34 
LAUREL OAK. 
most sandy soils. At a distance it resembles the Live Oak in its shape, 
and in its foliage, which persists during several years ; but on a closer 
examination it is easily distinguished by the form of its leaves, which are 
shorter and much narrower, and by the porous texture of its wood. 
The fruit of this species is rarely abundant ; the acorns are of a dark 
brown colour, small, round, very bitter, and contained in shallow cups 
lightly coated with scales; kept in a cool place they preserve the faculty 
of germination for several months. 
The wood is reddish and coarse-grained. It is too porous to contain 
wine or spirituous liquor, and its staves are classed with those of Red Oak. 
The quantity, however, is small, as the tree is so little multiplied, that 
alone it wmuld not supply the consumption for two years. In some of the 
lower parts of Virginia, particularly in the county of York, it is found to 
possess great strength and tenacity, and to split less easily than the White 
Oak ; hence, after being thoroughly seasoned, it is employed for the fellies 
of wheels. These are the only uses to which it seems adapted, and for 
these it is less proper than the Post Oak and White Ash. On several 
plantations near Augusta in Georgia, the fences are made partly of Willow 
Oak, which lasts only eight or nine years. As fuel, it is sold at the lowest 
price. 
PLATE XIV. 
Â branch luith leaves and fruit of the natural size. 
[See NuttalPs Supplement, Vol. 1, p. 15.] 
LAUREL OAK. 
ClUERcus IMBRICARIA. Q.folUs suhsessUihus, ovali-oblongis, acutis, integerri- 
mis, nitidis ; glande subhemisphæricâ. 
East of the Alleghanies this species is rare, and has received no specific 
name ; west of the mountains, where it is more multiplied and has attracted 
