BLACK OAK (Quercus velutina Lam.) The
black oak, sometimes farther north called yellow oak or yellow-barked oak
usually grows to be about 80 feet in height. It is found commonly throughout
the State on dry plains and ridges, but seldom on rich ground. The crown is
irregularly shaped and wide, with a clear trunk for 20 feet or more on large
trees.
The bark on the very young trunks is smooth and dark brown but soon
becomes thick and black, with deep furrows and rough broken edges. The bright
yellow color and bitter taste of the inner bark, due to tannic acid, are
distinguishing characteristics.
The leaves are alternate, simple, 5 to 10 inches long and 3 to 8
inches wide, shallow or deeply lobed, the shape varying greatly. When mature,
the leaves are dark green and shiny on the upper surface, pale on the lower,
more or less covered with down, and with conspicuous rusty brown hairs in the
forks of the veins.
The fruit matures the second season. The light brown nut is from
one-half to 1 inch long, more or less hemispherical in shape, and from
one-half to three-quartets enclosed in the thin, dark-brown, scaly cup. The
kernel is yellow and extremely bitter.
The wood is hard, heavy, strong, coarse-grained and checks easily.
It is a bright red-brown with a thin outer edge of paler sapwood. It is used
for the same purposes as red oak, under which name it is put on the market.
Its growth is rather slow.
|
 
|
