1. virginiana L. Eastern Red Cedar IA1

I. CUPRESSACEAE:

Resinous trees or shrubs possessing leaves that are evergreen, opposite or whorled, generally scalelike and overlapping or awl-like and spreading. Both types of leaves may occur on the same tree. Seeds are carried in cones that may be woody, leathery or somewhat fleshy and ball-shaped. There are only two native species, but some 140 species are known worldwide.

A. Juniperus

1. virginiana L. Eastern Red Cedar IA1

The shape of the tree varies from conical to broadly ovate and generally pointed apically. Leaves are evergreen, scale-like and not toothed. Bark is reddish brown and has a tendency to peel off in long strips. Trunk is typically single at the base and often has a tendency to branch. The ovuliferous cones are generally light blue, somewhat fleshy and borne on one tree while a second tree bears the staminate cones which are tinged by the orange-red pollen , especially in the spring. Heartwood is red.

These trees should not be planted near apple trees because both trees are hosts for the fleshy, bright orange colored apple rust. This is the bright orange ball that one sees on cedars.

The fruit of the red cedar is utilized by over 50 species of birds which are responsible for the distribution of the seeds through the environment. The seeds pass through the digestive tract of birds unharmed and are deposited with the feces resulting in the distribution of red cedars in fence rows, in straight lines through fields, and the circle of cedars that may surround a larger tree.

Red cedars are known to reach a height of 79 feet with a spread of 48 feet and 2 inches and a girth of 10 feet and 7 inches.

Red cedars are often planted as ornamentals, as windbreaks, and wildlife cover. The wood is both beautiful and scented and is used for cedar chests, cedar lined closets, cabinets, boat and furniture construction , interior finish , etc. Whole trees are used as Christmas Trees, while the trunks are often used as fence posts and railings.

II. PINACEAE:

Trees and shrubs that possess leaves that are needle-like or linear and occurring in clusters referred to as fascicles. Plants are usually evergreen (rarely deciduous) . Seeds are winged and carried on scales in the ovuliferous cones. Members of the family are most abundant in the temperate climatic zones. There are two native species in Arkansas, but a number of others have been introduced. Some 210 species are known worldwide.

A. Pinus

1. echinata Mill. Shortleaf Pine IIA

The common name refers to the length of the needles which range from 3 to 6 inches in size and usually occur in fascicles of two (often three) needles. Ovuliferous cones are small, usually 2.5 inches or less in length and dark colored. Pollen is generally released in April or May and is airborne. The tree has been known to reach the height of 127 feet, a spread of 50 feet and a circumference of over 13 feet. .

The shortleaf pine is an important commercial species as lumber for construction, wildlife habitat and as an ornamental.

This was the most widespread pine in Arkansas originally and found in most habitats except the lowlands and riverine floodplains Often found on dry hilly and mountainous areas. Elsewhere, shortleaf pines occurs from eastern Oklahoma to eastern Texas east to Florida and north to New York.

2. taeda L. Loblolly Pine IIA2

The cones and needles of the loblolly pine are twice as long as those of the shortleaf pine with the needles averaging 7 to 10 inches in length and the cones ranging from 3 to 6 inches in length. Needles are usually blue-green in color rather than yellowish green and usually occur in fascicles of three. Pollen is normally released in March and April.

Loblolly pines are known to reach the height of 155 feet, spread of 72 feet and a circumference of over 14 feet.

The tree prefers to grow in moister, often sandy soils and originally was found in Arkansas in the southern part of the state generally below the Ouachita Mountains. However, the tree has been widely planted across the state by foresters and lumbermen. Elsewhere, the loblolly pine has much the same distribution of the shortleaf pine, but does not range as far north.

This is one of the most important lumber species in Arkansas.

3. elliotii Engelm. Slash Pine IIA3

An introduced species in the state and planted on the campus as an ornamental. This is a medium sized tree ranging from 80 to 115 feet in height and with a diameter of 1 to 3 feet. Leaves occur as 2 needles per fascicle(may have 3), rigid and 4.7 to 11 inches in length, with a dark green shiny color. Male cones are short and clustered while the ovuliferous cones are stalked and ovate. The cones droop, may be 3 to 6 inches long, with dark-brown scales that are ridged and armed with a small, out-curved spine.

The slash pine has been widely utilized in reforestation projects. Slash pine provides an excellent cover for a number of game animals including the wild turkey which utilizes the tree for both cover and food. Squirrels eat the seeds. Tree is commercially important due its hard, durable wood. Plantatations of slash pines are tapped for the resin which is used in the production of turpentine.

The tree is now widely planted in Arkansas. Original range was from the southern South Carolina coast down through most of Florida, excluding the Keys, and west along the Gulf Coast to Mississippi.

III. TAXODIACEAE

Trees that are aromatic or resinous and possessing leaves that may be linear, awl-like, or scale-like and are usually evergreen(our species is deciduous). Ovuliferous cones are small and ball-shaped while the staminate cones resemble drooping catkins. Species include the coastal redwood, giant sequoia and the bald cypress.

A. Taxodium

1. distichum (L.) Rich. Bald Cypress IIIA1

The scientific name refers to the fact that the needle-like leaves are ranked on either side of a twig while the common name refers to the fact that these leaves are deciduous. Cones are small and globular. The trees are characteristically found in wet habitats and may put out conical "knees" around the buttressed trunk.

The tree may reach a height of 120 feet and have a trunk diameter of over 10 feet. A local specimen found on the Black River has a trunk circumference of 28 feet measured above the buttress.

The wood is light, but very resistant to decay and is often used to build boats, pilings, shingles, railroad ties, caskets, etc. Trees have also been used as ornamentals.

The bald cypress was originally found in Arkansas in the south below the Ouachita Mountains east to Mississippi River and north in the delta to Missouri. Locally, it extends up the Black River as well as the White River and certain smaller streams. Elsewhere, the tree ranges from Virginia to Florida and west to southeastern Oklahoma and Texas with extensions into the Edwards Plateau.

IV. GINKGOACEAE

An old family dating back to the Palaeozoic that was once widespread across the Holarctic, but now represented by a single relict species once found in eastern China, but now probably extinct in the wild.

However, the plant is widely distributed in cultivation.

A. Ginkgo

1. biloba L. Ginkgo (Maidenhair Tree) IVA1

Usually seen as a small specimen tree, but mature specimens may reach heights of over 100 feet. Young branches are golden-brown. Bark is usually light grayish brown and relatively smooth on younger trees but becomes rougher on older trees. The leaves are deciduous, simple, flattened and somewhat leathery, alternate, hairless, long petiolate and fan-shaped usually with a conspicuous gap in the middle of the blade (note scientific name). Plants are dioecious, pollen produced in short catkins which are usually paired on end of a short stalk while the ovuliferous plants produce a small yellowish fruit with a fleshy outer layer which produces a fetid butyric acid odor while decaying(rancid butter). Because of this, most horticulturists recommend planting only staminate trees.

Ginkgo is grown as an ornamental tree in urban areas since it is highly resistant to pollution and insects and the foliage is an attractive green during the growing season and bright yellow in the autumn.

The tree was first introduced into the United States in the late eighteenth century.

V. MAGNOLIACEAE

Trees and shrubs. Leaves are simple, alternate, evergreen or deciduous, entire or occasionally pinnately lobed and often very large. Flowers are perfect and complete, often with many segments in each whorl. Fruits are conelike and may consist of aggregates of follicles or samaras. Bark is aromatic and often bitter. Stipule scars encircle the twigs. This is an ancient family dating back to at least the Cretaceous and once Holarctic in distribution. Currently limited to the southeastern United States and China in natural distribution, but spread widely in cultivation. Many relict species in the family.

A. Liriodendron

1. tulipifera L. Tulip tree (Yellow Poplar) VA1

The tulip tree may reach a height of over 150 feet with a diameter of over 7 feet and is considered one of the largest in the eastern United States. The bark light is grayish in color in younger trees and usually smooth, but becomes thicker and furrowed in mature specimens. Leaves are uniquely shaped, long petiolate, rounded at the base with sides rounding out to a point before moving toward the midrib and then forming an almost square flattened apex with lateral points. Leaves are 4 to 6 inches long, basically four-lobed (occasionally six-lobed) with each lobe terminating in a sharp point, dark green in the summer but turning yellow in the autumn. Flowers are greenish yellow on the outside of the petals and orange on the inside, polypetalous, tuliplike, usually appearing in April and May, and with numerous stamens. The fruit is narrow, light brown in color, scaly and cone-like. Wood is light, soft, light yellow or brown with a creamy white sapwood.

This is a commercially important lumber species for house construction, fences, funiture, boats, veneers,etc. Nectar from the flowers is sought by bees and hummingbirds, birds and small animals eat the fruits and seeds and the plants are popular as ornamentals.

Tulip trees were originally found in Arkansas on Crowley's Ridge, but is now spread more widely in cultivation. Elsewhere, originally found in southeastern United States.

B. Magnolia

1. grandiflora L. Southern Magnolia VB1

The tree is primarily planted as an ornamental, but the wood which is hard, heavy and white when fresh (darkens with age) has been used in construction of furniture, baskets and caskets. Seeds may be eaten by some birds and squirrels, but the tree is probably more useful as a roosting area for birds in winter.

Widespread in Arkansas through cultivation and is thought to escape occasionally. Elsewhere, this magnolia was originally found from southern coastal North Carolina to Florida and west to southeastern Texas mostly in the coastal plain.

VI. PLATANACEAE

Trees are often characterized by a thin, peeling bark of various colors. Leaves are large, simple, alternate, palmately lobed, deciduous with stipules at base of petioles whose bases enclose buds. Fruit is a ball with no spikes that is made up of an aggregate of achenes which are released when the ball is shattered.

A. Platanus

1. occidentalis L Sycamore V1A

A large tree which may the height of 140 feet with a diameter of 8 feet or more. Branches spread widely. Bark is reddish brown on young trees but breaks into smooth light gray scales on older branches where the bark may peel off and reveal a white inner bark. Leaves are large, 4 to 7 inches in width and 5 to 8 inches in length, palmately lobed with coarsely toothed margins, light green and smooth above while paler beneath. Leaves are often skeletonized by the abundant lace bugs. The base of the petiole is hollow and covers the winter bud. Fruit is a grayish yellow colored ball about an inch in diameter, somewhat roughened and suspended on a long (3 to 5 inch) stalk.

Wood is hard and may be hard to split but has been used in construction of butcher's blocks, tobacco boxes, furniture, veneers, musical instruments, etc. The tree is widely planted as an ornamental. Seeds are eaten by many birds.

Widely distributed in Arkansas where it is more often found on moister soils and along streams . Elsewhere, the tree is widely found in the eastern United States.

VII. HAMAMELIDACEAE

Trees or shrubs possessing leaves that are simple, alternate, opposite or basal and lobed or unlobed. Flowers are clustered with 4 or 5 sepals which are united at the base, and with 4 or 5 separate petals, but both sepals and petals may be absent. Fruit is often a two beaked woody or leathery capsule which opens

at the apex and contains one to a few seeds found in a two celled chamber.

A. Liquidambar

1. styraciflua L. Sweet Gum VIIA1

A large and fast growing tree that may reach a height of 150 feet and with a diameter of over 5 feet, usually with a straight trunk and a somewhat conical shape. The bark is light gray in color and smooth on younger trees but becomes darker and deeply fissured on older specimens. Leaves are charactistically star-shaped with five pointed lobes which are serrately margined. Leaves in the autumn range from yellow through orange and red to bronze or purple. The fruit is a spike covered ball with each spike covering a seed, each ball is long petiolateand frequently hangs on trees into late winter. Wood is reddish with a thin light colored sapwood. Twigs are characterized by corky ridges.

Tree is widely planted as an ornamental though the gum balls may be a problem The wood has been use for flooring, interior finish, pulp, boxes, crates, cabinets, etc. The seeds are utilized by many song birds while the bark is a favorite food for beavers and often browsed by deer.

The tree is widespread in Arkansas, but generally more common in the eastern and southern regions. Often found in moister habitats, such as stream banks, lake shores, swamps, etc. but may invade cut-over areas, abandoned fields and disturbed areas where it may form almost pure stands. Elsewhere, sweet gum occurs in the eastern United States from southern New England to central Florida and west to southeastern Missouri, eastern Oklahoma and Texas.

VIII. ULMACEAE

Trees and shrubs with deciduous leaves that are alternate, simple, toothed and often with an oblique base.

