of New York 65 



THE OAKS 



/~\F THE 300 Oaks known in the world, 55 are native to 

 ^■'North America, and most of these occur in the eastern 

 United States. The oaks make up the largest group of for- 

 est trees native to New York. In all there are 16 different 

 kinds of oaks native to this State. They grow under a wide 

 range of conditions and show wide variations in form and 

 other distinguishing characteristics. The best way to get 

 acquainted with New York oaks is to divide them into two 

 major groups, the one group to comprise the White Oaks and 

 the other the Black Oaks. It is easy to place the oaks of 

 New York in these two groups by remembering the follow- 

 ing characteristics of each: 



THE WHITE OAKS: The leaves of the members of this 

 group have rounded lobes (not bristle-tipped), and the ker- 

 nels of the acorns are usually sweet. All the oaks of this 

 group mature their acorns in a single season; for this reason 

 they are sometimes called Annual Oaks. The seven New 

 York members of this group are White Oak, Swamp White 

 Oak, Bur Oak, Post Oak, Chestnut Oak, Yellow Oak, and 

 Scrub Chestnut Oak. 



THE BLACK OAKS: The leaves of the members of this 

 group have bristle-tipped (not round-lobed) leaves, and the 

 kernel of their acorns is usually bitter. All the oaks of this 

 group require two seasons to mature their acorns; for this 

 reason the representatives of this group are sometimes called 

 Biennial Oaks, which means two-year oaks in contrast with 

 the one-year White Oaks. The immature acorns are very 

 helpful in recognizing the members of the Black Oak group, 

 especially during the winter months when the trees are with- 

 out leaves. The nine New York members of this group are 

 Black Oak, Red Oak, Scarlet Oak, Pin Oak, Spanish Oak. 

 Black Jack Oak, Elliott's Oak, Willow Oak, and Scrub Oak. 



The sign of all oaks is the acorn. It is an unfailing 

 distinguishing characteristic. Man has good reasons for his 

 high regard for the oaks. Their most important gift is 

 wood. They also supply us with cork, dyeing materials, 

 tanning products, food for wild and domestic animals, and 

 many other valuable products. 



