Part 21

=Bark.=--Bark of trunk dark ash-gray, uniformly but very coarsely roughened, in old trees smooth or broken into rough and occasionally projecting plates; branches gray; leaf-scars rather prominent; season's shoots smooth or nearly so, purplish changing to gray, with numerous dots.

=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Lateral buds smaller than in C. tomentosa, oblong, pointed; terminal, globular, with rounded apex; scales numerous, the inner reddish, lengthening to 1 or 2 inches, not dropping till after expansion of the leaves. Leaves pinnately compound, alternate, 10-18 inches long; petiole long and smooth; stipules none; leaflets 5-7, opposite, 2-5 inches long, yellowish-green above, paler beneath, turning to an orange brown in autumn, smooth on both sides; outline, the three upper obovate, the two lower oblong-lanceolate, all taper-pointed; base obtuse, sometimes acute, especially in the odd leaflet.

=Inflorescence.=--May. Sterile and fertile flowers on the same tree, appearing when the leaves are fully grown,--sterile at the base of the season's shoots, in pendulous, downy, slender catkins, 3-5 inches long, usually in threes, branching umbel-like from a common peduncle; scales 3-lobed, nearly glabrous, lobes of nearly equal length, pointed, the middle narrower; stamens mostly 4, anthers yellowish, beset with white hairs: fertile flowers at the ends of the season's shoots; calyx 4-toothed, pubescent, adherent to the ovary; corolla none; stigmas 2.

=Fruit.=--October. Single or in pairs, sessile on a short, terminal stalk, shape and size extremely variable, pear-shaped, oblong, round, or obovate, usually about 1-1/2 inches in diameter: husk thin, green turning to brown, when ripe parting in four sections to the center and sometimes nearly to the base: nut rather thick-shelled, not ridged, not sharp-pointed: kernel much inferior in flavor to that of the shagbark.

=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows in all well-drained soils, but prefers a deep, rich loam; a desirable tree for ornamental plantations, especially in lawns, as the deep roots do not interfere with the growth of grass above them; ill-adapted, like all the hickories, for streets, as the nuts are liable to cause trouble; less readily obtainable in nurseries than the shellbark hickory and equally difficult to transplant. Propagated from the seed.

1. Winter buds. 2. Flowering branch. 3, 4. Sterile flower, back view. 5. Fertile flower, side view. 6. Fruiting branch.

=Carya amara, Nutt.=

Hicoria minima, Britton.

BITTERNUT. SWAMP HICKORY.

=Habitat and Range.=--In varying soils and situations; wet woods, low, damp fields, river valleys, along roadsides, occasional upon uplands and hill slopes.

From Montreal west to Georgian bay.

Maine,--southward, rare; New Hampshire,--eastern limit in the Connecticut valley, where it ranges farther north than any other of our hickories, reaching Well's river (Jessup); Vermont,--occasional west of the Green mountains and in the southern Connecticut valley; Massachusetts,--rather common, abundant in the vicinity of Boston; Rhode Island and Connecticut,--common.

South to Florida, ascending 3500 feet in Virginia; west to Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Indian territory, and Texas.

=Habit.=--A tall, slender tree, 50-75 feet high and 1 foot-2-1/2 feet in diameter at the ground, reaching greater dimensions southward. The trunk, tapering gradually to the point of branching, develops a capacious, spreading head, usually widest near the top, with lively green, finely cut foliage of great beauty, turning to a rich orange in autumn. Easily recognized in winter by its flat, yellowish buds.

=Bark.=--Bark of trunk gray, close, smooth, rarely flaking off in thin plates; branches and branchlets smooth; leaf-scars prominent; season's shoots yellow, smooth, yellow-dotted.

=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Terminal buds long, yellow, flattish, often scythe-shaped, pointed, with a granulated surface; lateral buds much smaller, often ovate or rounded, pointed. Leaves pinnately compound, alternate, 12-15 inches long; rachis somewhat enlarged at base; stipules none; leaflets 5-11, opposite, 5-6 inches long, 1-2 inches wide, bright green and smooth above, paler and smooth or somewhat downy beneath, turning to orange yellow in autumn; outline lanceolate, or narrowly oval to oblong-obovate, serrate; apex taper-pointed to scarcely acute; base obtuse or rounded except that of the terminal leaflet, which is acute; sessile and inequilateral, except in terminal leaflet, which has a short stem and is equal-sided; sometimes scarcely distinguishable from the leaves of C. porcina; often decreasing regularly in size from the upper to the lower pair.

=Inflorescence.=--May. Sterile and fertile flowers on the same tree, appearing when the leaves are fully grown,--sterile at the base of the season's shoots, or sometimes from the lateral buds of the preceding season, in slender, pendulous catkins, 3-4 inches long, usually in threes, branching umbel-like from a common peduncle; scale 3-lobed, hairy-glandular, middle lobe about the same length as the other two but narrower, considerably longer toward the end of the catkin; stamens mostly 5, anthers bearded at the tip: fertile flowers on peduncles at the end of the season's shoots; calyx 4-lobed, pubescent, adherent to the ovary; corolla none; stigmas 2.

=Fruit.=--October. Single or in twos or threes at the ends of the branchlets, abundant, usually rather small, about 1 inch long, the width greater than the length; occasionally larger and somewhat pear-shaped: husk separating about to the middle into four segments, with sutures prominently winged at the top or almost to the base, or nearly wingless: nut usually thin-shelled: kernel white, sweetish at first, at length bitter.

=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows almost anywhere, but prefers a rich, loamy or gravelly soil. A most graceful and attractive hickory, which is transplanted more readily and grows rather more rapidly than the shagbark or pignut, but more inclined than either of these to show dead branches. Seldom for sale by nurserymen or collectors. Grown readily from seed.

1. Winter bud. 2. Flowering branch. 3. Sterile flower, back view. 4. Sterile flower, front view. 5. Fertile flower. 6. Fruiting branch.

BETULACEAE. BIRCH FAMILY.

=Ostrya Virginica, Willd.=

Ostrya Virginiana, Willd.

HOP HORNBEAM. IRONWOOD. LEVERWOOD.

=Habitat and Range.=--In rather open woods and along highlands.

Nova Scotia to Lake Superior.

Common in all parts of New England.

Scattered throughout the whole country east of the Mississippi, ranging through western Minnesota to Nebraska, Kansas, Indian territory, and Texas.