Flowers are inconspicuous, incomplete, and perfect. Fruit is either a drupe or a samara. The family has species in both temperate and tropical regions.

A. Celtis

1. occidentalis L. Hackberry VIIIA1

The hackberry is a medium sized tree that may reach a height of 90 feet and possess a diameter of nearly 3 feet. The trunk is tall and straight in crowded stands, but the trees have a tendency to spread widely in the open. Bark is somewhat thick , light silvery gray, somewhat smooth while the tree is young but may be broken into thick tight scales or more commonly, the bark may be covered with numerous rough wart-like projections. Leaved are deciduous, simple, with a base that is unsymmetrical and usually have three veins that arise from the base of the mid rib. Margins of the leaf are generally serrate and while the dorsal surface of the leaf is usually roughened, the underside of the leaf may be roughened or smooth. Hackberries are

attacked by several gall producing insects that make characteristic galls on the twigs, petioles and leaves. The fruit is a berry-like drupe, sweet, black or purple in color and about a third of an inch in size which usually ripens in September and hangs on the tree most of the winter.

The hackberry is sometimes planted as a shade tree, but is not as useful as the elms. It is valuable as a food source for wildlife, especially birds and often used as an emergency food resource by them during the winter. The wood is sometimes used to make baskets, furniture, caskets, etc.

The tree is more commonly found in the northern half of Arkansas, but is widely scattered in the state.

Elsewhere, the range of the hackberry extends from New England west to North Dakota south to northeastern Oklahoma and east to Virginia.

2. laevigata Willd. Sugarberry VIIIA2

This tree may reach the height of over 140 feet, but is more common at 80 feet in wet soils and 40 to 50 feet on slopes and dry soils. Bark is smooth and light gray in color , becoming spotted with age. The tree is also characterized by the warty projections on the bark and the galls found on the hackberry. The leaves are thin and smooth, light green on both surfaces, generally smooth on the margins though there may be a few apical teeth. Leaves are lanceolate to narrowly ovate and narrowly pointed apically. Fruits are berry-like drupes that are orange-red or yellow when fresh but change to a reddish brown when old.

Uses of the sugarberry are similar to those of the hackberry.

Widespread in Arkansas in a wide range of habitats and very common. Elsewhere, the range is more southern reaching from Virginia west eastern Kansas south to northeastern Mexico and east to Florida.

B. Ulmus

1. americana L. American Elm VIIIB1

A favorite shade tree in the eastern United States which has been known to reach heights of over 100 feet with a similar spread and a circumference of over 14 feet. Bark is thick on older trees, ashy or dark gray in color, often divided into flat-topped and thickened ridges that are usually firm but may peel off on old trees. Cross sections of this old bark reveals alternate layers of red and yellow. Leaves are 3 to 6 inches in length, base is oblique and unsymmetrical with one side being rounded and the wedge shaped (less tissue on one side of the main rib). Leaf margins are strongly doubly toothed, tip is acute, surface is smooth above but either smooth or rough beneath. Flowers are small, perfect but incomplete, greenish or purplish in color, on slender stalks of about an inch in lengthand appearing before the leaves. Fruit is a somewhat rounded, flattened samara, often light green in color, winged, and covered with short hairs. Seed is located in the center of the winged samara which is notched apically. Winter buds are pointed, chesnut brown in color, scaly but not hairy.

Once an important shade tree in the eastern United States and often used to line the streets in the suburbs. Wood was used in rough construction, for hubs for wheels, tows, barrel hoops, veneers, and crates.

2. rubra Muhl. Slippery Elm (Red Elm) VIIIB2

This is a tree of medium height often reaching over 80 feet, often growing straight and slender in crowded conditions but will fork and spread widely when grown in the open. Bark is dark brown in color often tinged with red and is separated into shallow fissures or covered with large, thickened tight scales. The inner bark is fragrant and forms a slippery mucilaginous substance when chewed (hence common name). A cross-section of the thickened bark of older trees appears uniformly red (hence other common name). Leaves are 4 to 6 inches in length with doubly toothed magins, unsymmetrical bases, rather thick, dull green in color, and rough on both sides. Fruit is a round samara with the seed surrounded by a thin greenish wing,

about a half of an inch in length, and usually not with an apical notch. These fruits ripen when the leaves are about half grown and fall soon after.

Trunks are used as fence posts, in construction of implements,etc. Inner bark has been used in folk medicine.

Widely distributed in Arkansas, but prefers more sheltered situations than the American elm. Elsewhere, range is similar to that of the American elm, but does not extend as far west.

3. alata Michx. Winged Elm VIIIB3

A small tree usually with many branches and often 30 to 40 feet high. Bark is rather thin, generally light brown in color and tinged with red, divided by irregular shallow fissures into flat ridges covered by small closely appressed scales. The common name comes from the corky ridges that are often found on young branches or on swiftly growing trees. Leaves are small , 1 to 3 inches in length, coarsely double-toothed, dark green in color, smooth above, pale and softly downy below, and pointed at the apex. Flowers are similar to those of the American elm and appear before the eruption of the leaves. Fruit is also similar to the American elm with two small incurved beaks at the apex, approximately a third of an inch in length, covered with white hairs and borne singly on a slender stalk.

Has been planted as an ornamental and the wood has been as tool handles, spokes, poles, wedges etc.

The winged elm has a wide distribution in Arkansas and is common where found. Elsewhere, the range extends from New Brunswick, Canada west to South Dakota south to eastern Texas and east to southern Virginia.

4. pumila L Siberian Elm VIIIB4

This elm is relatively small reaching about 75 feet high with wide spreading branches and a rounded crown. The bark is rough and dark brown in color. Leaves are simple, alternate, ovate, 1 to 2.5 inches in length, margins often single toothed, base often less oblique than other elms, dark green in color, and smooth on upper surface. Flowers are small, numerous, appearing before the leaves and possess purple colored stamens. Fruits are small almost circular samaras, about a half of an inch in length, with a membranous wing around the seed and with the apical notch closed.

The Siberian elm was introduced into the United States after the Civil War as a shade tree in urban areas and as a useful species for wind breaks in the Great Plains. It has been found to be more resistant to the Dutch Elm Disease than the American elm, but has more problems with defoliation by the elm leaf beetle.

Most commonly reported from the northern tiers of counties in Arkansas. Elsewhere, from Nebraska to eastern Texas and east to the Atlantic.

IX. MORACEAE

Trees or shrubs that are characterized by possession of a milky sap, deciduous leaves that are simple, alternate, toothed on the margins, and often variously lobed. Each plant carries separate pistillate and

staminate flowers. The pistillate inflorescence may fuse at the receptacle to produce a corky or juicy multiple fruit. The family is found in both temperate and tropical regions.

A. Broussonetia

1. papyrifera (L) Vent. Paper Mulberry IXA1

A small tree which reach about 50 high and has spreading branches that produces an ovate to round crown. The plant also produces many saplings (suckers) that grow in the immediate vicinity of the parent. Bark is smooth, usually gray-green in color, and somewhat reticulate. Leaves are simple, alternate or opposite, long petiolate, serrate margined, often ovate and unlobed, but may be lobed on one or both sides, usually soft downy on both surfaces. Flowers are small, staminate flowers in a 2 to 3 inch catkin while the pistillate flowers occur in rounded heads. Fruit is small, red, less than an inch across and inedible.

The paper mulberry was introduced into the United States from China and Japan about 1750 in an attempt to develop a silk industry in this country. It is a tree that is utilized by some of the Saturniidae(Moths) and many birds. It has been widely planted as a shade tree but the development of the suckers is often a nuisance.

The tree has been planted widely in Arkansas and has escaped from cultivation often.

B. Morus L.

1. rubra L. Red Mulberry IXB1

A small tree that may reach a height of 70 feet though more commonly at 30 to 40 feet. The spreading branches may form a dense, broad, round-topped crown. Bark is rather thin and dark grayish brown in color. Leaves are highly variable in shape, most leaves are rounded or somewhat cordate, but others are lobed on one or both sides, alternate, thin, serrate margined, 3 to 6 inches in length and usually rough-hairy above while soft hairy below. Staminate catkins are longer than the pistillate ones and both appear with the leaves. Fruit is edible, red or black resembling a blackberry, but the stalk extends through the fruit. Wood is weak and soft separated into a light orange heartwood and a thicker lighter colored sapwood. Sap of twigs usually milky.

Wood has been used for fence posts, boat construction, vats, etc. Sometimes planted as a shade tree or ornamental, but the fallen fruit and the droppings of birds may become a nuisance. Fruits are eaten by many species of birds and if the plants occur along streams, the fruits may be eaten by several fish including carp and catfish.

The red mulberry is widely spread through Arkansas but is not common. Widely spread through the eastern United States.

2. alba L. White Mulberry IXB2

Generally smaller than the red mulberry. Bark is characterized by brownish gray plates which may have a yellowish brown inner bark between them. Leaves are small, ovate to lobed with almost dentate margins, shiny green above, nearly hairless below and with a sharp pointed apex. Buds are reddish brown. Fruits are white (occasionally reddish black) and nearly tasteless.

This is an introduced Asiatic species originally brought to this country in an attempt to establish a silk industry. Found in scattered locations in central and northern counties of Arkansas. Elsewhere widely scattered throughout the eastern United States.

X. JUGLANDACEAE

Trees with alternate, oddly pinnately compond leaves which are deciduous. A single tree contains separate flowers (monecious), staminate flowers occur as drooping catkins while the pistillate (ovuliferous)

flowers are solitary or in small spikes. Fruit is a drupe or a nut. Pith of twigs variously chambered. Plants are mostly found in the north temperate zones.

A. Carya

1. cordiformis (Wang) K. Koch Bitternut Hickory XA1

Best identified by the bright yellow, slender, pointed leaf buds in the spring and late winter. Fruits are small with a thin green and ridged husk, shell is thin and gray and the kernel is bitter (hence the common

name). The mature fruit husk splits to just past the middle of the nut. The bark is gray, generally smooth and is marked with darker patches of gray, especially on younger branches. Twigs are slender and usually hairless. Compound leaves have 7 to 11 leaflets, lanceolate, margins are serrate and the leaflet is somewhat hairy beneath.

Trees are known to reach a height of over 130 feet with a spread of 110 feet and a circumference of nearly 12 feet. The tree is usually found in fertile, fairly well-drained soils.

The nuts are not favored by wildlife nor man, but the tree is often used as a shade tree or as an ornamental. Wood has been used to make tool handles, in construction, etc. The wood is also considered to be one of the best for smoking meat.

Bitternut hickories are found throughout Arkansas in favorable habitats. Elsewhere, the range of the tree extends through the eastern United States except in coastal areas.

2. texana Buckl. Black Hickory XIA2

This is a smaller hickory that may reach 70 feet in height and usually less than 3 feet in diameter. The trunk is usually crooked, has many limbs and often looks rather scraggly. Bark is usually dark gray, , heavily fissured, separating into thin scales or nearly black and deeply divided into rough ridges. Leaves are 8 to 12

inches in length with 5 to 7 leaflets that are toothed, somewhat diamond shaped, and usually with rusty hairs on the midribs. Fruit is somewhat pear-shapd with a thick husk which splits to the base. The nut is somewhat flattened and four angled with a kernel which may be sweet or bitter. The wood is hard and brittle.

Wood is of little commercial value, but is used for fuel and to make charcoal.

Black hickory is most commonly found in the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains where it is often associated with other hickories and oaks, but it is also found in most of the other counties of the state. Elsewhere, the range is rather narrow extending from southwestern Indiana west to eastern Oklahoma south to eastern Texas and east to northwestern Louisiana west of the Mississippi River.

3. tomentosa (Poir.) Nutt. Mockernut Hickory XA3

The mockernut hickory is a tall tree that reaches heights of over 130 feet with a spread of over 71 feet and a circumference of over 9 feet. The bark is dark gray, hard and deeply furrowed. The compound leaves may be over 2 feet in length with 7 to 9 leaflets which are widely separated and drooping, with the terminal leaflet larger than the others. The stem of the leaf is covered with a mat of short hairs (tomentose), especially noticeable in the spring and is quite aromatic when fresh(good characteristic to identify tree). Fruit is ovate with a thick husk that splits to the base. Nut has a thick shell that surrounds the edible kernel. Common name may be due to the difficulty of cracking this shell.

