BLACK OAK. 



101 



The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and close-grained ; the heart- 

 wood light brown or red ; the sapwood rather darker. The lum- 

 ber, if used at all, is confounded with that of the red oak. The 

 bark is sometimes used in tanning, but is inferior to- that of the 

 black oak. It is rarely used in this State except for coarse 

 staves and shakes, and for fuel. 



Querelas velutina, Lamarck.* 

 (black oak.) 



A large tree, with rough or deeply furrowed nearly black bark, 

 grayish branches, a long clear trunk, and an oval crown, reaching 

 a height of 160 and a diameter of 6 feet. 



Jt is very common on dry or gravelly uplands from Maine to 

 Minnesota, eastern Nebraska, Kansas, and Indian Territory, and 

 south to western Florida, and eastern Texas. It reaches its best 

 development in the valley of the lower Ohio river. 



In North Carolina (fig. 25), where it attains an average height 

 of SO to 90 and an average diameter of 4 to 5 feet, it is most abun- 

 dant in the upper part, and occurs very sparingly, if at all, in 

 the lower. 



MAP OF 

 NORTH CAROLINA 



SCALE OF MILES 



"KM" , PIEDMONT PtATEStTSiJto. 



COASTAL PLAIN «L1I0N_ 



LEGEND 



] Area in which the BLACK OAK is one of the 

 j dominant trees (Quercus velutina, Lam,) 



] Area in which the BLACK OAK is a sub- 

 ] ordinate tree. 



n Distribution of the LAUBEL OAK 

 (Quercus laurifolia, Michx.} 



It bears fruit abundantly at intervals of 2 or 3 years, and seed- 

 lings are common under the light shade of the parent tree. 

 Black oak forms a large part of the second growth mixed hard- 



*Quercus tinctoria, Bartram. 



