Our American trees may be divided roughly into two classes: (1) those which keep their leaves the year round, known as evergreens; (2) those whose leaves drop off in the fall, called broad-leaved, or deciduous trees, in distinction from the evergreens, whose leaves are usually needle-shaped.
Among the broad-leaved family are such trees as the oak, chestnut, hickory, maples, elms, etc.; and among the evergreens or cone-bearing trees are the pines, spruces, hemlocks, firs, and cedars.
The oak family is a very important one, the wood being hard and strong and the tree a sturdy, healthy, and well-known specimen of tree life.
White oak is perhaps the most common member of the oak family. It grows to a very large size and has a leaf of the form shown in Fig. 79. Observe carefully the outline of the leaf and compare it with the sketch of the next form.
The white oak, like all oaks, bears acorns, and its timber is used as a standard when comparing different kinds of wood. If we say that the strength of white pine is one half, we mean one half that of white oak, and in all timber calculations white oak is the standard, just as the yard and mile are standards of length. In work which requires strength, such as carriage making, shipbuilding, and cooperage, white oak is used very extensively.
The quartered oak used so much for furniture is obtained by cutting the logs in a special manner. The method of cutting gives a beautiful mottled effect with the silver rays spread out in irregular white splashes on a dark background.
We might separate the oak into two distinct groups: (1) those trees whose acorns ripen in one season; (2) those which require two years. The acorns of this latter group remain on the tree throughout the first winter and ripen the second summer.
To the first class belong the white oak just mentioned, the post oak, chestnut oaks, mossy-cup oak, and live oak.
Fig. 79. Typical Leaf of the White Oak
In the second class are the red, scarlet, black, pin, laurel, and willow oaks.
The difference in the leaves of these trees is so great that we need never mistake one for the other. Notice the cut of the red oak and compare it with that of the white oak. The latter has rounded lobes, while the red-oak leaf has sharp points and the fingers of the leaf are indented again with smaller teeth.
The different trees in the white-oak family all have leaves with rounded lobes, and most of those in the red-oak group have pointed ones, yet there is a difference between members of the same family, just as among human beings.
We can tell at a glance whether a man is a negro, a Chinaman, or a white man. If a white man, he may be a Frenchman or an American; and again, if an American, he may belong to the Jones family. But all the members of the Jones family do not look alike and we know one from another.
Fig. 80. Leaf of the Post Oak
This is true of trees. No two are alike, and we can tell from observation whether a tree is an evergreen or a broad-leaved tree, whether it belongs to the white-oak group; and after studying trees a little we can tell whether a member of this group is a white oak, a post oak, or a mossy-cup oak.
Compare the post-oak leaf (Fig. 80) with that of the white oak. There is not a great difference in form, but the post-oak leaf is thick, leathery, and dark green, while the white oak has a beautiful thin, light green leaf, which turns red in the fall.
The post oak is a rougher and coarser tree than the other, and is sometimes called iron oak on account of its very hard, tough wood.
Fig. 81. Leaf of Mossy-Cup Oak
29. The Mossy-Cup Oak. One of the most beautiful oaks we have in America grows in the South and West, and is only rarely found in our parks in the East. It is called the mossy-cup oak because the large acorn which it bears is surrounded by a bushy fringe which almost hides the nut. This acorn is a sight never to be forgotten. The leaf is larger than that of the white oak, and although the two leaves look somewhat alike, the divisions of the mossy-cup leaf are not as regular as those of the white oak, and it is not so thin and delicate.
Its wood is very strong and is valuable for many purposes, such as boats, carriages, farming implements, railroad ties, and cooperage.
30. Black Oak and Black-jack Oak. These two trees are usually found growing in wild places, and the black-jack oak is often called barren oak from the fact that it frequents bleak and barren plains, such as the sandy stretches of New Jersey and Long Island.
Fig. 82. Leaves of Black Oak and Black-jack Oak (Black-jack on right)
The sketch shows the difference in the leaves, that of the black-jack having only three main lobes, or divisions, while the black oak has five. However, the leaves of these two trees vary considerably, and one must always look for the typical leaf, which is the one shown in the sketch. The black-jack is a small, shrubby tree, with branches often twisted and contorted, and its wood is not very valuable except as fuel or for making charcoal.