The mockernut hickory is a more valuable commercial tree due to its size. Wildlife will eat the nuts though the birds must have cracked nuts to get the meat.

Widespread in Arkansas except in the low areas of the Delta Region. Elsewhere, Vermont to eastern Kansas south to south and central Texas east to Florida.

4. glabra (Mill) Sweet Pignut Hickory XA4

This tree has two well defined varieties with specific ranges and characteristics, and in fact, they have been listed as two species in the past. Both are medium sized to large trees that may reach a height of 80 to over 130 feet. The trunk is usually straight, often with a cylindrical shape and a rounded crown and may reach over 4 feet in diameter. Branches are usually short, stout, spreading with slender branchlets. Leaves are usually glabrous hence the scientific name.

C. glabra var. glabra is best known as the Pignut Hickory and has tight bark with thick-shelled nuts that

are often pear-shaped and may or may not be sweet. The husk is thin and usually splits only to the middle of the nut. Leaves are about 6 inches in length and with 5 leaflets. Male catkins are rather small reaching a length of 3 inches. Small stems and winter buds are often glabrous. The tree is widespread in Arkansas and usually on fairly dry sites.

C. glabra var. odorata is the one recognized occasionally as C. ovalis and commonly called the Red Hickory or Sweet Pignut Hickory. The bark is mostly furrowed but sometimes may be scaly. The nuts are

small, thin-shelled, sweet, and with a husk that splits to the base. The leaves are 7inches in length and with 7 leaflets. The leaflets are often sticky beneath. Male catkins may reach lengths of 7 inches. This tree is widely scattered in Arkansas.

The nuts are favored by squirrels in the eastern United States while the twigs provide minor browse for the deer of the area. Raccoons and chipmunks also utilize the nuts as do some of the larger birds like crows and jays. The wood is light to dark brown in color and is used commercially for veneers, etc.

The normal range is from New England to southeastern Iowa southwest to extreme southeastern Kansas south through western Arkansas south along the Texas-Louisisan border and east to the middle of Florida.

5. lacinosa (Michx. f.) Shellbark Hickory XA5

Large trees reaching a height of over 130 feet and with a trunk of a diameter of over 3 feet. The trunk is usually straight and slender with branches in the lower half and with an oblong crown that often is rounded..

The bark is moderately thick, light gray in color, and may form long, thick plates with ends that pull away from the trunk (hence the common name). Winter buds are blunt tipped, broadest near the base and covered with 11 to 12 overlapping dark-brown scales. Leaves are composed of 5 to 9 leaflets, commonly 7, terminal

leaflet is the largest and the basal leaflets are only a third to a half the size of the last one. Fruits are large and ovate, about 2.8 inches long by 2 inches wide with a thick husk that is smooth to downy and splits easily to expose the nut. Nut is ovate to broadest at the terminus, rounded to pointed at both ends with a hard, thick shell, but with a sweet kernel.

The wood is tough, resilent and strong and has been used for tool handles, ladders, baskets and fuel. This is one of the largest of the hickory nuts and one of the most edible hence it is widely sought by both squirrels and man.

B. Juglans

1. nigra L. Black Walnut XB1

The black walnut may reach a height of over 160 feet, but is more common from 100 to 130 feet. The trunk reaches a diameter of over 3 feet and is straight with a crown that is often rounded terminally. The bark is moderately thick and varies from light to dark brown in color and may be divided by deep rurrows

into broad, ofen flat-topped scaly ridges that may form diamond-shaped patterns. Branches are stout and spreading. Leaves are compound, up to two feet in length, and with 9 to 21 leaflets which have equal sized bases, tapering ends, and with finely serrate margins. Winter buds are somewhat conical, obliquely flattened above, whitish and hairy. Staminate flowers in catkins on old wood while the pistillate flowers are round and, apetalous, and appear on new wood. The fruit is a round, grooved nut that is covered by a spherical husk that turns black with age.

Nuts are edible and utilized by man and animals. The husks produce a toxin that is harmful to some plants and fish. Wood is extremely useful commercially for gunstocks, fine furniture, veneers, paneling, small boxes, etc.

Black walnuts are found statewide, especially on moister north facing slopes and in ravines, gullies and floodplains. Elsewhere, it occurs from southern Canada to Minnesota south to eastern Texas and east to northern Florida.

XI. FAGACEAE

Trees or shrubs with simple leaves that may be deciduous or evergreen, alternate, entire to variously lobed, and entire to toothed margins. Plants are monecious with staminate catkins and pistillate flowers that are solitary or in spikes. Fruit is a nut or an acorn with a woody involucre. Trees are found mostly in the temperate regions.

A. Quercus

Most abundant of the hard woods in Arkansas in species and numbers. Hybridization is common and makes identification complicated. Flowers similar in all species with tassel-like, drooping male catkins and conspicuous female flowers at the end of twigs. Size and shape of the acorn is affected by the weather.

Many oaks are very important commercially as firewood, millwork, furniture, timbers and railroad ties, veneers, paneling, flooring, containers, plywood and much more. Many are also important wildlife food plants. Oaks are generally separated into two distinct groups.

WHITE OAK GROUP

These trees have leaves that are usually lobed laterally and / or terminally and with no bristles penetrating the margins. Acorns are sweet (edible) and ripen on current year's twigs(bloom and develop in one year). Bark and wood is usually lighter colored and the bark may be somewhat smooth flaky.

1. alba L White Oak XIA1

The white oak is a large tree that may reach over 100 feet in height with a diameter of more than 3 feet. Bark is usually ashy gray, often with loose scales or broad plates, (light color is responsible for both the common name and the scientific names), but bark may turn darker with age. Leaves are 5 to 9 inches in length, about half as wide as long, deeply divided into 5 to 9 rounded, finger-like lobes. The leaves are usually dull green above, paler green beneath, and turn dull deep red or purplish in the fall. Acorns are

large (1 inch or more in length), often cylindrical, light brown in color and enclosed for about a quarter of their length by a firm warty cup.

The acorns of the white oak make up a major component of the annual mast crop that is so important to wildlife such as deer, squirrels, birds (including ducks), rodents, etc. The wood is heavy and the species is important to the hardwood lumber industry.

White oaks are widespread in Arkansas, especially on drier habitats though it does require adequate moisture. Trees are not generally found in the wet overflow areas of streams. Elsewhere, white oaks are widespread in the eastern United States except in the extremely northern and southern regions.

2. muehlenbergii Engelm. Chinkapin Oak XIA2

The chinkapin oak is a large tree that is known to reach over 160 feet in height although it is more commonly found from 80 to 100 feet tall with a diameter of over 3 feet and with a tall straight trunk. Bark is a light gray in color and has a tendency to break into short, narrow or oblong flakes on the trunk and larger branches. Leaves are narrowly to broadly lanceolate, 3 to 6 inches long and l.5 to 3 inches wide, equally toothed or notched, each tooth pointed. The leaves are usually somwhat crowded at ends of branches. Acorns are dark brown at maturity, 0.5 to 1 inch long and set into a shallow, tightly scaled cup attached to a short stalk.

The wood is heavier than that of the white oak, but is often sold as white oak when available. This oak is not as common as the white oak. Acorns are edible and are utilized by wildlife.

Widely scattered throughout Arkansas, especially on hillsides and north facing slopes. Elsewhere, panhandle of Florida northwest into central Arkansas southwest to south-central Texas northeast to northeastern Iowa east to southern Pennsylvania and south through the Applachians and Great Smokies to the panhandle of Florida. Not coastal.

3. stellata Wang Post Oak XIA3

A tall tree in good soils and with adequate moisture that may reach heights of 100 feet with a diameter of over 3 feet, but in poor soils and lack of moisture, the trees may short and very scraggly. Bark is darker gray than that of the white oak and may even be redddish dark gray, usually ridged and fisssured rather than scaly. The leaves are 4 to 5 inches long and nearly as broad, deeply five lobed with broad rounded divisions,

and may take the shape of a crucifix. Leaves are dark green above and lighter green beneath, often hairy, especially beneath, and often hang on the trees all winter falling only with the initiation of the new growth. The acorn is rather small, averaging from 0.5 to 0.75 inch in length and about 1/3 enclosed by the hemispherical cup which has diamond-shaped scales and ridges.

The trees may form heavy thickets often with blackjack oaks especially in Oklahoma and other eastern plains regions and these are often important wildlife habitats. The nuts are important in the mast production that wildlife species feed upon. The wood is often sought for wood for burning, crossties, fenceposts and for furniture.

Widespread in Arkansas except in the wet overflow areas of the Arkansas and Mississippi Rivers. It is a major component of the oak-hickory forest of upland areas, but also occurs in the sandy soils of the south. Areas dominated by this oak are known as post oak flats. Elsewhere, the post oak is scattered through the entire eastern United States and extends west to Texas and Oklahoma.

4. lyrata Walt. Overcup Oak XIA4

The overcup oak is a medium sized tree that may reach a height of 100 feet with a diameter of over 3 feet. The trunk may be tall and straight or short and crooked with a broad rounded crown. Bark may range from thin to moderately thick, reddish to grayish-brown in color,divided into somewhat rectangular flattened plates, with fissures separating into ridges on older trees. Leaves range from 6 to 10 inches in length and from 1 to 4 inches wide, narrow, broadest above the middle with several shallow to deeply rounded lobes along. The leaf gradually tapers to a narrow base, terminates in a rounded apex, is dark green and smooth above, paler and covered with soft hairs to almost smooth beneath. Acorns range from 0.6 to 1 inch in length, light brown in color, cup deep, almost globe-shaped and enclosing from two-thirds to virtually all the nut (hence the common name). The cup scales are widest near the base, pointed at the tip, thickened, and often with a fringe at apex.

The acorns are edible and the trees routinely produce large crops every 3 or 4 years with only small crops in between. Whitetail deer, hogs, turkeys, squirrels and other smaller rodents find the nuts valuable. The wood is hard, durable, heavy and strong , usually sold as white oak.

The overcup oak is more commonly found on heavy, poorly drained soils typical of river swamps, sloughs, floodplains and other bottomlands. Its distribution in Arkansas is mostly the eastern half with an extension up the Arkansas River floodplain. Elsewhere, in the coastal plain from New Jersey to Florida west to eastern Texas and extending up the Mississippi River to southern Illinois.

RED OAK GROUP

In this group, the leaf lobes are sharply angled, generally sharply pointed and with a continuation of the

veins through the leaf margins into a sharp bristle. Acorns are bitter and grow on the twigs of the second season. Bark and wood are dark.

5. falcata Michx. var. falcata Southern Red Oak XIA5

A medium sized tree that may grow to a height of 90 feet with a spread of over 100 feet and a circumference of 22 feet. The bark is rough, not deeply furrowed and with a light gray color in youth changing to almost black on older trees. Leaves are red downy beneath, have a rounded base, 3 to 5 pointed tapering lobes with the terminal lobe being the longest and very narrow (somewhat finger-like), and all lobes bristle-tipped. Acorns are small, approximately 0.5 inch in length, borne singly or in pairs with a cup which tapers basally, is relatively thick, and covers about 1/3 of the nut which is brown and striped with darker brown.

The southern red oak is an important mast producing tree used by wildlife including squirrels, deer, turkey, quail, numerous songbirds and smaller rodents. As with some of the other oaks, animals may aid in the dispersal of acorns as when squirrels hoard away the nuts and they germinate. The wood is light red, coarse-grained, hard and strong, however, it may crack in the sun and rots easily when in contact with the ground. It is used in general construction, crates, furniture and fuel.

The southern red oak occurs statewide in Arkansas and generally prefers somewhat drier sites than some of the other red oaks. It is a major species within the oak-hickory association. Elsewhere, the tree ranges from New Jersey southwest to western North Carolina skipping the Appalachian and Great Smokies, north to southern Ohio west to eastern Oklahoma south through eastern Texas and east through northern Florida, skipping the Mississippi Delta and most of peninsular Florida.

6. rubra L. Northern Red Oak XIA6

The northern red oak is a medium sized tree that may reach a height of 100 feet with a circumference of over 15 feet. Bark is typical of group, light gray and smooth on young trunks and branches (may be reddish or brownish gray), turns darker brown to virtually black on older trees and is broken by shallow fissures into regular,flat and usually smooth plates or strips. Leaves are 5 to 9 inches in length, 4 to 6 inches wide, broadest toward the apex and divided in 7 to 9 toothed and bristle tipped lobes. Lateral lobes are relatively shallow, usually not more incised than half the distance to the midrib. Leaves are dull green above, paler and without hairs beneath and turn bright red in the fall (responsible for both common and scientific names). Acorns range from 0.75 to 1.5 inches in length, blunt tipped, flat at base and only basally covered by a flat, shallow, dark brown cup.

