Handbook of the Trees of New England
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Lorin Low Dame >> Handbook of the Trees of New England
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=Fruit.=--October. Generally sessile on terminal peduncles, single or in
pairs, as large or larger than the fruit of the shagbark, or as small as
that of the pignut, oblong-globose to globose: husk hard and thick,
separating in 4 segments nearly to the base, strong-scented: nut
globular, 4-ridged near the top, thick-shelled: kernel usually small,
sweet, edible. The superior size of the fruit and the smallness of the
kernel probably give rise to the common name, "mockernut."
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; prefers a rich,
well-drained soil, but grows well in rocky, ledgy, exposed
situations, and is seldom disfigured by insect enemies. Young trees have
large, deep roots, and are difficult to transplant successfully unless
they have been frequently transplanted in nurseries, from which,
however, they are seldom obtainable. Propagated from seed.
[Illustration: PLATE XXV.--Carya tomentosa.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, front view.
4. Sterile flower, side view.
5. Sterile flower, top view.
6. Fertile flower, side view.
7. Fruiting branch.
=Carya porcina, Nutt.=
_Hicoria glabra, Britton_.
PIGNUT. WHITE HICKORY.
=Habitat and Range.=--Woods, dry hills, and uplands.
Niagara peninsula and along Lake Erie.
Maine,--frequent in the southern corner of York county; New
Hampshire,--common toward the coast and along the lower Merrimac valley;
abundant on hills near the Connecticut river, but only occasional above
Bellows Falls; Vermont,--Marsh Hill, Ferrisburgh (Brainerd); W.
Castleton and Pownal (Eggleston); Massachusetts,--common eastward; along
the Connecticut river valley and some of the tributary valleys more
common than the shagbark; Rhode Island and Connecticut,--common.
South to the Gulf of Mexico; west to Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas,
Indian territory, and Texas.
=Habit.=--A stately tree, 50-65 feet high, reaching in the Ohio basin a
height of 120 feet; trunk 2-5 feet in diameter, gradually tapering,
surmounted by a large, oblong, open, rounded, or pyramidal head, often
of great beauty.
=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.
[Illustration: PLATE XXVI.--Carya porcina.]
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.
[Illustration: PLATE XXVII.--Carya amara.]
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.
=Habit.=--A small tree, 25-40 feet high and 8-12 inches in diameter at
the ground, sometimes attaining, without much increase in height, a
diameter of 2 feet; trunk usually slender; head irregular, often oblong
or loosely and rather broadly conical; lower branches sometimes slightly
declining at the extremities, but with branchlets mostly of an upward
tendency; spray slender and rather stiff. Suggestive, in its habit, of
the elm; in its leaves, of the black birch; and in its fruit, of
clusters of hops.
=Bark.=--Trunk and large limbs light grayish-brown, very narrowly and
longitudinally ridged, the short, thin segments in old trees often loose
at the ends; the smaller branches, branchlets, and in late fall the
season's shoots, dark reddish-brown.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds small, oblong, pointed, invested with
reddish-brown scales. Leaves simple, alternate, roughish, 2-4 inches
long, 1-2 inches wide, more or less appressed-pubescent on both sides,
dark green above, lighter beneath; outline ovate to oblong-ovate,
sharply and for the most part doubly serrate; apex acute to acuminate;
base slightly and narrowly heart-shaped, rounded or truncate, mostly
with unequal sides; leafstalks short, pubescent; stipules soon falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Sterile flowers from wood of the
preceding season, lateral or terminal, in drooping, cylindrical catkins,
usually in threes; scales broad, laterally rounded, sharp-pointed,
ciliate, each subtending several nearly sessile stamens, filaments
sometimes forked, with anthers bearded at the tip: fertile catkins about
1 inch in length, on short leafy shoots, spreading; bracts lanceolate,
tapering to a long point, ciliate, each subtending two ovaries, each
ovary with adherent calyx, enclosed in a hairy bractlet; styles 2, long,
linear.
=Fruit.=--Early September. A small, smooth nut, enclosed in the
distended bract; the aggregated fruit resembling a cluster of hops.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; prefers dry or
well-drained slopes in gravelly or rocky soil; graceful and attractive,
but of rather slow growth; useful in shady situations and worthy of a
place in ornamental plantations, but too small for street use. Seldom
raised by nurserymen; collected plants moved with difficulty. Propagated
from seed.