Fig. 83. Leaf of Red Oak
Fig. 84. Wood of the Red Oak, showing three sections. The one on the left shows annual rings obtained by a horizontal cut through the tree. Central view shows vertical cut at center of tree. View on right shows vertical cut between center and bark as illustrated in Fig. 73.
The acorns require two seasons for ripening, as do those of the red, scarlet, and pin oaks.
31. The Red Oak. The red oak is one of our largest and most noble trees, growing taller even than the white oak, and may always be distinguished by its very large, shiny, dark green leaves.
Its bark is also much smoother and darker than the white oak. Its acorn is very bitter and can easily be recognized by its shallow cup and by its large size. It is the largest of the two-year acorns. The wood of the red oak is darker than that of the white, and is used in the manufacture of furniture.
Fig. 85. Scarlet Oak
32. The Scarlet Oak. This tree is often confused with the red, but a glance at the leaves will show a great difference. That of the scarlet has deeper indentations and is much more slender and skeleton-like in shape. It takes its name from the bright scarlet or red tinge it takes on when the leaves change color in the fall.
33. The Pin Oak. The pin-oak leaf is much more readily confounded with the scarlet oak than that of any other tree. In fact, no two trees have leaves so nearly alike as these two; yet a glance at two typical leaves placed side by side will show considerable difference.
The pin-oak leaf is smaller than the other, and in proportion to its size the indentations are not so deep.
Fig. 86. Pin Oak
The pin-oak tree has a great many small branchlets, or stems, which give the tree the appearance of a bundle of pins, especially when the leaves are off in winter. It is a beautiful tree and is now being planted very extensively as a shade tree. It is hardy, and stands city air very well indeed. Its bark is rich in tannic acid, which is used in tanning leather.
The oak family is such a large and valuable one that we cannot afford to pass it over lightly. In the South grows the willow oak, famous for its shade and its leaves, which resemble those of the willow. A little farther north we find, along the Ohio valley, the shingle oak, so called from the fact that its wood is mostly made into shingles. It is also known as the laurel oak, because its leaves are shaped like those of the laurel, although not so glossy.
Fig. 87. Pin Oak in Winter
This is such an odd shape for an oak leaf that one would be likely to pass it by and not recognize it but for the fact that it bears acorns. This is always the test,—“By their fruits ye shall know them.”
If we meet a new tree which seems not to be an oak because its leaves are new to us, and it bears acorns, we may be sure it is an oak.
A very interesting group of trees which come under this head are the chestnut oaks. At first glance one would take one of these trees to be a chestnut, but it bears acorns and must therefore be an oak. The sketch shows the two leaves side by side.
Fig. 88.
Chestnut Chestnut Oak
Let us examine them closely. Although they slightly resemble each other, by looking carefully we see that the teeth on the chestnut leaf are pointed, while those on the chestnut oak are decidedly rounded. There is also a difference in proportion, as the chestnut leaf is long and narrow, while that of the chestnut oak is broader.
There are several varieties of chestnut oak, but their leaves are quite similar and they all belong to the white-oak group and ripen their acorns in one season. They grow to a large size, one famous from Revolutionary times at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson measuring seven feet in diameter. The acorns are sweet and are eagerly sought after by the squirrels.
The wood is durable in exposed places and is used for cooperage, railroad ties, and fencing.
34. The Live Oak. No list of American oaks would be complete without the live oak. This is a southern tree and is remarkable in many ways. Its leaf has no indentations, remains green all winter, and is thick and leathery.
Fig. 89. Leaf of Live Oak
The wood is extremely heavy, a cubic foot weighing nearly sixty pounds. It is as hard as it is heavy, and although it takes a high polish and has a fine grain, it soon dulls the edge of a tool.
Before the age of steel, when all ships were wooden, it was much used in shipbuilding, and the government bought large tracts of land where live oak grew abundantly, so that the United States navy should never lack the necessary timber.
It grows along the Atlantic coast, south from Virginia, and along the Gulf to Texas.