Good acorn crops are only produced every 2 to 5 years. The nuts are heavily attacked by both animals and insects. Whitetail deer may eat the acorns, buds and young twigs especially in the winter. Other animals that forage for the acorns include the black bear, raccoon, squirrels, turkeys, bluejays and many small rodents. The tree is often planted as an ornamental in both this country and Europe. Even though the wood is not as good as that of the white oak, it has been used for flooring, furniture, veneer, and interior finishing.

The northern red oak is most often found in the northern half of Arkansas expecially on rolling or hilly areas, north slopes and streamsides where it seems to do best in deep fertile soils. Elsewhere, the range is somewhat more northern than the southern red oak extending from Maine to most of Minnesota south to

eastern Oklahoma, northern Arkansas southeast through most of Alabama, northwestern Georgia and northeast to the southern coast of Virginia.

7. velutina Lam. Black Oak XIA7
The black oak may reach a height of over 100 feet, with a diameter of over 3 feet and is often confused with the northern red oak. Bark in young trunks is smooth and dark brown which becomes almost black with deep furrows and rough broken ridges when older. The inner bark is bright yellow and has an extremely bitter taste which is a major characteristic. Leaves usually have 7 lobes which may be larger than those found on the northern red oak. The color of the leaves is dark green above, lighter green below and with reddish-brown hairs in the axils of the veins which is another useful identification key. Acorns are small ranging from 0.5 to 0.75 inches in length and enclosed 1/3 to 2/3 by a loose, thinly scaled brown cup with a kernel that is yellow and bitter. Heartwood is bright reddish brown and is surrounded by the thin , pale outer sapwood

The black oak produces a good nut crop every two to three years which is eaten by squrrels, whitetail deer, turkeys, raccoons, jays, grouse, and small rodents. Deer may also use the tree for browse. The wood is strong, heavy and strong. often sold as red oak and used for flooring, cheap furniture, railroad ties, charcoal. The tannin from the bark was once used in the tanning of hides and a yellow dye may also be extracted from it.

The black oak is widely scattered and common in Arkansas especially on drier soils and upland areas, but not common in the bottomland forests. Elsewhere, the range is very similar to that of the other red oaks.

8. palustris Muenchh. Pin Oak XIA8

The pin oak may reach a height of over 110 feet, but is more common at 80 feet, and a diameter of over 3 feet. Branches are often short and spreading making it a popular shade tree. Bark on young trees smooth, shiny and light brown becoming gray brown to black with small, closely attached scales in older age. The leaves are usually less than 5 inches long, have 5 to 7 lobes which almost reach the midrib, are sharply pointed with long bristly tips. Leaves are bright dark green above, paler below (turn red in fall) and with clumps of reddish hairs in the axils of the veins. Acorns are small, usually less than 5/8 inch long, often striped, and held in a shallow saucer-shaped cup.

Pin oaks are lowland trees which thrive in wet, poorly drained, claypan soils typical of floodplains and flatlands where it tolerates short periods of spring flooding, but they may grow well in deep well-drained soils. The oaks generally produce a good nut crop after two to three years of meager production. Acorns are utilized by waterfowl, turkeys, whitetail deer, squirrels and smaller rodents. The wood of pin oaks is not as strong as some of the red oaks but it has been used as for general construction, posts and firewood.

The distribution of the pin oak in Arkansas is rather strange appearing as a band through the north central part of the state and into the northeastern corner of the state. Elsewhere, the range extends from northeastern Oklahoma eastern Tennessee north into Kentucky and east to southeastern Virginia north to New Jersey south to West Virginia north to northwestern Pennsylvania west to eastern Iowa and southwest to Oklahoma.

9. marilandica Muenchh. Blackjack Oak XIA9

The blackjack is a small scraggly oak making up one of the major components in the scrub forest of eastern Oklahoma. The tree may reach a height of about 50 feet with a diameter of 18 inches. This oak is characterized by the many short, drooping branches, especially those in the lower half of the trunk. Bark is unique, rather thick, almost black in color, deeply divided into almost square plates and covered by small tight scales. Leaves range from 4 to 10 inches in length, usually wedge or pear-shaped, often three lobed at the apex with each lobe tipped with a bristle(turkey foot shape). Leaves are dark green in color above, yellowish green below with many reddish hairs. Brownish hairs may also cover new twigs, buds and fruits. Acorns are small, usually less than 0.5 inch in length, yellow brown in color and often striped with darker brown, enclosed for half its length by thick , light brown cups.`

The blackjacks are important cover plants for wildlife and the acorns may be utilized by whitetail deer, squirrels, turkeys, jays and small rodents. The trees are too small and scraggly for much commercial harvest, but have been used for railroad ties, fence posts, charcoal and fuelwood.

Widespread in Arkansas except for the southeastern Mississippi River floodplain. Elsewhere, blackjacks may be found from New Jersey south to southern West Virginia west to southern Iowa southwest through most of Oklahoma and eastern Texas and east to northern Florida, excluding the Mississippi River valley through much of Arkansas and Louisiana. Found only on the gulf coast from Mississippi to Florida and on the Atlantic coast from Florida to New Jersey.

10. nigra L. Water Oak XIA10

The water oak has been known to reach heights of over 100 feet tall and with a circumference of more than 20 feet. Bark is somewhat thick and tight, often ridged, ridges may be marked by reddish brown coloration and with closely appressed scales. Leaves are small, 2 to 4 inches in length and from 1 to 2 inches in width, shape variable from oblanceolate to long narrowly wedge shape often with three small lobes (narrowly turkeyfooted). Leaves are dark green in color and often persist on trees well into the winter.

The acorns are small, ranging from 1/3 to 1/2 inch in length, round to somewhat flattened, light yellowish brown in color, often striped with darker brown and enclosed in a thin saucer-shaped cup.

The acorns of water oak are important for many species of wildlife including whitetail deer, ducks, turkeys, raccoons, squirrels, and small rodents. The tree is an important ornamental and shade tree. Trees are often marketed as "red oak" and used as railroad ties etc.

Water oaks are fairly widespread in the bottomlands and floodplains of most streams in eastern and southern Arkansas extending far up most of these streams. Often a dominant species in this particular habitat. Elsewhere, mostly southern from Virginia to Florida west to eastern Oklahoma and eastern Texas

11. phellos L. Willow Oak XIA11

The willow oak may reach height of over 100 feet with a diameter of over 3 feet in favorable habitats. The bark is rather thin, usually smooth except on older trunks where it may be broken into shallow, narrow fissures and irregular plates. Leaves are distinctive, 2 to 4 inches inches in length and 0.25 to 0.75 of an inch in width, narrowly elliptical and tapered at both ends. Margins are smooth or slightly wavy while the leaves are apically bristle tipped. Leaves are shiny green above and somewhat duller beneath. Acorns are small, 0.25 to 0.75 of an inch in length, light brown in color, hemispherical, with only the base enclosed by the shallow, reddish-brown cup. Acorns often fall while still green.

Acorns of the willow oak are an important part of the mast crop of floodplain and bottomland habitats and are utilized by waterfowl, turkeys, whitetail deer, squirrels, jays and many other species of wildlife. The willow oak has been planted widely as an ornamental and as a shade tree. The wood is slightly inferior to some of the other "red oaks", but has been utilized for agricultural implements, general construction, etc.

The willow oak is widespread in Arkansas except in the northwestern Ozark counties. It is especially common in the first terraces of the riverine floodplains in the eastern and southern regions of the state. It is an important component of the "pin oak flats" along with the southern red and pin oaks, bald cypress, swamp cottonwood and other "wet" trees. Elsewhere, range is similar to that of the water oak.

12. imbricaria Michx. Shingle Oak XIA12

The shingle oak is a smaller oak that reaches a height of 70 feet and rarely reaches 100 feet. Branches are usually horizontal with the lower ones often drooping. The bark on young twigs is often dark green and shiny, but later becomes reddish during the first winter and even darker during the second winter. The bark of the trunk may become thick, irregularly fissured with ridges covered with tight, light brown scales which are often red tinged. Leaves are unique and somewhat resemble those of the chinquapin. The length of these leaves is from 4 to 6 inches with a width of 1 to 2 inches, smooth margins that are slightly scalloped and bristle-tipped. The leaves are shiny green above and with a lighter lower surface that is somewhat covered with rusty colored hairs. The acorns are from 0.5 to about 0.75 inches in length, almost as broad as long, set on a stout stalk and set in a top-shaped or flattened cup that covers from 1/3 to 1/2 of the nut.

The common name and the scientific name refer to the fact that this oak was a very popular source of shingles in earlier times, especially in the Illinois and Indiana areas. Otherwise, the oak is sometimes sold as

"red oak" but is generally not used much as commecial timber. However, the tree is fast growing, ornamental in appearance and therefore is popular as horticultural species. It is an important wildlife species where it is commonly found and utilized by waterfowl as well as many other species.

The shingle oak is not common in Arkansas though it is found in a few northern counties and even fewer counties in the south-central region. Elsewhere, it ranges from western Pennsylvania west to southern Iowa south to northern Arkansas east to western Tennessee and northeast to western Pennsylvania.

XII. LAURACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with most parts aromatic. Leaves are simple, alternate and entire to occasionally lobed. Flowers are small, clustered, aromatic and usually perfect. Fruit with a cup at the base and are usually blue or red drupes with one seed. Most species of the family are found in the tropics.

A. Sassafras

1. albidum (Nutt) Nees. Sassafras XIIA1

The sassafras is mostly thought of as a small tree or shrub, but has been known to reach a height of over 100 feet. The tree is often an invader of pastures and fence rows. Bark on young trees is bright green or reddish brown, but becomes darker and deeply furrowed on older trees. Leaves are variably shaped from simply ovate to mitten-shaped to evenly three lobed (turkey foot) and all these shapes may be found on a single tree. Leaves become red orange or yellow in the autumn. Flowers are small, clustered, greenish yellow and appear before the leaves. Pistillate and staminate flowers usually appear on different trees The spicy fruit is dark blue or black with a single large seed set in a red cup on a red stalk.

The wood of sassafras is soft and brittle and therefore has little commercial use, but the trunks have been used as posts. The fruit is seldom abundant enough to be of much value to wildlife, but is eaten by bobwhite quail, turkeys, other birds, foxes, bear, and whitetail deer which also browse the foliage. One of the most popular uses at one time was to use the bark of the roots as an aromatic spicy tea or spring tonic.

Widespread in Arkansas except in the overflow areas of larger rivers and is more common on drier hillsides. Elsewhere, widespread in eastern United States.

XIII. BETULACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with simple deciduous leaves that are alternate and often double toothed. Plants have flowers of both sexes with the staminate flowers occurring in catkins while the pistillate flowers may be in catkins, clusters or spikes. Individual flowers are incomplete with 0 to 4 sepals, no petals and may overwinter in the inflorescence. Fruits are small and with a single seed which is surrounded by bracts or husks, or may be in samaras that may be released, persist, or may shatter from conical structures. The trees are most common in the temperate zones.

A. Alnus

1. serrulata (Ait.) Willd. Hazel Alder XIIIA1

The hazel alder is a small tree or more commonly a shrub that may reach a height of about 30 feet and with a diameter of four inches, but generally has multiple spindly trunks and occurring as a clump. The bark is thin, brown, smooth and with many small dark air pores known as lenticels. Leaves are alternate, 2 to 4 inches long, 1 to 2.4 inches wide, ovate or broadest at the middle, tapering to a wedge-shaped base, pointed at the apex, and with a wavy margin characterized by a single row of fine teeth. The leaves are green and smooth above, paler and hairy beneath, especialy along the veins with stout smooth petioles. Staminate and pistillate flowers in separate catkins on the same plant with the male catkins being slender and drooping and the female catkins are shorter and rounded. Fruits are cone-like, less than an inch in length, in clusters supported by a short stalk and composed of numerous scales that are thicken at the apex , each with a single small winged seed.

The hazel alder is a fast growing shrub but is short lived. Whitetail deer are known to browse the foliage while small birds and probably small rodents eat the seeds. The wood has little commercial value.