[Illustration: PLATE XXVIII.--Ostrya Virginica.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, back view.
4. Sterile flower, front view.
5. Fertile catkin.
6. Fertile flower.
7. Fruiting branch.
=Carpinus Caroliniana, Walt.=
HORNBEAM. BLUE BEECH. IRONWOOD. WATER BEECH.
=Habitat and Range.=--Low, wet woods, and margins of swamps.
Province of Quebec to Georgian bay.
Rather common throughout New England, less frequent towards the coast.
South to Florida; west to Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Indian
territory, and Texas.
=Habit.=--A low, spreading tree, 10-30 feet high, with a trunk diameter
of 6-12 inches, rarely reaching 2 feet; trunk short, often given a
fluted appearance by projecting ridges running down from the lower
branches to the ground; in color and smoothness resembling the beech;
lower branches often much declined, upper going out at various angles,
often zigzag but keeping the same general direction; head wide, close,
flat-topped to rounded, with fine, slender spray.
=Bark.=--Trunk smooth, close, dark bluish-gray; branchlets grayish;
season's shoots light green turning brown, more or less hairy.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Leaf-buds small, oval or ovoid, acute to
obtuse. Leaves simple, alternate, 2-3 inches long, dull green above,
lighter beneath, turning to scarlet or crimson in autumn; outline ovate
or slightly obovate oblong or broadly oval, irregularly and sharply
doubly serrate; veins prominent and pubescent beneath, at least when
young; apex acuminate to acute; base rounded, truncate, acute, or
slightly and unevenly heart-shaped; leafstalk rather short, slender,
hairy; stipules pubescent, falling early.
=Inflorescence.=--May. Sterile flowers from growth of the preceding
season in short, stunted-looking, lateral catkins, mostly single; scales
ovate or rounded, obtuse, each subtending several stamens; filaments
very short, mostly 2-forked; anthers bearded at the tip: fertile flowers
at the ends of leafy shoots of the season, in loose catkins; bractlets
foliaceous, each subtending a green, ovate, acute, ciliate, deciduous
scale, each scale subtending two pistils with long reddish styles.
=Fruit.=--In terminal catkins made conspicuous by the pale green, much
enlarged, and leaf-like 3-lobed bracts, each bract subtending a
dark-colored, sessile, striate nutlet.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; prefers moist,
rich soil, near running water, on the edges of wet land or on rocky
slopes in shade. Its irregular outline and curiously ridged trunk make
it an interesting object in landscape plantations. It is not often used,
however, because it is seldom grown in nurseries, and collected plants
do not bear removal well. Propagated from the seed.
[Illustration: PLATE XXIX.--Carpinus Caroliniana.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, back view.
4. Sterile flower, front view.
5. Fertile catkin.
6. Fertile flower.
7. Fruiting branch.
=BETULA.=
Inflorescence.--In scaly catkins, sterile and fertile on the same tree,
appearing with or before the leaves from shoots of the previous
season,--sterile catkins terminal and lateral, formed in summer, erect
or inclined in the bud, drooping when expanded in the following spring;
sterile flowers usually 3, subtended by a shield-shaped bract with 2
bractlets; each flower consisting of a 1-scaled calyx and 2 anthers,
which appear to be 4 from the division of the filaments into two parts,
each of which bears an anther cell: fertile catkins erect or inclined at
the end of very short leafy branchlets; fertile flowers subtended by a
3-lobed bract falling with the nuts; bractlets none; calyx none; corolla
none; consisting of 2-3 ovaries crowned with 2 spreading styles.
=Betula lenta, L.=
BLACK BIRCH. CHERRY BIRCH. SWEET BIRCH.
=Habitat and Range.=--Moist grounds; rich woods, old pastures, fertile
hill-slopes, banks of rivers.
Newfoundland and Nova Scotia to the Lake Superior region.
Maine,--frequent; New Hampshire,--in the highlands of the southern
section, and along the Connecticut river valley to a short distance
north of Windsor; Vermont,--frequent in the western part of the state,
and in the southern Connecticut valley (_Flora of Vermont_, 1900);
Massachusetts and Rhode Island,--frequent throughout, especially in the
highlands, less often near the coast; Connecticut,--widely distributed,
especially in the Connecticut river valley, but not common.
South to Delaware, along the mountains to Florida; west to
Minnesota and Kansas.
