HOP HORNBEAM
Ostrya virginiana, (Mill.) K. Koch.
Form.—A small tree not often exceeding 30 feet in height and 1 foot in diameter; trunk usually straight and bearing a rounded crown of slender branches.
Leaves.—Alternate, simple, 3-5 inches long, acute at apex, doubly serrate, thin and tough, smooth above, pale and slightly pubescent beneath.
Flowers.—Appear with the leaves, monoecious; staminate flowers in drooping catkins which develop from the wood of the previous summer, usually three in a bunch; pistillate in erect aments; each enclosed in a bladdery bract.
Fruit.—Small flat nutlets, enclosed in bracts arranged in pendulous light-green clusters resembling hops.
Bark.—Brownish, roughened by narrow ridges with loose flat scales.
Wood.—Strong, hard, tough, close-grained, durable, red-brown, with light sapwood.
Range.—Cape Breton Island and Minnesota south to Florida and Texas.
Distribution in West Virginia.—Not common in many sections but scattered locally throughout nearly all parts of the State. Found usually with other species in the rougher, more elevated situations.
Habitat.—Rich open woods of slopes and ridges.
Notes.—Although this tree has valuable wood it is not sufficiently plentiful nor of such a size as to make it an important species for forestry purposes. It is desirable for parks and lawns. The rough, scaly bark, peculiar fruits, and hard wood are distinguishing marks. Its most common local name is Ironwood.