The range of this plant is somewhat disjunct. There is a western component that includes western

Arkansas which reaches from eastern Missouri to extreme eastern Texas and extreme western Louisiana and is separated from the eastern component by the Mississippi River Valley. The eastern section stretches from Tennessee to the gulf east to the Atlantic in extreme northern Florida and extending northeast to the eastern half of Maine.

B. Betula

1. nigra L. River Birch XIIIB1

The river birch may reach a height of 90 feet with a circumference of 3 or 4 feet and is usually found in the immediate floodplains of lakes and streams. Bark is cinnamon to reddish brown in color and has a tendency to peel back in papery layers which persist on the trunk and may be covered with a gray powder. The bark becomes deeply furrowed on older trunks. Leaves are simple, alternate, generally ovate, 2

to 3 inches in length and double toothed, often dark green above and pale yellowish green beneath. Flowers

are in catkins with staminatr catkins longer and more slender than the pistillate catkins. Fruit is somewhat cone-like, about an inch long and covered with many dry scales.

River birch seems to have limited use by wildlife though deer browse the folliage while grouse, turkeys, small birds and small rodents eat the small seeds. The wood is light, strong and hard but has many knots which limits the value of the wood commercially though it is occasionally used for furniture and tool handles. The river birch is used as a street species in the Pacific Northwest and as an ornamental landscape species in the Northeast.

The tree is widespread in Arkansas except the extreme eastern Mississippi River floodplain. Elsewhere, generally found in the eastern United States in suitable habitats.

C. Carpinus

1. caroliniiana Walt. Ironwood XIIIC1

A small tree or large shrub that may reach a height of 40 feet in the proper rich alluvial soils. The bark is distinctive with a bluish or brownish gray color and smooth texture. The trunk and larger branches are characterized by wide rounded ridges or fluting in irregular patterns that resemble muscles in the human arm. Leaves are simple, alternate, ovate, long-pointed apically, doubly toothed on the margins, about 2 to 3 inches in length and dull green in color. The staminate flowers occur in catkins that are about 1.5 inches long and are evident all winter while the pistillate flowers occur in catkins of about 0.75 inch in length with small leaf-like, three lobed scales that appear in the spring on the ends of twigs. Fruit is a nutlet attached to one of the three lobed scales.

Whitetail deer occasionally browse the foliage while the seeds are eaten by squirrels, small rodents, and birds. The wood was once used to make bowls and dishes because it does not crack or split easily , as well as handles of tools, etc. It is not considered as commercially valuable due to the size of the tree.

Ironwood is found as a typical understory species along most of the riverbottoms and streambeds in Arkansas. Elsewhere, the tree ranges from Canada to Florida to Texas in the eastern United States.

D. Ostrya

1. virginiana (Mill.) K. Koch Eastern Hop Hornbeam XIIID1

This is a small tree that may reach a height of 40 feet in very favorable habitats but is generally much smaller than that locally where it commonlly occurs as a shrub. The bark is thin, developing into narrow, plate-like strips tha often peels away from the trunk. Leaves are alternate, 2.5 to 4.8 inches long, l.5 to 2 inches wide, may be uniformly tapered at both ends or may be widest at the middle with a narrow base and pointed apex, with numerous sharp teeth along the margins, dark yellowish green above , paler beneath and with tufts soft hairs in the junctions of the main veins. The petioles are long, stout and hairy. Male and female flowers are in separate catkins on the same tree. The male catkins are slender, cylinder-shaped about 0.6 to 2 inches in length when mature and a light reddish brown in color . The female catkins are slender, light green and reddish tinged, about a quarter of an inch in length and produced at the end of branches. Fruits are grouped in elongated clusters of about two inches in length on short drooping stems with the seeds enclosed in a papery, sac-like bag which turns brown with maturity.

Whitetail deer may browse the foliage and the seeds are utilized by grouse, songbirds and squrirels. The wood is hard but the tree is too small to be of much commercial value.

The eastern hop hornbeam is widely distributed in Arkansas except for the south cental and southeastern regions. It is most commonly found along stream banks, lakeshores, around ponds or in other wetland habitats. Elsewhere, it is found from Maine to Minnesota south to eastern Texas east to northern Florida and north skipping the lower Atlantic Coast and much of Louisiana.

XIV. SALICACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with alternate, simple leaves that are often toothed and may be somewhat lobed, and often with paired stipules. Both staminate and pistillate flowers occur in catkins, both are incomplete missing either petals or sepals.The fruit is a 2 valved capsule which splits to release wind dispersed seed that are supported by apical hairs. Most species are widely dispersed through the temperate zones.

A. Populus

1. alba L. White Poplar XIVA1

The white poplar may reach a height of over 100 feet but is usually much smaller. The bark is usually whitish-gray on much of the trunk and almost white on the upper branches. Hunter (1989) describes the tree with three distinct regions; a furrowed lower trunk often with irregular growths and darker colored, a mid trunk region which is characterized by diamond-shaped lenticels in the bark and often lighter colored than the lower trunk, and the upper region including the upper branches which are almost white and with horizontal-shaped lenticels in the bark. The younger branchlets and the buds are white and wooly (tomentose). Leaves are somewhat dimorphic; those found on long shoots are ovate, palmately 3 to 5 lobed, with triangular and coarsely toothed lobes, apex is somewhat pointed, from 2.5 to 4.5 inches in length, dark green above and white tomentose beneath while those leaves on short branchlets are smaller, ovate to elliptic-oblong, with toothed wavy margins and gray tomentose beneath. Both pistillate and staminate flowers occur in catkins with the male catkins being longer than the female catkins. The bracts surrounding the catkins are fringed. Fruit is a two-valved capsule.

This was introduced into this country from Europe as an ornamental and a street species, but it has become a problem along streets because the roots are water-hungry and have a tendency to grow into the sewers and drainpipes. It has also been found to raise and break sidewalks. Another horticultural problem is that it has a tendency to propagate itself very easily and saplings begin growing everywhere around the parent tree.

2. deltoides Bartr. Eastern Cottonwood XIVA2

The eastern cottonwood may reach a height of over 160 feet and a diameter of almost 7 feet. If the tree grows in the open it usually has a broad, irregular, and open crown, but in wooded areas the crown is often short and rounded. The bark is thin, smooth, and yellow-gray in color on younger trunks but becomes dark gray and furrowed in maturity. The branches are heavy and widespreading in open habitats, but slender and compact in shaded situations. The branchlets are stout, generally smooth and somewhat angled in cross section. Leaves are alternate, simple, deciduous, 3 to 7 inches in length and 4 to almost 5 inches wide, triangular in shape (hence scientific name) and long pointed apically. The base of the leaf is somewhat heart shaped (cordate) or flattened, margins toothed and wavy, smooth shiny green above, paler below with a petiole that is long, slender, flattened and glandular. Pistillate and staminate flowers in catkins on separate trees. Fruits are 3 to 4 compartmented capsules in a long catkin.

Cottonwoods are usually found in moist woodlands near streams, swamps, lakes and other wet areas, preferably in well-drained sands or silts. Along some rivers the trees are often pioneers on sandbars and form almost pure stands. The trees are extremely fast growing. The original distribution was probably from Minnesota to Texas and east to the Atlantic Ocean skipping most of Florida. However, the tree was apparently carried by settlers west and the western range now extends from almost western Montana southeast to the lower coast of Texas. In the Great Plains, the cottonwood is one of the most important components of the riverine forests.

Eastern cottonwoods have been planted as ornamentals, but have generally proved to be a nuisance in the urban situation since the extensive root systems have a tendency to raise sidewalks and clog sewers and drains. The blowing silk from the catkins may also be disliked by some. The wood is soft, weak, and tends to warp easily which reduces its commercial value, but the wood has been used for crates and packing material. However, the cottonwood is an important wildlife species which is used by mammals , such as,

beavers, porcupines, squirrels, whitetail deer and smaller rodents while the buds are consumed by grouse and songbirds.

3. nigra L. italica Muenchh. Lombardy Poplar XIVA3

The Lombardy poplar may reach a height of 100 feet, but is usually much smaller. The trunk is relatively short with the branches short and closely appressed to the trunk and dominant apical branch, growth habit is narrowly columnar (virtually linear). Bark is usually grayish in color and often deeply furrowed. Leaves are narrowly wedge-shaped (cuneate) with the narrow end attached to the petiole, smooth and darker green above and lighter green beneath. The flowers are mostly staminate, but pistillate flowers are known. The fruiting catkins, when present, are from 3 to 6 inches in length and contain the two valved capsule.

This tree was introduced from Europe, probably Italy, in the early nineteenth century as an ornamental and landscaping species. In Europe, the trees are often planted in rows on either side of a roadway and often stretch for miles or lining the roads approaching the manor of an estate. In the United States, it has been used in hedges and windrows with limited success and as an ornamental .

B. Salix

1. babylonica L. Weeping Willow XIVB1

The weeping willow may reach heights of 50 to 60 feet and is characterized by the long pendulous branches which is responsible for its common name. Leaves are lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 3 to 6 inches in length, long pointed apically, finely toothed on the margins, dark green above and lighter below, hairless, petioles are 2 to 3 inches long and the stipules are rarely developed. The flowering catkins are short stalked, staminate ones longer than the pistillate ones with long hairs on the bases of the scales.

The weeping willow was introduced into this country in the early nineteenth century as an ornamental for parks and the southern estates.. It is still widely planted as an ornamental especially around ponds and other wet areas, but it has also escaped and naturalized itself widely in the south.

2. nigra Marsh Black Willow XIVB2

The black willow is one of the largest willows known reaching heights of over 135 feet in good habitats in the southern United States with a diameter of more than 6 feet and a spread of over 78 feet. However, in more northerly areas and in poorer soils the tree only reaches heights of 30 to 60 feet. The bark is heaavy, black or very dark brown, deeply and narrowly fissured often become shaggy on older trees. Branches are thick, upright and generally spreading. Leaves are simple, narrowly lanceolate, 3 to 6 inches long and 0.3 to 0.7 inch wide, long pointed apically with finely toothed margins (serrulate), thin and papery, bright green above and paler below, petioles short and with wing-like stipules at bases of petioles. Staminate and pistillate flowers are carried on 2 inch catkins on tips of short, leafy branchlets on separate trees and appear at the same time as the leaves. Scales of the catkins are yellow, widest at the blunt apex, and hairy on the

inner surface. Fruits are egg-shaped capsules, 0.1 to 0.3 inch long, light reddish brown and with numerous very small silky-haired seeds. These seeds are usually dispersed by wind.

The flowers attract many species of insects in the spring including both honey and bumble bees, therefore, the black willow is a source of honey. Beavers seem to prefer the bark of the willows and both whitetail deer and moose browse the foliage. Ruffed grouse, rabbits, squirrels, and muskrats eat the buds. The wood has been used for furniture, paneling, wickerwork (branchlets), cabinets, toys, and assorted containers. However, it is generally not a good firewood.

Black willows seem to prefer damp or wet habitats whether it is a river floodplain, stream bed, lake or pond, or swampy area. Along streams it seems to be an invader or at least a pioneer on bare sandbars or flats where it may form a single species stand or may mix with the young cottonwoods. However, these willows will grow on almost any kind of soil. Widespread in Arkansas in suitable habitats. Elsewhere, a typical eastern United States species extending from Maine west to middle eastern Minnesota southwest to the Rio Grande River of Texas near the Pecos River, extending down the Rio Grande to the Gulf but skipping most of the lower Texas region, continues east to the Gulf of Mexico near the northern coast of Texas and then east to the panhandle of Florida to the Atlantic Coast in southern Georgia and skipping penisular Florida.

XV. ERICACEAE:

Trees and shrubs, often associated with acidic soils and with leaves that are simple, deciduous or evergreen, alternate, elliptical and occasionally leathery. Flowers are perfect with regular or bilateral symmetry, often with showy petals, corolla tube may be well developed, and with 4 to 7 parts in each series. Fruits may be berries, capsules or drupes, often with many seeds.

A. Vaccinum

1. arboreum Marsh Farkleberry XVA1

Governor Faubus made the farkleberry famous in Arkansas in his writings. The plant is a small tree or better, a large shrub that may reach a height of 30 feet. The bark is grayish brown and has a tendency to shred exposing a reddish brown inner tissue. Leaves are simple, alternate, 1 to 3 inches in length, 1 inch wide, ovate, obovate or elliptical with entire margins, rounded or acute at the apex and almost evergreen. Flowers are small, bell-shaped, about 0.5 inches long, white or pink in color, 5 merous, and drooping in leafy bracted racemes. Fruit is a globose berry, black in color, shiny when ripe, dry, not tasty, long stalked, and ripening in the late fall or winter.