=Habit.=--A medium-sized or rather large tree, 50-75 feet high, with a
trunk diameter of 1-4 feet, often conspicuous along precipitous ledges,
springing out of crevices in the rocks and assuming a variety of
picturesque forms. In open ground the dark trunk develops a symmetrical,
wide-spreading, hemispherical head broadest at its base, the lower limbs
horizontal or drooping sometimes nearly to the ground. The limbs are
long and slender, often more or less tortuous, and separated ultimately
into a delicate, polished spray. Distinguished by its long
purplish-yellow, pendulous catkins in spring, and in summer by its
glossy, bright green, and abundant foliage, which becomes yellow in
autumn.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunk on old trees very dark, separating and cleaving
off in large, thickish plates; on young trees and on branches a dark
reddish-brown, not separating into thin layers, smooth, with numerous
horizontal lines 1-3 inches long; branchlets reddish-brown, shining,
with shorter lateral lines; season's shoots with small, pale dots. Inner
bark very aromatic, having a strong checkerberry flavor,--hence the
common name, "checkerberry birch"; called also "cherry birch," from the
resemblance of its bark to that of the garden cherry.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds reddish-brown, oblong or conical,
pointed, inner scales whitish, elongating as the bud opens. Leaves
simple, in alternate pairs, 3-4 inches long and one-half as wide,
shining green above and downy when young, paler beneath and
silvery-downy along the prominent, straight veins; outline ovate-oval,
ovate-oblong, or oval; sharply serrate to doubly serrate; apex acute to
acuminate; base heart-shaped to obtuse; leafstalk short, often curved,
hairy when young; stipules soon falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Sterile catkins 3-4 inches long,
slender, purplish-yellow; scales fringed: fertile catkins erect or
suberect, sessile or nearly so, 1/2-1 inch long, oblong-cylindrical;
bracts pubescent; lateral lobes wider than in _B. lutea._
=Fruit.=--Fruiting catkins oblong-cylindrical, nearly erect; bracts with
3 short, nearly equal diverging lobes: nut obovate-oblong, wider than
its wings; upper part of seed-body usually appressed-pubescent.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows everywhere
from swamps to hilltops, but prefers moist rocky slopes and a loamy or
gravelly soil; occasionally offered by nurserymen; both nursery and
collected plants are moved without serious difficulty; apt to grow
rather unevenly.
[Illustration: PLATE XXX.--Betula lenta.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flowering branch.
3. Sterile flower, back view.
4. Sterile flower, front view.
5. Fertile flower.
6. Fruiting branch.
7. Fruit.
8. Mature leaf.
=Betula lutea, Michx. f.=
YELLOW BIRCH. GRAY BIRCH.
=Habitat and Range.=--Low, rich woodlands, mountain slopes.
Newfoundland and Nova Scotia to Rainy river.
New England,--abundant northward; common throughout, from borders of
lowland swamps to 1000 feet above the sea level; more common at
considerable altitudes, where it often occurs in extensive patches or
belts.
South to the middle states, and along the mountains to Tennessee
and North Carolina; west to Minnesota.
=Habit.=--A large tree, at its maximum in northern New England 60-90
feet high and 2-4 feet in diameter at the base. In the forest the main
trunk separates at a considerable height into a few large branches which
rise at a sharp angle, curving slightly, forming a rather small,
irregular head, widest near the top; while in open ground the head is
broad-spreading, hemispherical, with numerous rather equal, long and
slender branches, and a fine spray with drooping tendencies. In the
sunlight the silvery-yellow feathering and the metallic sheen of trunk
and branches make the yellow birch one of the most attractive trees of
the New England forest.
=Bark.=--Bark of trunks and large limbs in old trees gray or blackish,
lustreless, deep-seamed, split into thick plates, standing out at all
sorts of angles; in trees 6-8 inches in diameter, scarf-bark lustrous,
parted in ribbon-like strips, detached at one end and running up the
trunk in delicate, tattered fringes; season's shoots light
yellowish-green, minutely buff-dotted, woolly-pubescent, becoming in
successive seasons darker and more lustrous, the dots elongating into
horizontal lines. Aromatic but less so than the bark of the black birch;
not readily detachable like the bark of the canoe birch.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds conical, 1/4 inch long, mostly
appressed, tips of scales brownish. Leaves simple, in alternate pairs or
scattered singly along the stem; 3-5 inches long, 1/2-2 inches wide,
dull green on both sides, paler beneath and more or less pubescent on
the straight veins; outline oval to oblong, for the most part doubly
serrate; apex acuminate or acute; base heart-shaped, obtuse or truncate;
leafstalk short, grooved, often pubescent or woolly; stipules soon
falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Sterile catkins 3-4 inches long,
purplish-yellow; scales fringed: fertile catkins sessile or nearly so,
about 1 inch long, cylindrical; bracts 3-lobed, nearly to the middle,
pubescent, lobes slightly spreading.
