FOREST AND STREAM. 






[JAN. 27, 1906. 
[NATURAL BISTORY 

TREES IN WINTER. 
WEED. 

BY CLARENCE M, 

Il.—The Walnut and Hickory Family. 
Tue walnut family is represented in the east- 
ern region of North America by the black walnut, 
the butternut and the hickories, which are so 
often called walnuts. The two named first are 
distinguished from the hickories by the hollow- 
chambered pith of the twigs. The hickory twigs 
are solid with no central pith. 
The twigs of black walnut and butternut are 
quite characteristic and may generally be known 
in winter by the fact that on the smaller branches 
of the bearing trees there is commonly a large 
bud in front of the leaf buds, this bud later de- 
veloping into the pollen-bearing flowers. 
Black Walnut. 
The large characteristic fruit of the black wal- 
nut is known to every one in regions where the 
tree grows commonly. The thick husk is green 
in October when the nut ripens, but the husk does 
not break apart as do the hickory shells, though 
it turns brown after lying on the ground for a 
time. The winter twigs are easily distinguished 
from those of the butternut, because the latter 
have a fringe of hair across the end of leaf-scars 
which are not present on the leaf-scars of the 
black walnut. The bark of the twigs is slightly 
hairy and of a brownish or grayish-brown color. 
The leaf-scars are somewhat heart-shaped and 
the buds are covered with thick, dark brown, 
downy scales. 
The black walnut blossoms in May, when the 
leaves are unfolding. The compound leaves are 
very large, each leaflet having a serrate margin; 
they have a distinctly aromatic odor, especially 
when bruised. 
The black walnut often becomes a very large 
tree. Its northern range extends from central 
New England west to Ontario and Minnesota, 
while its southern range extends from Florida 
west to Mississippi and Texas. The largest trees 
grew in the Ohio Valley, most of them having 
long since been cut down for the wood, which 
has been so highly prized for furniture making. 
Butternut. 
The fringe of hairs across the outer end of the 
leaf-scar is a characteristic feature of the butter- 
nut twigs in winter. It is, however, a very dis- 
tinctive tree, known to many people at any sea- 
son and easily recognized by its wide-spreading 
manner of growth, especially when young. It 
ranges from New Brunswick to Delaware at sea- 
level and extends southward along the mountains 
to Georgia and Alabama. On the west it extends 
to Dakota, Nebraska and Missouri. 
The bark of the young twigs is of a deep yel- 
low brown color, smooth and shining, and dotted 
with many small, round, whitish spots. The buds 
are very characteristic, being covered with 
densely downy yellowish-brown scales, and form- 
ing with the curiously shaped leaf-scars a com- 
bination of characters that is easily remembered. 
The butternut blossoms early in May, just as 
the leaves are unfolding. The pollen-bearing 
and seed-bearing flowers are in separate groups 
upon th2 same tree. The former consist of cat- 
kins often five or six inches long which project 
from buds on the sides of the twigs near the 
ends. The latter are much less conspicuous, 
being borne singly or in groups of two to four 
on the ends of young branches. 
The butternut leaves are much like those of 
the black walnut. They often reach an enormous 
size. 
Mockernut Hickory. 
The easiest way to distinguish the mockernut 
in winter is by means of its’ hairy twigs, this 
being the only one of our four common hickories 
in which the bark of the young shoots is downy. 
In summer the species may likewise be readily 
known by the hairy leaf-stems and the aromatic 
fragrance of the leaves, especially when slightly 
bruised. The lower leaf surface is generally 
somewhat hairy. | 
The nuts of the mockernut hickory vary greatly 
in size and have thick shells, which are commonly 