Because the farkleberry carries its fruits into and through much of the winter, it is popular with many species of birds and is utilized by black bears, opossum, fox, raccoon, skunk, game birds while the foliage is browsed by whitetail deer. Larger trunks have been used for tool handles and other small objects while the roots, bark and leaves were once used as a treatment for diarrhea.

The farkleberry is widely distributed in Arkansas especially on shady often hilly habitats though it is said to prefer moist, shady sites along stream banks, ponds, hammocks, and open woods. Elsewhere, from southern Virginia west to southern Illinois southwest to southeastern Oklahoma south to the Gulf of Mexico in Texas near Houston and east to the Atlantic along the Gulf Coast and south into the middle of Florida.

XVI. EBENACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with very hard wood. Leaves are simple, alternate, deciduous, and entire margined. Flowers are yellowish-green, dioecious, staminate flowers are in loose clusters while the pistillate flowers are solitary. Fruit an orange-red or black berry (edible when ripe) with seeds that are oblong and compressed. This is a small family with most of its species confined to the tropics.

A. Diospyros

1. virginiana L Common Persimmon XVIA1

A medium sized tree that may reach a height of over 60 feet, usually with a straight trunk that is short and often soon branching and reaching a diameter of 2.6 feet. Bark is thickened, often dark gray to almost black in older trees and developing into short, thick, and square block. Leaves are alternate, about 2.8 to 5.1 inches in length, 1.4 to 3.2 inches wide, broadest near the base or near the middle, rounded at the base and abruptly pointed at the apex and with the margins entire. Leaves become leathery with age, are dark green, shiny and smooth above, paler and smooth to slightly hairy on the lower surface, petioles stout and usually hairy. Male and female flowers on separate trees (dioecious), staminate flowers are 2 to 3 in number, clustered, stalked, with a tubular corolla containing 8 stamens while the pistillate flowers are solitary, stalked, with an urn-shaped, greenish-yellow to creamy-white corolla with a single pistil. The persimmon has globular fruits that are 0.8 to 2.4 inches in diameter, fleshy, orange to orange-purple in color, with a smooth skin that becomes wrinkled after the first heavy frost, have a short stalk, and are enclosed at the base by a persistent, thick, leathery, calyx. The seeds are reddish-brown, flattened, uniformly wide along the sides and rounded at the ends.

The flowers attract numbers of insects, including bees which utilize the nectar in their honey. The fruits are eaten by whitetail deer, raccoons, foxes, skunks, many small rodents and many birds. People will gather and eat the fruits after the skin has wrinkled and the pulp has become mushy, usually after the first heavy frost. The unwrinkled fruits are so bitter that they cause a person's lips to pucker. The wood is hard and has been used in the handles of tools, golf club heads, shoelasts, billard cues, novelties, etc. In the l970's in Arkansas, there were cases of men going on other people's property and cutting down mature persimmon trees to sell the wood.

Persimmons occur statewide in Arkansas often as a pioneer in cut-over lands, in abandoned fields, fence rows and edges of roads in swamps, etc. Elsewhere, from southern Massachusetts west to eastern Kansas south to eastern Texas and east through pennisular Florida.

XVII. ROSACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with simple or compound leaves, leaves are alternate, deciduous or evergreen, with prominent stiupules. Flowers are regular, perfect, floral parts usually in 5's or multiples of 5 (five merous) with many stamens and pistils. Fruits variable from capsules and follicles to fleshy pomes and drupes. The rose family contains most of the familiar fruits and many of the showy ornamentals found in the northern hemisphere.

A. Crataegus

1. punctata Jacq. Dotted Hawthorn XVIIA1

A shrub or small tree with slender spines that may be as long as 2.4 inches. Leaves are broadly ovate and rather thick, 1.6 to 2.3 inches long and 0.6 to 1.7 inches wide, generally broadest above the middle, often with 1 or 2 lobes, margins are doubly toothed, especially toward the apex. Flowers have white petals and produces in many flowered clusters. Fruits are globular, 0.4 to 0.6 inch in diameter and range from red to yellow in color.

The dotted hawthorn is useful as a ground cover for wildlife and is often used as nesting site for songbirds. Fruits are sought after by many small mammals and birds while the leaves and twigs are browsed by whitetail deer.

The plant is not found found in the southern one-third of Arkansas and is usually found as part of the understory in the forested regions of the Ozarks and Ouachitas and probably in some of the Crowley's Ridge area. Elsewhere, ranges from Maine to southern Wisconsin southwest to southeastern Kansas south into eastern Oklahoma and east through northern Georgia before turning northeast to the northern coast of New Jersey.

B. Prunus

1. serotina Ehrh. Black Cherry XVIIB1

The black cherry has been known to reach a height of 100 feet with a diameter, but is usually much smaller than that primarily due to the fact that it often grows under other trees. The bark is smooth, reddish brown to darker brown with characteristic conspicuous grayish-white horizontal lines on the younger branches. Leaves are ovate, margins serrate, , long pointed apically, and with one or more small, round glands on the petioles. Flowers are five merous with white petals that are about 0.25 inch wide, and occur in 3 to 4 inch drooping inflorecences. Fruit ripens to a purplish-black drupe, 0.25 inch in diameter, edible, but somewhat bitter, and ripening in late summer. Wood is light, but strong, with a light brown to red heartwood surrounded by a narrow yellow sapwood. Leaves and bark taste like bitter almonds.

The flowers are aromatic and produce large large quantities making them much sought by butterflies, bees, flies and other insects. Excellent honey is produced from these trees. Obviously, the large number of insects attract large numbers of birds to the trees during the flowering period. Fruits are sought by grouse, quail, turkeys, many songbirds, especially the robin, and many small mammals. Whitetail deer may browse the green foliage in the spring, but the foliage may be dangerous to both deer and cattle in the fall when the wilted leaves contain larger quantities of cyanic acid. This hydrocyanic acid in the leaves and bark was once sought by man and used in cough syrups and spring tonics. The cherries though small and bitter will make an excellent jelly and is often sought by women. The heartwood is tight grained and is widely sought because it will take a beautiful polish and is used in fine furniture, boxes, interior trim, veneers, tool handles and small wooden wares. It ranks with walnut among the cabinet makers and woodworkers and the color is somewhat similar to mahogany.

Widespread in Arkansas where it is most common in the uplifted forested areas, especially on north or east facing slopes. Elsewhere, typical eastern United States distribution west to central Minnesota and south to eastern Texas.

C. Pyrus

1. ionensis (Wood) Britton Crab Apple XVIIC1

The crab apple is a small tree that reach a height of 30 feet with a rounded crown composed of more or less thorny branches. The bark is thin, reddish-bown in color and often broken into plate-like scales. Leaves are ovate, either rounded or pointed at the apex, often doubly toothed on the margins, dark green above, yellowish-green and hairy beneath, and about 3.5 inches in length. Flowers have whitish or pinkish petals, 1 to 1.5 inches in width, five merous, and occur in racemes. Fruit is a small pome, spherical to somewhat flattened, 1 inch in diameter, pale yellowish green in color, aromatic with a hard, bitter flesh and a waxy skin. Thorns are actually very short branches.

Widely planted as an ornamental and landscape specimen. Bees, butterflies, flies, and other insects are attracted to the flowers for nectar and pollen and the former may produce honey. Birds and small mammals find the fruits attractive and they are used for jams and vinegar by man.

Crab apples are most often in the Ozarks and Ouachitas in Arkansas. Elsewhere, the range extends from Wisconsin and Minnesota southwest to eastern Oklahoma and Arkansas.

2. calleryana Dcne. Callery Pear XVIIC2

A small tree that may reach 30 to 40 feet in height with glabrous branchlets but finely pubescent winter buds. Leaves are broadly ovate to ovate, but occasionally elliptic-ovate, short pointed apically with a rounded or broadly wedge-shaped base, 1.5 to 3.5 inches in length, margins with shallow, rounded teeth, and usually without hairs (glabrous), petioles from about 1 to nearly 2 inches in length. Flowers with petals that are about an inch in diameter, white or pink in color, five merous and somewhat aromatic. The fruit is a fleshy pome, globular, about 0.5 inches in diameter, slender stalked, brown in color, and dotted. Like most pears, the callery pear has large numerous grit cells within its flesh, walls of the locules are cartilaginous with black seeds.

The callery pear was introduced into the United States during the early l900's as an ornamental. It is assumed that the fruits would be eaten by birds and small mammals, but there is no documentation. Likewise, the flowers should be attractive to insects. There is no documentation of the plant escaping or naturalizing in this country.

3. communis L. Domestic Pear XVIIC3

A small tree that may reach the height of 60 feet and is characterized by several almost vertical branches that gives the pear and almost conical shape. The leaves are 1 to 3 inches in length, ovate, finely serrate on the margins, usually dark green above and only slightly paler beneath, and almost hairless. Flowers have white petals, are 5 merous, somewhat aromatic, and appear in April. Fruit is an elongated pome with edible flesh, green skinned when young and turning yellow with maturity, usually with scattered black dots.

The domestic pear was introduced from Europe early in the eighteenth century on the east coast and then dispersed by settlers as they moved west. It has escaped or has been abandoned and spread naturally from Maine to Missouri and south to Florida and Texas. It can now be found growing wild in fencerows, old fields and secondary woodlands.

Insects of many species are attracted to the flowers, including bees which utilize the nectar in the making of honey. Other insects feed on the decaying fruits in the fall. Whitetail deer, cattle, small mammals and some birds may also eat the ripe fruit which has been prized by man all the way back into Paleolithic times.. The wood is hard, reddish brown in color and fine-grained and is popular with woodcrafters for carvings, rules and drawing instruments

XVIII. FABACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that may be simple or compound, alternate, stipules present or absent and may form spines. Flowers mostly of two general types; the first characterized by numerous stamens that are usually colored pink, white, or yellow, long and slender, and arranged in a fluffy ball pattern while the second is the typical papillonaceous flower consisting of a single upper petal (banner), two lateral

petals (wings) and two united front or lower petals (keel). These latter flowers are five merous, often with stamens in two groups, one with 9 stamens and the other with a lone stamen, o=pistil single. Fruit is a legume that is often referred as a pod and which is hinged on one side and opens on the other. The pod may contain one to many starchy seeds. Both the pods and the seeds are edible in many species.

The pea family contains many species that are important as human food plants, stock food plants, ornamentals, etc. This is a large important family that is world wide in distribution.

A. Albizia

1. julibrissin Durazz Mimosa XVIIIA1

The mimosa is a small, flat topped tree that may reach a height of 50 feet and is characterized by the numerous pink fluffy flowers that cover the tree through most of the summer. The bark is light brown to grayish brown, blotched and usually smooth. The trunk is often soon branched, but may be single. Leaves are alternate, doubly, evenly, pinnately compound, each central stalk has 6 to 16 sidebranches each with 18 to 30 pairs of small, narrow leaflets. The entire length of the leaf is 8 to 15 inches and the color is somewhat dull green. The flowers are clustered together in fluffy pink heads, often with the cental flower larger than those surrounding it. Each flower has a small tubular calyx, small petals that surround the large, extrusive stamens that are pink and number from 20 to 50. The fruit is a flattened legume that may be 6 to 8 inches in length, about 1 inch in width and contains several, hard, flattened seeds.

The mimosa was introduced into the United States over 100 years ago from England or Europe, but its original home was from subtropical and temperate Asia. In this country it has been widely planted and readily escapes becoming wild from Washington D. C. to Florida west toTexas and even California. It is used commonly as an ornamental but readily invades roadsides, abandoned fields, clearings and edges of forests.

The flowers are attractive to many insects.

B. Cercis

1. canadensis L. Redbud XVIIIB1

The redbud is a small tree that is usually less than 40 feet in height and is generally found as a member of the understory in forests. Trunks have a bright red brown or brown bark that is characterized by deep longitudinal fissures forming narrow plates. Young branches are generally smooth, brownixh and marked with many lenticels (pores). Leaves are often large, 3 to 5 inches in length, cordate(heart-shaped), with smooth or slightly waved margins, shiny green and turning yellow in the fall. Papilionaceous flowers which appear before the leaves, typically rose red, purplish or rarely white in color and occurring in clusters along twigs and branches. Fruit is oblong, flattened, many seeded, 2 to 3 inches long and turns reddish in the summer before turning black in the winter.

