1896

ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM.

PART III.

(Pinus Strbbus). It is found also upon the sea shore, and in the pine barrens. In thelatter situation, it is frequently from 18 ft. to 20 ft. high, with a trunk 4 in. or 5 in. in dia-meter; with entire leaves, 2in. or 3in. long, silky, and whitish beneath. In dry orsandy; places, it is only 3 ft. or 4 ft. high, with denticulated leaves only 1 in. in length,which persist for 2 years. These changes are, however, not permanent, as F. A. Michauxfound both kinds of leaves on the same tree. The upland willow oak is also oftenfound in pine forests that have been cleared for cultivation, and afterwards abandonedon account of their sterility. In these places, as in the pine barrens, it is about 20ft.high ; and its trunk, crooked, and covered with a thick bark, begins to ramify at abouta third of the height of the tree from the ground. In spring, it is distinguished by thereddish colour of its leaves and male catkins. The acorns, which are contained in shal-low cups, are round and blackish, with the base of a bright rose colour, when freshlyexposed. It is rare to meet with a tree that yields a quart of fruit. ( Michx .) The baricof this tree, like that of Q. tinctbria, dyes yellow; but the tree is so rare in America,that no use is made either of its bark or wood.

Q. P. 6 maritimus Michx. Quer.,No. 7.; Q. maritima Willd. Sp. P/., iv. p. 424., PurshFI. Amer. Sept. y ii. p. 625., N. Du Ha?n., vii. p. 150., Smith in Rees's Cpct., No. 2. —Alow shrubby plant, from 3 ft. to 8 ft. high, according to Pursh ; a native of the sea coastof Virginia and Carolina. The leaves are shorter than those of the species, and are per-sistent. It is sometimes called the evergreen willow oak.

Description, fyc. Q. /'hellos, in America, is seldom found above 50 ft. or60 ft. high, with a trunk 2 ft. in diameter; but in England, according to ourStatistics, it attains the height of 70 ft. and upwards. The trunk, even at anadvanced age, is covered with a smooth bark.

The leaves are 2 in. or 3 in. long, of a lightgreen, smooth, narrow, entire, and very similarto those of the willow; whence the name of thewillow oak, by which this species is knownthroughout the greater part of America. Theshoots are straight, long, slender, wand-like, andnot crossing one another so much as in most ofthe other kinds of oaks; so that the tree is almostas much like the willow, in its shoots as its leaves.

The acorns, which are rarely abundant, aresmall, round, bitter, and of a dark brown co-lour: they are contained in shallow cups, slightlycoated with scales; and, if kept in a cool place,they will preserve the power of germination forseveral months. The most northern boundaryof the willow oak is Philadelphia; but it ismore common, and of a larger size, in Virginia,the Carolinas, and Georgia, where the mild-ness of the climate is evidently favourable toits growth. “It is seen, however, only in themaritime parts of these states, and is a stranger to the inland districts, wherethe surface is mountainous, and the climate more severe.” (Michx.) Thewillow oak generally grows in cool moist places; and, with Nyssa aquatica,Magnolia glauca, d'cer rubrum, Laurus carolinensis, and Quercus aquatica, itborders the swamps in the lower part of the southern states. But, thoughthe willow oak generally grows in moist places, it is sometimes found, alongwith the live oak, “near the sea, in the driest and most sandy soils. At adistance, it resembles the live oak in its shape and in its foliage, which, in thosesituations, persists during several years; but, on a closer examination, it iseasily distinguished by the form of its leaves, which are shorter and narrower,and by the porous texture of its wood.” (Id.) Catesby calls this oak Q./'lex marylandica, after Ray; and mentions that, in 1723, it was growing inthe garden of Mr. Fairchild. He adds that this tree is the favourite resortof the large white-billed woodpecker, which feeds upon the insects found inits bark, and injures the tree so much in dislodging them, that the groundunder the tree is often covered with small chips. From this circumstance,the Spaniards call the birds carpenteros. (Catesb. Carol., i. p. 16.) Michauxadds that the wood is reddish and coarse-grained, and so porous, that itsstaves are classed with those of the red oak. From the comparative rarenessof the tree, however, they are seldom in the market. In some of the lowerparts of Virginia, the wood of Q. Phellos is found to possess great strength