BLOSSOMS OF HICKORY, 
four-angled on account of prominent vertical 
ridges on the outside. The kernel is sweet and 
edible but does not fill the cavity as does the 
kernel of the shellbark hickory, a fact that is 
supposed to have led to the name mockernut. 
The mockernut ranges from central New Eng- 
land west to Ontario on the north, and from 
Florida west to Texas and Nebraska. It grows 
commonly on hillsides in the north rather than in 
low lands. Large trees a hundred feet high some- 
times occur. Professor Sargent states that this 
is the “only hickory in the southern maritime 
pine belt, growing in great abundance on low 
sandy hummocks close to the shores of bays and 
estuaries along the coast of the South Atlantic 
and Gulf States.” 
Shellbark Hickory. 
In the case of good-sized trees no hickory is 
easier to distinguish at a glance than the familiar 
shellbark or shagbark hickory. The scaly bark 
peeling off in great flakes enables one always to 
recognize the species. The large leaves and 
smooth leaf-stems are also characteristic in sum- 
mer, there being usually five leaflets, the three 
outer ones very broad. The*large winter buds 
with loose blackish scales on the outside form 
another distinctive character. The nuts are too 
well known to need more than a mention, while 
the wood is also famous for its good qualities. 
On account of its toughness, lightness and elas- 
ticity the wood has long been a favorite material 
for ax handles and other implements in which 
these qualities are necessary. 
The shellbark hickory is found as a native tree 
over a great region extending from Maine to 
Minnesota on the north and from Florida to 
Texas on the south. 
Bitternut Hickory. 
One of the easiest ways to distinguish the bit- 
ternut in winter is by means of the large orange- 
yellow buds having none of the loose outer black- 
ish scales that distinguish the shellbark. The 
bark of young twigs is brown and rather smooth 
except for many slightly raised dots of a lighter 
color. The tree is one of the most beautiful of 
the hickories, reaching a large size with a com- 
paratively smooth trunk that tapers very gradu- 
ally from the base. In summer the bitternut is 
remarkable for the smallness of the leaflets, a fact 
which gives to the tree a more graceful appear- 
ance than the other hickories. The leaf-stems 
are hairy and have no aromatic fragrance—the 
latter fact distinguishing them at once from 
those of the mockernut. The husk of the fruit 
has curious winged projections on its upper half. 
The bitternut is often called the swamp hick- 
ory and seems to be most commonly a lowland 
tree. It is found from central New England 
west to Minnesota and south to Florida and 
Texas. In Iowa it is the commonest species of 
hickory. 
Pignut Hickory. 
The outline of the pignut tree in winter is 
often graceful and attractive on account of the 
unusually slender twigs which give a delicate 
tracery as seen against the sky. The bark of the 
trunk is rather smooth and dark gray, while that 
of the young twigs is reddish brown marked with 
linear whitish spots. 
The leaves of the pignut appear rather late in 
spring and have small leaflets and smooth stems, 
the blades being yellowish-green on the uppet 
surface and paler on the lower. Before falling 
in autumn they change to a yellowish or orange- 
brown color. The nuts are rather small and the 
kernels are generally bitter. The species ranges 
from Maine to Michigan and Nebraska and south 
to Texas and Florida. In the Ohio Valley trees 
120 feet high have been found. 
Zoological Society Board Meeting. 
THE annual meeting of the Board of Man- 
agers of the New York Zoological Society was 
held on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at 3 P. M., at the 
Down Town Club, New York. 
The report of the Executive Committee, which 
was read in part at the annual meeting of the 
members, was gone into more fully by the 
chairman of the Executive Committee, Mr. Chas. 
T. Barney. It showed that a very large amount 
of construction work had been done during the 
year 1905, and that special efforts had been 
made to complete the work in and about Baird 
Court. The funds of this society all show satis- 
factory balances, except the account which is. 
derived from the dues of members, which is 
barely sufficient for present needs. Additional 
members are greatly needed, and all who are 
interested in the Park and its development and 
all friends of the Society should do what they 
can to secure new members for it. 
The collections at present in the Zoological 
Park are 624 mammals, 787 reptiles, 1,560 birds, 