The redbud is a popular ornamental with the white flowered cultivar becoming extremely popular in recent years. The redbud is the host for certain butterflies called elfins, but is generally considered as inconsequential for most wildlife and too small for commercial use. The redbud is the state of Oklahoma.

It is believed that the original home of the redbuds was in China from which they spread more widely across the Holarctic and are now somewhat restricted in range. In Arkansas, the redbud is widely distributed except in the overflow areas of rivers. It is most common in upland areas and on north facing slopes. Elsewhere, it may found from New Jersey to southern Michigan and Iowa south through eastern Oklahoma to eastern Texas and east to northern Florida.

C. Gleditsia

1. triacanthos L. Honeylocust XVIIIC1

The pods have a sweet-tasting pulp inside which is responsible for its common name while its scientific name refers to the three branched spines. The pulp attracts many animals to feed on the pods including whitetail deer, cattle, rabbits, squirrels, many small rodents, etc. The flowers attract many insects and the seed may be attacked by several seed weevils. The trees have been widely used in fencerows, windbreaks, and for fuel. The spineless variety is often sought as an ornamental,shade tree, or street tree in urban areas.

It should be noted that the spines have a tendency to fall intact and the ground under most honeylocusts is often covered with them. They are strong and will penetrate through the sides of most and even through the soles of most shoes.

The honeylocust is found throughout the state of Arkansas, often in the floodplains of streams, but also around old homesteads, abandoned fields and other disturbed areas. Elsewhere, the tree ranges from central Pennsylvania west to southeastern South Dakota south to southcentral Texas east to western Alabama and northeast to central Pennsylvania skipping both the Gulf and the Atlantic coasts.

D. Robinia

1. pseudoacacia L. Black Locust XVIIID1

The black locust is a medium sized that may reach a height of 80 feet with an open crown, straight trunk, and is usually less than 4 feet in diameter. Bark may be over 1.5 inches thick, deeply fissured, scaly and dark brown. Branches short, upright and brittle and generally armed with a pair of small spines at the junctions of the leaves. Leaves are oddly pinnately compound, 8 to 14 inches in length, each leaf with 7 to 19 leaflets which are 1.5 to 2 inches long and 0.5 to 0.8 inches wide and color is dull dark green. Flowers are papilionaceous, white, fragrant, five merous, complete, and hang in long loose clusters. Fruits are flattened pods, 3 to 4 inches long, 1.5 inches wide and contain 4 to 8 dark and spotted seeds.

The black locust has been widely dispersed through the eastern and central United States as a fencerow and windbreak species because of its rapid growth. The wood is hard and durable and was once sought after fro shipbuilding, fence posts, railroad ties, crafts and fuel. The black locust is attacked by the locust borer longhorn beetle which can ruin the timber. Locusts are often utilized to control soil erosion and to reclaim abandoned sites with poor soil. Whitetail deer browse the foliage while squirrels and quail eat the seeds.

Black locusts are mostly found in western Arkansas, often on poorer sites, but is said to prefer moist limestone soils. Elsewhere, the range of the black shows a strange disjunct pattern where it is found in the Ozarks in Missouri and Arkansas extending south into the Ouachitas in the latter state and into eastern Oklahoma while its other component is Appalachian extending from central Pennsylvania southwest to northern Alabama and Georgia.

XIX. NYSSACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that are simple, alternate, deciduous, entire or with 1 to several teeth on the margins and without stipules. Flowers are small, often dioecious and 5 merous. Fruits are drupes, generally ovate to oblong with ridged or winged seeds.

A. Nyssa

1. sylvatica Marsh Black Gum XIXA1

A large tree that may reach over 100 feet in height with a circumference of over 16 feet. Branches are usually short and horizontal. Bark on young trees light grayish brown and furrowed between flat ridge becoming gray to almost black in color, hard and dense in texture, and broken into distinctive quadrangular blocks. Leaves are alternate, ovate, may be pointed or rounded apically, margins smooth or with feet small teeth, dark green above and turning red or purple in the fall. Flowers are dioecious on the same tree or on separate trees, small, greenish in color, in long stemmed clusters, and appearing when leaves are about 1/3 grown. Fruit is a dark blue, fleshy drupe, in clusters of 2 to 3, on 2 inch stems, about 0.5 to 0.67 inch in length and with a single hard shelled seed. Wood is heavy but not durable.

The wood of the black has been used for crates and baskets, veneers, mallets, pulp, fuel furniture and trim. The flowers may be important for production of spring honey in the southern United States. Trees are sometimes used as ornamentals. The tree often develops cavities that utilized by hole nesting birds and squirrels. The fruits are sought by songbirds and small mammals while deer may browse the young trees and beavers will eat the bark.

Widespread in Arkansas along roadsides, in the deciduous forests, in uplands and stream bottoms. Elsewhere, range is eastern United States from Maine to Indiana south to the Mississippi River in southern Illinois and skipping most of that river valley from Arkansas to the gulf, but ranges through northern Arkansas and southern Missouri to extreme eastern Oklahoma and Texas. Does not reach the gulf in Texas nor Louisiana. Range then stretches from western Tennessee to the gulf coast and east along the gulf to the Atlantic Coast and including the northern 2/3 of penisular Florida.

2. aquatica L. Water Tupelo XIXA2

The water tupelo is a large tree that may reach heights of over 110 feet with a diameter of more than 5 feet, usually with a narrow, rounded or conical crown, a straight trunk with a buttressed base. Bark is thin, 0.2 to 0. 4 inch in thickness and developing longitudinal furrows and ridges made of small, dark brown scales. Branches are short, stout and widely spreading, dark red and finely when young becoming smooth and brown with age. Leaves are simple, alternate, deciduous, widest near base to almost uniformly wide, 4 to 8.7 inches long, 2 to 4.7 inches wide, tapering, rounded or slightly cordate at the base, entire or irregularly and sparsely toothed along the margin, leathery, dark green, shiny and nearly smooth above, paler and finely hairy beneath, petioles are stout, grooved, and hairy. Pistillate and staminate flowers produced on the same tree with the male flowers clustered together in dense, many-flowered heads while the female flowers are solitary. Fruit is a dark purple drupe on a slender stalk twice its length, approximately 0.5 inch in diameter , uniformly wide to widest near apex , with a thin flesh and a hard, ridged stone.

Water tupelos produce fruit crops every year after it is about thirty years old and the fruits may dispersed by water. Turkeys, woodchucks, racoons, and many songbirds feed on the fruit. Whitetail deer browse the foliage. Tupelo honey is a specialty of the south Alantic and gulf coasts. The wood is close grained and weak but has been used for paneling, woodenware, packing boxes and crates.

As the common suggests the water tupelo is found in flooded bottomlands, swamps and some river bottoms with the bald cypress and resembles that tree in the buttressing though it does not produce knees.

In Arkansas, the water tupelo is primarily found in the floodplain of the Mississippi River, but does extend up the major rivers like the White and Arkansas, as well some of th smaller rivers like the Black, St. Francis, L'Anguille, etc. Else the range extends through the eastern parts of states from southeastern Virginia along the coast to southeastern-central Georgia southwest in a narrow band to the exteme western part of the panhandle of Florida west along the gulf into eastern Texas with an extension up the Mississippi River into southeastern Missouri, southeastern Illinois and western Tennessee.

XX. CORNACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that are simple, opposite, or alternate(rarely), deciduous and entire. Flowers are small and perfect, but may have large colored bracts that are often mistaken for petals and are often found in terminal clusters. Fruit is a drupe. Plants are mostly found in temperate climates.

A. Cornus

1. florida L. Flowering Dogwood XXA1

The flowering dogwood is a small tree may reach a height of 40 feet, but is more common at less than 25 feet and has spreading branches. The bark on younger trees and branches is smooth, usually dull green, but turns grayish brown to almost black on older trees while the smooth bark becomes broken into small, squarish, scaly blocks which is very characteristic. Leaves are simple, opposite, ovate, with small margins, 3

to 5 inches in length, may be green on both surfaces or may be grayish beneath and with lateral veins that curve toward the pointed apex. Flowers are small, greenish yellow and clustered in the center of four large, showy, white (rarely red or pink naturally) petaloid bracts that are typically notched at the apex of the bract. This notch may be stained with brown. Fruit matures into a bright red drupe, somewhat pointed, about 0.5 inch long, with a "pit" containing two seeds and usually occurring in tight clusters.

The flowering dogwood has been an important ornamental for many years but recently, an introduced disease has been killing both the native population and the cultivated specimens. The wood has been used for shuttles, pulleys, mallet heads, golf club heads, engraver's blocks, etc. The fruits are utilized heavily by both game and songbirds as well as small mammals. The foliage is browsed by whitetail deer.

Common in most of the wooded areas of Arkansas and widespread in cultivation. Elsewhere, the tree has a typical eastern distribution.

XXI. EUPHORBIACEAE:

Trees and shrubs usually with a bitter sap which may be poisonous or at least irritating to the skin. Leaves may be simple or compound, entire to palmately lobed, alternate or opposite and often with glandular stipules. Flowers unisexual producing a 3-chambered capsule fruit, each chamber with a single seed. Most of the species are tropical but many spread into temperate regions.

A. Sapium

1. sebiferum (L.) Roxb. Chinese Tallow Tree XXIA1

This is a cultivated species , originally found in the Orient, which may reach a height of about 50 feet. All parts of the plant are considered to possess a poisonous milky sap suggesting that care should be taken with smaller children. The bark is smooth and reddish brown in young trees, but widely fissured on older specimens. The simple leaves resemble those of the poplar ven to the long petioles, blade average from 1.6 to 3.2 inches long, widest at base and tapering to the long pointed apex, entire, but wavy along the margins and with two glands at the base of the blade. Flowers are produced in long slender spikes up to 4 inches long, staminate flowers above the pistillate ones. The fruits possess the main family character of the three-lobed, rounded capsule which is about 09.5 to 0.7 inch in diameter and the outer valves of the capsules fall away at maturity exposing the white waxy seeds.

Commonly occurs as an escape in the southern counties of Arkansas and as an cultivated ornamental in much of the remainder of the state. Elsewhere, the Chinese tallow tree grows in the coastal plain from South Carolina around into the Gulf of Mexico coast west to Texas and north into Oklahoma.

The trees are popular in cultivation because the leaves turn red in the fall and with the white waxy seeds are considered attractive. The seeds are used by the Chinese in the manufacture of soap and candles.

XXII. AQUIFOLIACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that are simple, alternate, deciduous or evergreen and may be toothed or spine tipped. Flowers are dioecious, small, 4 or 5 merous, with greenish white petals and found in the axils of the leaves. Fruit is berry-like, usually bright red or purple in color and 4 to 5 seeded. This is a moderately large family with species in both tropical and temperate regions.

A. Ilex

1. vomitoria Aiton Yaupon XXIIA1

The yaupon is a small tree that may reach a height of 26 feet, but is more common as a dense, thickly branched shrub with a short trunk which branches near the ground. Bark is thin, only about 0.1 inch thick, and light reddish brown. Branches are slender with stiff, short branchlets and usually wide spreading, often finely hairy when young, turning light gray. Leaves are alternate, simple, evergreen, broadest near the middle to almost uniformily wide, 0.4 to 1.7 inches long and 0.3 to 0.7 inch in widdth, apex may be pointed or rounded, tapering to a narrow base, usually with rounded teeth along the margins, leathery, dark shiny green above and paler beneath. Flowers are staminate or pistillate on separate trees, male flowers in dense,

stalked clusters found in the axils of the leaves while the female flowers are solitary or in few-flowered clusters in the axils of the upper leaves. Fruits are berry-like, rounded, 0.2 to 0.3 inch in diameter, dark red in color, and containing several grooved seeds.

The yaupon is found in a belt from central to west central Arkansas, usually on the banks of streams, ponds, and swampy wetlands. Elsewhere, it is found from the extreme coastal areas of North Carolina south through the northern half of peninsular Florida and west along the gulf to the southern coastline of Texas.

The yaupon is widely spread in cultivation as an ornamental. The fruits are utilized by songbirds, wild turkey, quail while the foliage is browsed by whitetail deer.

XXIII. RHAMNACEAE:

Trees and shrubs that are widely distributed through tmperate, subtropical and tropical regions of the world. The leaves are simple, alternate ore opposite, deciduous or everbreen and with stipules. The flowers are small, usually perfect and 4 to 5 merous (though petals may be absent occasionally). Fruits may be berry-like, nuts or capsules.

