In winter the tree may be recognised by its dead petioles, curving back on the twigs which bore leaves the past summer. The very large terminal buds are another, winter trait. At any season the orange-coloured twigs are the best distinguishing feature of the species. This tree has shaggy bark, though this character is less pronounced than in H. ovata. It is hardy in the Arnold Arboretum, near Boston, and seems to grow more rapidly than other hickories in cultivation. In the wild it grows in bottom lands, but does well on dryer, sloping ground.
A hybrid between the pecan and laciniosa is reported by Dr.
Trelease, and named for its discoverer the "Nussbaumer Hybrid." It is not especially promising.
Shagbark Hickory, Little Shellbark Hickory (Hicoria ovata, Britt.)—A ruggedly picturesque, stately tree, 75 to 120 feet high, with long tap root, straight trunk and angular, short branches, forming an irregular, oblong head. Bark light grey, shedding in thin, vertical strips, or plates. Branches smooth, twigs shining, grey. Wood brown, close grained, tough, hard, elastic, heavy. Buds terminal ones, large, broadly ovate, with dark, narrow-pointed pair of outer scales persisting through the winter; inner scales silky, elongating to 5 to 6 inches and curving back in spring; lateral buds small, globular. Leaves alternate, deciduous, 12 to 20 inches long, compound, of 5 (rarely 7) leaflets, all sessile but terminal one, smooth, leathery; smallest leaflets at base; all serrate, broadly obovate, abruptly acuminate, dark yellow-green above, paler beneath, becoming brownish yellow in autumn; petioles stout, smooth, swollen at base, and grooved. Flowers, May, with leaves; moncecious, greenish; staminate in slender, hairy, flexible catkins 4 to 6 inches long, in threes from common stem, at base of new shoots; pistillate single or few in terminal cluster, hairy, greenish with spreading, divided stigmas. Fruits solitary or paired; husk smooth, leathery, dividing to base into 4 valves, inch thick, and separating from nut at maturity; shell hard, 4-angled, flattened, pale, smooth; kernel large, sweet, edible. Preferred habitat, deep, rich, moist soil. Distribution, Maine and Quebec to Delaware and along mountains to Florida, northern Alabama and Mississippi; west to Minnesota and Ne braska; south to Texas. Uses: Lumber used extensively in the manufacture of vehicles, agricultural implements, wheels, sled runners, axe handles, baskets, chairs and for fuel. Nuts valuable
in commerce. Tree planted for ornament and shade.
The vertical sheets of shaggy bark give this tree its name. The springiness and toughness of the wood is prophesied in these thin, narrow flakes, so obstinately clinging to the trunks for years. From the close-knit covering of the utmost ;twig down to the ground the gradual evolution of this bark is a fascinating study. The character of the shagbark is also expressed in the angular twigs and the lithe arms of the tree, etched with perfect distinct ness against the sky of winter. Strength, symmetry and grace are there, but never a look of heaviness.
As a fruit tree the shagbark deserves our best attention, No other hardy nut tree compares with it in commercial importance. The value of its lumber has led to the sacrifice of the large trees in the woods. The nuts are diminishing as a wild crop, but the demand is ever increasing. Hickory-nut orchards are being planted. Nurserymen are studying how best to propagate the trees, and to improve the varieties. "Hales' paper-shell hickory nut" was discovered on a single tree in New Jersey. The nuts are unusually large and plump, with thin shells. The kernels have superior delicacy and richness of flavour, and remarkable keeping qualities. A shrewd man began to propagate this excep tional strain. Grafted trees of this variety are beginning to be sold by nurserymen. Several other choice kinds from selected seed are offered. As transplanting is attended by siderable loss, it is best to plant the nuts where the orchard is to stand.
Hickory flowers are not conspicuous in colour or size, but the tree is a wonderful spectacle throughout the spring. First, the buds drop their two black outer scales, and the silky inner ones glisten like lighted tapers on every upturned twig. They grow in breadth and length as they loosen, and a cluster of leaves, small but perfect, and clothed in the softest velvet stand revealed. Then the great scales turn back like sepals of an iris, displaying rich yellows and orange tones, softened and blended by their silky coverings. The opening leaves, delicate in texture and colouring, may easily be mistaken for parts of a great flower.