rower, and the Acorns are of the fame fize and fhape, 
fo that I fuipeft their difference is owing to the foil 
in which they grow. 
The thirteenth fort is generally known by the title of I 
Ilex, or evergreen Oak ; of this there are feveral va- 
rieties, which differ greatly in the fize and fhape of 
their leaves ; but thefe will all arife from Acorns of the 
fame tree, as I have feveral times experienced •, nay, 
the lower and upper branches of the fame tree are 
frequently garnilhed with leaves, very different in fize 
and fhape from each other ; thofe on the lower 
branches being much broader, rounder, and then- 
edges indented and let with prickles, but thofe on the 
tipper are long, narrow, and entire •, fo that I verily 
believe they are all but one fpecies, except the Kermes 
Oak, which is undoubtedly a diftinft fort. The leaves 
of the Ilex are from three to four inches long, and 
one broad near the bafe, gradually leffening to a point j 
they are of a lucid green on their upper fide, but 
whitifh and downy on their under, and are entire, 
Handing upon pretty long foot-ftalks thefe remain 
green all the year, and do not fall till they are thruft 
off by young leaves in the fpring. The Acorns are 
fmaller than thofe of the common Oak, but of the 
fame fhape. 
The fourteenth fort is fuppofed to be a different fpe- 
cies, but of this I much doubt, having raifed fome 
plants from the Acorns of the thirteenth, whofe leaves 
are fo like thofe of this, as not to be diftinguiflied 
from them ; thefe are flhorter and broader than the 
other, and approach in fhape to thofe of the Holly- 
tree, and are alfo fet with prickles on their edges. 
The fifteenth fort is the Oak, from which the kermes, 
or what is called fcarlet grain is collected, which is an 
infedl that harbours on this tree. It grows naturally 
in Provence and Languedoc, where it is known by 
the title d’Avaux. This is of fmall growth, feldom 
rifing above twelve or fourteen feet high, fending out 
branches on every fide the whole length, fo as to form 
a bufhy fhrub ; the leaves are oval and undivided ; 
they are fmooth on their furface, but indented on 
their edges, which are armed with prickles like thofe 
of the Holly-tree. The Acorns are fmaller than thofe 
of the common Oak. 
The fixteenth fort grows naturally in Carolina and 
Virginia, where it rifes to the height of forty feet. 
The grain of the wood is hard, tough, and coarfe ; 
the bark is grayifh j the leaves are ovally ipear-fhaped, 
about three inches long and one and a half broad, 
entire, and of a dark green, Handing upon fhort foot- 
Halks ; they are of a thick confidence, and continue 
green all the year. The Acorns are fmall, oblong, 
and have fliort cups ; they are very fweet, fo are eaten 
by the Indians, who lay them up in Hore for the 
winter ; they alfo draw a very fweet oil from them, 
little inferior to that of fweet Almonds. This is call- 
ed the Live Oak in America. 
The feventeenth fort is the tree whofe bark is the 
cork ; of this there are two or three varieties, viz. 
one with a broad, another with a narrow leaf, which 
are evergreen •, and there is one or two which caH 
their leaves in autumn, but the broad-leaved ever- 
green is the moH common *, the other may probably 
be only varieties arifing by accident. The leaves of 
this are entire, of an oblong oval, about two inches 
long, and one and a quarter broad, fawed on their 
edges, and have a little down on their under fides ; 
their foot-ftalks are very fliort ; thefe leaves continue 
green through the winter till the middle of May, when 
they generally fall off juft before the new leaves come 
out, fo that the trees are very often almoft bare for a 
fliort time. The Acorns are very like thofe of the 
common Oak. 
The exterior bark of this tree is the cork •, this is 
taken off from the trees every eight or ten years, but 
there is an interior bark which nouriflies the trees, fo 
that the ftripping off the outer is fo far from injuring 
them, that it is neceffary to continue the trees ; for 
thofe whofe bark are not taken off, feldom laft longer 
than fifty or fixty years in health j whereas the trees 
which are barked every eight or ten years, will live 
a hundred and fifty years and more. The bark of 
the young tree is porous and good for little, however 
it is neceffary to take it off when the trees are twelve 
or fifteen years old, without which' the bark will not 
be good, and after eight or ten years, the bark will 
be fit to take off again •, but this fecund peeling is 
of little ufe, but the third peeling the bark wilf be 
in perfection, and will continue fo many years, for 
the beft cork is taken from the old trees. "The time 
of year for ftripping off this bark is in July, when 
the fecond fap flows plentifully •, this is performed 
with an inftrument, like that ufed for difbarking 
Oaks. The allies of burnt cork mixed with frefh. 
butter, and made into an ointment, is much recom- 
mended for the piles. 
All the forts of Oaks are propagated by Towing their 
Acorns, and the fooner they are put into the ground 
after they are ripe, the better they will fucceed ; for 
they are very apt to fprout where they are fpread thin, 
and if they are laid in heaps, they ferment and rot in 
a little time ; therefore the beft fealon for Towing them 
is in the beginning of November, by which time they 
will be fallen from the trees. 
I fhall firft give fome directions for raifing the feveral 
forts of Oaks in a nurfery, which are intended to be 
planted out for ornament, where their timber is not 
to be regarded. Thefe Acorns may be fown in beds 
about four feet wide, with paths of two feet broad 
between them ; in thefe beds there may be four rows 
fown, at about nine inches diftance from each other •, 
when the beds are marked out, there fliould be drills 
drawn with a hoe in a ftrait line, into which the 
Acorns fliould be dropped at about two or three inches 
diftance •, then they muft be carefully covered over 
with the earth two inches thick, leaving none of them 
uncovered, which might tempt the vermin, for if 
they once find them out, they will make fad havock 
of the Acorns. 
In the fpring, when the plants begin to appear, you 
muft carefully clear them from weeds ; and if the 
feafon proves dry, you fliould refrefli them now and 
then with a little water, whic'lr’'Wtlk greatly promote 
their growth. In thefe beds the plants fliould remain 
until the following autumn (obferving conftantly to 
keep them clear from weeds at which time you 
fliould prepare a fpot of good frefli earth (in fize pro- 
portionable to the quantity of plants,) which fliould 
be well trenched and levelled ; then toward the mid- 
dle or latter end of OCtober, you fliould carefully 
take up the plants, fo as not to injure their roots, 
and plant them out in rows three feet afunder, and 
eighteen inches diftance plant from plant ; obferving 
never to fuffer the plants to abide long out of the 
ground, becaule their rcots would dry and endanger 
their growth. 
When the plants have taken root in this nurfery, 
they will require little more care than to keep them 
clear from weeds, and dig the ground between the 
rows every fpring ; in doing of which, you fliould 
cut off fuch roots as extend very far from the trunk 
of the trees, which will render them better for tranf- 
planting again •, you fliould alfo prune off fuch fide- 
branches as extend themfelves very far, and would 
retard the upright llioot ; but you fliould by no 
means cut off all the fmall lateral branches, fome of 
which are abfolutely necefiary to be left on, to de- 
tain the fap for the augmentation of the trunk ; for 
I have often obferved, where trees have been thus 
clofely pruned, that their heads have overgrown their 
bodies, fo that they have bent downward and become 
crooked. 
When thefe trees have remained in the nurfery three 
or four years, they will then be large enough to 
tranfplant to the places where they are to remain _ 
for it is not proper to let them grow very large before 
they are planted out, becaufe thefe are very hazard- 
ous trees to remove when old, or after they have taken 
deep root. 
The 
