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Forest Trees of Texas: How to Know Them cover

Forest Trees of Texas: How to Know Them

Chapter 179: Glossary
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About This Book

A practical field guide that explains tree structure and growth—roots, cambium, sapwood, heartwood, leaves, and reproductive parts—and how water, minerals, light, and gases support development. It clarifies common classification terms and exceptions, maps major regional forest types, and catalogs native and introduced species with notes on their uses. Identification aids include drawings of leaves, twigs, fruits, keys, and a glossary, while editorial material offers straightforward advice for nontechnical readers on recognizing, managing, and conserving local trees and the forest products they yield.

Leaf Margins—Toothed
(Leaves alternate on twig)

Fruits: Page
Drupe (or berry)
Devils-Walkingstick 92
Hercules-Club 104

TREES THAT PREFER WET SITES

Page
Baldcypress 25
Water Hickory 31
Corkwood 35
Cottonwood 36
Black Willow 37
Blue Beech (Hornbeam) 38
Ironwood (Hophornbeam) 39
Red Birch (River Birch) 40
Water Oak 48
Willow Oak 49
Bur Oak 57
Overcup Oak 58
Swamp Chestnut Oak 59
Sweetbay 71
Sweetgum 76
The Hawthorns 78, 79
Waterlocust 90
Poison-Sumac 95
Yaupon 97
Blackgum (Black Tupelo) 105
Tupelo-Gum (Water Tupelo) 106
Water Ash 113
Swamp Privet 116
Alder 123

HARDWOOD TREES WITH EVERGREEN LEAVES

Page
Live Oak 52
Southern Magnolia 70
Redbay 73
American Holly 96
Yaupon 97
Tree Sparkleberry (Tree Huckleberry) 108
Baretta 124

TREES WHOSE LEAVES TURN RED IN AUTUMN

Page
Red Oak 46
Sweetgum 76
The Hawthorns 78
The Sumacs 94
Red Maple 99
Blackgum 105
Flowering Dogwood 107
Sugar Maple (yellow as well) 126

TREES WHOSE LEAVES TURN YELLOW IN AUTUMN

Page
The Hickories 29-34
The Cottonwoods 36, 123
Black Willow 37
Hophornbeam (Blue Beech) 38
River Birch 40
Most of the Oaks (except Red Oak) 43-60
Bios-d’arc (Osage Orange) 69
Southern Magnolia 70
Pawpaw 72
Mesquite 87
Redbud 88
Hercules-Club 92
Red Maple 99
Ohio Buckeye 101
Devils-Walkingstick 104
The Ashes 113-115, 128
Fringetree 117
Catalpa 118
Sugar Maple (red as well) 126

TREES WITH SEEDS WINGED OR WITH PARACHUTE-LIKE ATTACHMENTS

Page
The Cottonwoods 36, 123
Black Willow 37
American Hornbeam (Blue Beech) 38
Ironwood 39
River Birch 40
The Elms 61-64
Planer Tree 65
Sweetgum 76
American Sycamore 77
Hoptree 93
The Maples 98-99, 126
The Basswoods 103, 126
Silverbell 112
The Ashes 113-115, 128
Catalpa 118
Desertwillow 119
Buttonbush 120
Alder 123
Tree of Heaven 125

TREES WITH SOFT BERRY-LIKE FRUIT

Page
The Hackberries 66, 67
The Mulberries 68
Osage Orange (Bois-d’arc) 69
Redbay 73
Sassafras 74
The Hawthorns 78-79
The Cherries and Plums 80-83
American Holly 96
Yaupon 97
Black and Tupelo Gum 105, 106
Dogwood 107
Tree Sparkleberry (Tree Huckleberry) 108
Gum Bumelia (Gum Elastic) 109
Persimmon 110, 127
Fringetree 117
Rusty Blackhaw 121

TREES WHICH PRODUCE NUTS

Page
The Walnuts 28
The Hickories 29-34
American Beech 41
Chinkapin 42
The Oaks 43-60
Ohio Buckeye 101

TREES WITH PODS AS FRUIT

Page
Corkwood 35
Texas Ebony 84
Catclaw Acacia 85
Leadtree (Mimosa) 86, 124
Mesquite 87
Redbud 88
Honeylocust 89
Waterlocust 90
Black Locust 91
Catalpa 118
Desertwillow 119
Huisache (Sweet Acacia) 123
Guajillo 123
Coral Bean 124
Mexican Leadtree 124

TREES WITH BRIGHT RED FRUIT

Page
Red Mulberry 68
The Magnolias 70, 71
The Hawthorns 78, 79
Shining Sumac 94
American Holly 96

TREES WITH SPINES OR THORNS

Page
Osage-Orange (Bois-d’arc) 69
The Hawthorns 78, 79
Texas Ebony 84
Catclaw Acacia 85
Leadtree (Mimosa) 86, 124
Mesquite 87
Honeylocust 89
Waterlocust 90
Black Locust 91
Prickly Ash 92
Devils-Walkingstick 104
Huisache (Sweet Acacia) 123

