, acute, hairy, one- 

 fourth of an inch long. 



Lcai'cs. — Alternate, five to seven inches long, broadly obovate, 

 rounded or cordate at the narrow base, usually three-lobed at the 

 broad ape.x. Form of lobes extremely variable, sometimes 

 rounded sometimes acute, each lobe bristle-tipped. They come 

 out of the bud pale pink, coated with tomentum, when half grown 

 they are still coated with the pale hairs. When full grown they 

 are thick and leathery, dark yellow green, shining above, and 

 yellow, orange or brown and scurfy below ; midrib broad, dark yel- 

 low, raised and rounded above, primary veins stout. In autumn 

 they turn brown or yellow. Petioles stout, yellow, grooved above, 

 one-half to three-fourths of an inch long. Stipules three-fourths of 

 an inch long, caducous. 



Flowfrs. — May, when leaves are half grown. Staminate flowers 

 borne in hairy catkins two to four inches long. Calyx of staminate 

 flowers thin, scarious, tinged with red, covered with pale hairs and 

 divided into four to fi\e rounded lobes. Stamens usually four ; 

 anthers dark red. Pistillate flowers borne on short peduncles 

 co\ered with thick rusty tomentum. Involucral scales are coated 

 with tomentuiTi and about as long as the calyx lobes ; stigmas re- 

 flexed, short, broad, dark red. 



Acorns. — Ripen in autumn of second year, solitary or in pairs, 

 short stalked; nut three-fourths of an inch in length, oblong, full and 

 rounded at both ends, a trifle broader below than above the mid- 

 dle, light yellow brown, often striate. Shell thin, lined with coat 



370 