=Fruit.=--Fruiting catkins oblong or oblong-ovoid, about 1 inch long and
two-thirds as thick, erect: nut oval to narrowly obovate, tapering at
each end, pubescent on the upper part, about the width of its wing.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows in wet or
dry situations, but prefers wet, peaty soil, where its roots can find a
constant supply of moisture; similar to the black birch, equally
valuable in landscape-gardening, but less desirable as a street tree;
transplanted without serious difficulty.
Differences between black birch and yellow birch:
=Black Birch.=--Bark reddish-brown, not separable into thin layers;
leaves bright green above, finely serrate; fruiting catkins cylindrical;
bark of twigs decidedly aromatic.
=Yellow Birch.=--Bark yellow, separable into thin layers; leaves dull
green above; serration coarser and more decidedly doubly serrate;
fruiting catkins ovoid or oblong-ovoid; flavor of bark less distinctly
aromatic.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXI.--Betula lutea.]
1. Winter buds.
2. Flower-buds.
3. Flowering branch.
4-6. Sterile flowers.
7. Fertile flower.
8. Bract.
9. Fruiting branch.
10. Fruit.
=Betula nigra, L.=
RED BIRCH. RIVER BIRCH.
=Habitat and Range.=--Along rivers, ponds, and woodlands inundated a
part of the year.
Doubtfully and indefinitely reported from Canada.
No stations in Maine, Vermont, Rhode Island, or Connecticut; New
Hampshire,--found sparingly along streams in the southern part of the
state; abundant along the banks of Beaver brook, Pelham (F. W.
Batchelder); Massachusetts,--along the Merrimac river and its
tributaries, bordering swamps in Methuen and ponds in North Andover.
South, east of the Alleghany mountains, to Florida; west, locally
through the northern tier of states to Minnesota and along the Gulf
states to Texas; western limits, Nebraska, Kansas, Indian
territory, and Missouri.
=Habit.=--A medium-sized tree, 30-50 feet high, with a diameter at the
ground of 1-1-1/2 feet; reaching much greater dimensions southward. The
trunk, frequently beset with small, leafy, reflexed branchlets, and
often only less frayed and tattered than that of the yellow birch,
develops a light and feathery head of variable outline, with numerous
slender branches, the upper long and drooping, the reddish spray clothed
with abundant dark-green foliage.
=Bark.=--Reddish, more or less separable into layers, fraying into
shreddy, cinnamon-colored fringes; in old trees thick, dark
reddish-brown, and deeply furrowed; branches dark red or cinnamon,
giving rise to the name of "red birch"; season's shoots downy,
pale-dotted.
=Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds small, mostly appressed near the ends of
the shoots, tapering at both ends. Leaves simple, alternate, 3-4 inches
long, two-thirds as wide, dark green and smooth above, paler and
soft-downy beneath, turning bright yellow in autumn; outline
rhombic-ovate, with unequal and sharp double serratures; leafstalk short
and downy; stipules soon falling.
=Inflorescence.=--April to May. Sterile catkins usually in threes, 2-4
inches long, scales 2-3-flowered: fertile catkins bright green,
cylindrical, stalked; bracts 3-lobed, the central lobe much the longest,
tomentose, ciliate.
=Fruit.=--June. Earliest of the birches to ripen its seed; fruiting
catkins 1-2 inches long, cylindrical, erect or spreading; bracts with
the 3 lobes nearly equal in width, spreading, the central lobe the
longest: nut ovate to obovate, ciliate.
=Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; grows in all
soils, but prefers a station near running water; young trees grow
vigorously and become attractive objects in landscape plantations;
especially useful along river banks to bind the soil; retains its lower
branches better than the black or yellow birches. Seldom found in
nurseries, and rather hard to transplant; collected plants do fairly
well.
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