TREES WITH CORKY PROJECTIONS ON TWIGS

Page
Bur Oak (Mossy-Cup Oak) 57
Winged Elm 62
Cedar Elm 63
Sweetgum 76

TREES WHOSE TWIGS HAVE A CHAMBERED PITH

Page
Walnut 28
Hackberry 66
Sugarberry 67

TREES KNOWN BY THE COLOR AND SHAPE OF THE TWIG PITH

Page
Star-shaped in Cross-section
The Cottonwoods 36, 123
The Oaks 43-60
Triangular in Cross-section
Alder 123
Brown in Color
The Walnuts 28
The Sumacs 94

TREES WITH SINGLE LARGE FLOWERS

Page
Magnolia 70
Pawpaw 72

TREES WITH FLOWERS IN CLUSTERS

Page
Redbay 73
The Hawthorns 78-79
The Plums and Cherries 80-83
Redbud 88
Black Locust 91
Devils-Walkingstick 92
Hercules-Club 92
Hoptree 93
The Sumacs 94
Poison-Sumac 95
Yaupon 97
Ohio Buckeye 101
Western Soapberry 102
The Basswoods 103, 126
Flowering Dogwood 107
Silverbell 112
Fringetree 117
Catalpa 118
Rusty Blackhaw 121

TREES WHOSE BLOSSOMS APPEAR BEFORE OR WITH THE LEAVES

Page
The Walnuts 28
The Hickories 29-34
The Cottonwoods 36, 123
Black Willow 37
Ironwood 38
Eastern Hophornbeam 39
River Birch 40
The Oaks 43-60
The Elms 61-64
Sassafras 74
Redbud 88
The Maples 98, 99, 126
The Ashes 113-115, 128
Alder 123

TREES WHOSE BLOSSOMS APPEAR AFTER THE LEAVES

Page
Chinkapin 42
Magnolia 70
Honeylocust 89
Black Locust 91
The Sumacs 94
Ohio Buckeye 101
Basswood 103, 126
Flowering Dogwood 107
Persimmon 110, 127
Silverbell 112
Fringetree 117
Catalpa 118
Mountain Maple 126

Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A
Achene—A small, hard, dry, 1-celled, indehiscent fruit.
Acrid—Sharp or biting to the taste.
Acuminate—Tapering at end to a gradual point.
Acute—Terminating in a sharp angle.
Aggregate fruit—Cluster of ripened ovaries produced from a single flower containing numerous pistils inserted on a common receptacle. Example: fruit of magnolia or blackberry.
Alternate—Not opposite on the axis, but borne at regular intervals at different levels.
Anther—Pollen-bearing structure of a stamen.
Apex—The tip or end of a bud or leaf, i.e., the part opposite the base.
Apical—Pertaining to the tip, end, or apex.
Appressed—Lying tight or close against.
Aromatic—Fragrant; with a pleasing odor.
Astringent—Contracting; drawing together.
Axil—The upper angle formed by a leaf or branch with a stem.
Axis—The central line of an organ; a stem.
B
Bark—The outer covering of a trunk or branch.
Basal—Pertaining to or situated at the base.
Berry—A fruit which is fleshy or pulpy throughout, and with several seeds imbedded in the pulpy mass.
Bisexual—Having both stamens and pistils, i.e., male and female.
Bloom—A powdery or somewhat waxy substance easily rubbed off. Also, to produce or yield blossoms.
Bole—The main axis or trunk of a tree.
Bract—Modified leaf subtending a flower or belonging to an inflorescence.
Bud-scales—Modified leaves covering a bud.
Bundle-scars—Scars on the surface of a leaf-scar. Severed ends of the fibro-vascular bundles which connected the twigs with the leaves.
C
Calyx—The outer perianth or floral envelope, usually green in color; sepals, collectively.
Cambium—A thin-walled formative tissue between the bark and wood. The active growing portion of the tree.
Carpel—A simple pistil or one member of a compound pistil.
Capsule—A dry fruit composed of more than one carpel and splitting open at maturity.
Catkin—An ament or spike of unisexual flowers.
Chambered—Said of the pith when interrupted by hollow spaces at rather regular intervals.
Ciliate—Fringed with hairs on the margin.
Collateral—Accessory buds at the sides of auxiliary buds.
Compound—Composed of two or more similar parts united in a whole.
Conical—Cone-shaped.
Conifers—A group of trees which usually produce their fruit in the form of a cone or modified cone.
Coniferous—Cone-bearing.
Corolla—The petals of a flower collectively.
Cordate—Heart-shaped.
Crenate—Rounded teeth.
Crown—The upper mass of branches; also known as head.
Cuneate—Wedge-shaped.
D
Deciduous—Falling off, usually at the close of the season.
Defoliation—Removal of foliage.
Dehiscent—Splitting open at maturity.
Deliquescent—Said of the form of a tree with a broad spreading habit. The branches sub-divide until they apparently disappear.
Deltoid—Triangular like Greek symbol for delta.
Dentate—Toothed, usually with the teeth directed outwards.
Diffuse-porous—Equal-pored. Said of wood when pores in a growth ring are equal in size.
DioeciousUnisexual, with the staminate and pistillate flowers on separate plants.
Disseminated—Scattered, thrown, broadcast.
Divergent—Pointing away; extending out. Said of buds which point away from the twigs.
Downy—Covered with fine hairs.
Drupe—A fleshy fruit with a pit or stone like a cherry.
E
Elliptical—Shaped like an ellipse with sloping ends.
Elongated—Long, drawn out.
Entire-margined—Margin smooth, not cut or toothed.
Excurrent—Said of a tree with a continuous trunk and erect habit of growth.
Exfoliation—Splitting or cleaving off of outer layers of bark.
Exotic—Of foreign origin.
Exudation—Oozing out of sap, resin, or other juice.
F
Fascicle—A close bundle or cluster.
Fetid—Ill smelling.
Fissures—Grooves, furrows, or channels as in the bark.
Fluted—Grooved, corrugated, channeled.
Follicle—A dry fruit produced from a simple pistil and dehiscing along one line of suture.
Fruit—The ripened ovary of a flower.
G
Glabrate—Somewhat glabrous or becoming glabrate.
Glabrous—Smooth, without hairs.
Glandular—Bearing glands or gland-like.
Glaucous—Covered with a bluish or whitish waxy coating; a bloom.
Globose—Ball-like or nearly so.
Globular—Ball-like.
H
Habitat—Site or place of growth.
Hardwood—A collective term for broad-leaved trees, the wood of which may or may not be dense.
Heartwood—The physiologically dead, central, usually darker colored portion of the tree trunk.
Hybrid—A crossbreed of two species.
I
Increment—Growth; increase.
Incised—Divided into lobes separated by narrow or acute sinuses which extend halfway or more to midrib.
Indehiscent—Applied to fruits that do not split open to discharge the seeds, remaining closed at maturity.
Indigenous—Applied to plants that are native to a certain locality. Not introduced.
Intolerant—Not shade enduring. Requiring sunlight.
Involucre—A cluster of bracts subtending a flower.
L
Lamina—The blade or flattened portion of a leaf.
Lanceolate—Shaped like a lance; several times longer than wide, and growing to a point.
Lateral—Situated on the side, as the buds along the side of the twig.
Leaflets—One of the small blades or divisions of a compound leaf.
Leaf-scar—The scar left after a leaf falls.
Lenticel—A corky growth on young or sometimes older bark, which admits air to the interior of the twig or branch.
Linear—Line-like, long and narrow, with parallel edges.
Lobed—Said of leaves that have the margins more or less cut or divided.
M
Medullary—Pertaining to the pith or medulla.
Medullary Ray—Radial lines of tissues crossing the growth of rings at right angles and extending into the bark.
Midrib—The central or main rib or vein of a leaf.
Monoecious—Bearing male and female flower parts in separate flowers on the same plant.
Mucilaginous—Slimy or gummy when touched or chewed.
Multiple fruit—A cluster of fruits of separate flowers crowded together and forming what appears to be a single fruit. Examples: mulberry, strawberry, osage-orange fruits.
N
Naked—Said of buds without scales, and seeds without a covering.
Naval Stores—Refers to tar, turpentine, resin, etc.
Node—A place on a twig where one or more leaves originate.
Nut—A dry, 1-seeded, fruit with a hard indehiscent covering and encased partly or wholly in an involucre or husk.
Nutlet—A small nut.
O
Oblique—Slanting, uneven. Uneven sided.
Oblong—About twice as long as wide, the sides nearly parallel.
Obovate—Reversed egg-shaped.
Obtuse—Blunt
Opposite—Said of leaves and buds, directly across from each other.
Orbicular—Circular.
Oval—Rounded.
Ovate—Egg-shaped.
Ovoid—Egg-shaped or nearly so.
P
Palmate—Radiately lobed or divided from the petiole; hand-like as leaflets of buckeye.
Panicle—A loose, irregularly compound flower cluster with flowers on pedicels.
Pedicel—The support or stem of a single flower or fruit in a cluster.
Peduncle—A primary flower stalk supporting a cluster of flowers or a solitary flower, later the fruit. A fruit-stem.
Perennial—Lasting for more than one year.
Persistent—Remaining after blooming, fruiting, or maturing.
Petiole—The stalk of a leaf.
Pinnate—Feather-like with leaflets on both sides of rachis or leaf stalk.
Pistil—Seed bearing organ of flower. May consist of stigma, style, and ovary.
Pith—The soft central part of a twig or stem.
Pod—Any dry, one chambered, dehiscent fruit.
Pollen—The dust-like substance from the anthers of a flower.
Pollination—The process of bringing the pollen of the male flower in contact with the stigma of the female flower.
Pome—A fleshy fruit with a core, such as the apple or pear.
Porous—With open tubes (through wood).
Prickle—A sharp-pointed, needle-like outgrowth.
Pubescent—With short, soft, down-like hairs.
PungentAcrid or sharp to smell.
Pyramidal—Shaped like a pyramid with the broadest part near the base.
R
Rachis—The stalk supporting the leaflets of a compound leaf.
Resin-ducts—A passage for the conduction of resin found in the leaves and wood.
Ring-porous—Said of wood which has pores of unequal size, the larger ones being found in the spring wood and the smaller ones in the summer wood.