A. Rhamnus

1. caroliniana Walt. Carolina Buckthorn XXIIIA1

The Carolina buckthorn is a small tree that may a height of 39 feet with an open rounded crown and a straight trunk that branches close to the ground, but more often occurs as a shrub of smaller size and with several almost vertical branches. The bark is usually light gray, often marked with darker blotches, gnerally smooth on younger trunks, but slightly furrowed on older specimens. Leaves are simple, 2 to 6 inches in length, elliptical to slightly oblong, gmargins are slightly toothed to smooth, green above, lighter below, smooth to slightly hairy beneath and turn yellow in the fall. Flowers may be single or clustered in the axils of the leaves, greenish in color, appearing as the leaves reach full size. Fruits are small, berry-like, slightly more than 0.3 inch in diameter, red in color at first but turning black and often persist on the tree after leaf fall. Young leaves, fruits and buds may appear yellowish and fuzzy.

The Carolina buckthorn is often planted as an ornamental due to its growth habit, fruits and foliage. The wood has little commercial because of the small size of the tree. The fruits are eaten by songbirds and the folliage is browsed upon by whitetail deer. The bark and fruits have cathartic properties and was used by settlers and natives.

Widespread through Arkansas except for a few estern counties and seems to prefer the moister, north-facing slopes. Elsewhere, it is found sporadically from Virginia to Florida and west to eastern Texas and Kansas.

XXIV. ACERACEAE:

Trees and shubs possessing that ar opposite, deciduous, simple and palmately lobed or occasionally oddly pinnately compound (may be somewhat trifoliate), and lacking stipules. Male and perfect flowers may occur on the same tree or on separate trees or the staminate and pistillate flowers may occur on separate trees. The flowers are generally 5 merous (petals may be 5 or 0) while the fruits are paired winged achenes (generally referred to as samaras).

A. Acer

1. negundo L. Box Elder XXIVA1

The box elder is a medium sized tree that may reach a height of 70 feet with a diameter of 3 feet or more. The bark on young trees is bright green becoming purplish in the winter and is bitter to the taste becoming deeply fissured and grayish to light brown on the older trees. Leaves are oddly, pinnately compound with 3, 5, or rarely 7 leaflets (often trifoliate), each leaflet may be more or less lobed, coarsely toothed on the margins, shiny green above and lighter beneath. The trifoliate leaves often associated with young box elders resemble the leaves of poison ivy and poison oak and are often mistaken for them. Fruit is a pair of samaras, each from 0.75 to 1.5 inches in length, may reach full size during the summer but do not mature until after leaf fall. The wood is soft and light.

The wood of box elder has little commercial due to its characteristics but has been used to make crates and boxes, as pulp, and as fuel. It was once planted as a street, but the abundance of fruits and the weak wood soon discouraged this practice. The fruits are sought by some songbirds and squirrels while whitetail deer commonly browse the foliage and the beavers eat the bark.

Widespread over the entire state of Arkansas where it most commonly along streamsides, wet areas, and other moister habitats. The boxelder may form monotypic groups in appropriate habitats like sandbars etc. Elsewhere, boxelder grows from the plains provinces of Canada southeast to eastern Texas and east to Pennsylvania and the panhandle of Florida. There are also populations scattered through the Rocky Mountains all the way to California. The tree has been introduced into Europe where it has spread along many waterways.

2. platanoides L. Norway Maple XXIVA2

The Norway maple was introduced from Europe and has become one of the most popular and widely planted trees in the United States. The tree is a medium sized that may reach a height of almost 100 feet and normally has a dense and rounded crown. The leaves are simple, opposite, deciduous, 5 to occasionally 7 lobed, 3.2 to 6.3 inches long and 4 to 7.1 inches wide, lobes pointed and with scattered pointed teeth along margins, bright green and shiny, leafstalks with a milky sap when broken. Flowers are staminate or perfect and produced in an erect, few to many flowered branched cluster. Fruits are dry, hanging, 2-winged samaras, 1.5 to 2 inches in length, gwith wings widely spreading, almost at l80 degrees.

This is a common street tree throughout the eastern United States since it will grow well in a variety of soils, including the compacted, nutrient deficient soils of cities and seems to be more resistant to dust, smoke, and aerobic pollutants than most native trees. No record of escapes nor naturalization.

3. rubrum L. Red Maple XXIVA3

Red maple has been known to reach a height of over 100 feet with a circumference of 16 feet. Bark on young plants is smooth and light gray becoming dark gray and heavily fissured on older trunks. Leaves are simple, opposite, deciduous, 3 to 5 lobed with each lobe pointed and and the leaf margins with large doubly serrate teeth, indentations between lobes narrow and V-shaped, green above and lighter beneath, may be hairy in young leaves becoming smoother with age, turns red or orange-yellow in fall. The base of the leaf is rounded or shallowly cordate while the petiole is long and red or yellow in color. Flowers emerge before the leaves in February or March and appear reddish in color. Fruits are a pair of winged achenes (samaras) which are reddish in color, occur on long, drooping, red stems (3 to 4 inches long), ripen and fall in March or April.

The red maple has many cultivars and is an extremely important ornamental tree in landscaping. The lumber is of high commercial quality and has been used in furniture, flooring, paneling, boxes, crates, novelties, etc. The flowers are very important to bees and other insects and is used as a source of nectar for honey commercially. The seeds are eaten by many song and game birds, many small mammals, including squirrels while deer commonly browse the foliage and beavers eat the bark.

The red maple is widespread in Arkansas, especially in overflow areas along streams and lakes and moister habitats like north facing slopes. Elsewhere, widespread from southeastern Canada south through the eastern United States.

4. saccharinum L. Silver Maple XXIVA4

The silver maple may reach a height of almost 100 feet, diameter of the trunk seldom exceeds 3 feet and typically with a large spreading, round-topped crown. The bark is thin on younger trees, reaching 0.8 inch thick on mature trees, smooth but develops shallow furrows and large flat thin scales that are often free at the ends and give the bark a scaly appearance. The bark is green in color on the branches turning reddish brown with age and generally gray to brownish-gray on the trunk. Branches are spreading to somewhat vertical with slender branchlets that may droop. Leaves are simple, opposite, deciduous, broadest in the lower half, 5.5 to 7,.9 inches in length and 4 to 7.1 inches in width, deeply five lobed, each lobe pointed and often with large teeth along margin, base flattened to somewhat cordate, long slender petioles, 3 to 4 inches in length and often reddish in color, blades are thin, green and smooth above and white to silvery below.

Flowers are small, greenish-yellow in color, dioecious, staminate and pistillate flowers in separate clusters on the same or on different trees, 5 sepals, apetalous, 3 to 7 stamens and with a sngle hairy pistil in female flowers. Fruits are large samaras, 1.6 to 3 inches long and 0.4 to 0.8 inch wide, prominently veineda and with the wings spreading at nearly 90 degrees.

The silver maple was once planted widely as a street tree, but because the wood is brittle and the branches are weak, the tree is less popular now. It is still popular as an ornamental and shade tree even though it is damaged easily by pests, high winds and heavy, wet snows. Large seed crops are produced almost every year and these seeds are popular with all the squirrels and with the larger finches (pine and evening grosbeaks). Whitetail deer will browse the foliage and beavers seem to like the bark. Though the wood is inferior to that of the red maple and the sugar maple it has been used for cheap furniture, crates and veneer.

Silver maple is common throughout Arkansas except for the extreme southwest and southcentral regions. This is a lowland species commonly growing in wet soils of floodplains, river and stream bottoms and around lakes and ponds. Elsewhere, the silver maple reaches from Maine to eastern Minnesota skipping the upper peninsula of Michigan and south to southeastern Oklahoma east and south to the Mississippi Gulf Coast and then northeast to the New Jersey coast. Most of Florida and the south Alantic Coast is skipped.

5. saccharum Marsh Sugar Maple XXIVA5

The sugar maple is a medium sized tree that may reach a height of almost 100 feet with a diameter of 6 feet and with the typical rounded crown. The bark is thin on older trees, smooth though becoming slightly fissured to deeply furrowed on mature trees and dark gdray to gayish-brown. Branches are often erect to spreading and often short. Leaves are simple, opposite, deciduous, broadest near the base, 3 to 8 inches long and broad, 3 to 5 lobed, each lobe pointed and with dentate margins, similar to the red maple but the gap lobes is u-shaped rather than v-shaped, flattened to cordate at base, petioles are slender, 1.6 to 3.1 inches long, blades are bright green and smooth above and paler and smooth beneath though often with some hairs on the veins. Flowers are small, pistillate and staminate flowers on the same tree, in slender, few- flowered clusters just the newly emerging leaves, each flower on a long, slender stalk, 0.8 to 3 inches long. Fruits are samaras, 1.2 to 1.4 inches long with the wings spread at an angle of 60 degrees.

The sugar maple is an important commercial species for maple sugar and syrup as well as for its wood and as a popular ornamental. The wood is the source of bird's eye and curly maple and has been used to make fine furniture, veneer, cabinets, musical instruments and many other items. The seeds are eaten by a large number of birds and mammals while whitetail deer browse the foliage, and gray squirrels, porcupines and beavers eat the bark.

The sugar maple was originally found only in the Ozarks of Arkansas though it has been widely planted in cultivation. Except for rare pockets found in both Oklahoma and Texas, Arkansas is the extreme southwestern location for the sugar maple. Elsewhere, the sugar is one of the major components of the northeastern deciduous forest extending from Maine to central Minnesota south to the Ozarks of Arkansas and east to western North Carolina and up the Applachians to the New Jersey coast.

XXV. ANACARDIACEAE:

Trees and shrubs often with resinous compounds in all parts of the plant that may be poisonous, irritating, or sticky. Leaves are alternate and often pinnately compound. Inflorescences usually terminal. Fruit usually a one seeded drupe. Family is most common in the tropics.

A. Rhus

1. glabra L. Smooth Sumac XXVA1

Smooth is a common shrub that may reach a height of 23 feet with a short trunk that often branches near the ground and has a trunk diameter of 4 inches. Bark is thin, gray and developes ridges with age. Leaves are oddly pinnately compound with 11 to 31 leaflets, rachis smooth, leaflets are 2 to 4 inches long, 0.5 to l.2 inches wide, long-pointed apically, sharply serrate along the margins, dark green and smooth above and whitish and finely hairy beneath. Flowers are 5-merous and imperfect or perfect, usually on the same plant. Fruits are small, red drupes that occur in large erect clusters.

Smooth sumac is an important wildlife plant often serving as an emergency food plant. In Oklahoma, it is

one plant that the wildlife biologist likes to find in the winter range of bobwhite quail since it is usually available after heavy snows. The fruits have little nutritional value but will satisfy the hunger of the quail . This sumac and others often form thick clumps which provide cover and food for many species of song and gamebirds, small mammals including rabbits and even larger mammals like deer. Sumac has also been used to stabilize banks and other eroded areas to prevent erosion. Sumac fruits and perhaps other parts of the plants was used by the Indians to make medicinal drinks. The plants may be used as ornamentals for their bright red leaves in the fall.

Smooth sumac is generally widespread in Arkansas occurring in a wide assortment of habitats, reaching its greatest in moist lowlands, but found in drier uplands as well. It is often a pioneer occurring in fence rows, abandoned fields and pastures and disturbed areas. Elsewhere, it is most common in the eastern United States, but scattered populations occur throughout the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains and extending sporadically to Washington.

2. copallina L. Winged Sumac XXVA2

Similar to smooth in size and shape, with fewer leaflets (9 to 21), leaflet margins entire or only slightly toothed, but major difference is the flattened leafy wings between the pairs of leaflets.

Uses similar to that of the smooth sumac.

The range of the winged or shining sumac is more to the western half of Arkansas with a finger extending south through Crowley's Ridge. Elsewhere, the range is slightly more southern than the smooth sumac and without the western extensions.

XXVI. OLEACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that are simple to oddly pinnately compound and usually opposite, rarely alternate. Flowers are dioecious, small to occasionally showy, often in clusters, calyx 4-lobed and corolla usually 4-lobed and tubular. Fruit may be a capsule, samara, berry or a drupe. Most species are found in Asia, but some taxa are widespread.

A. Fraxinus

1. pennsylanica Marsh Green Ash XXVIA1

The green ash is a small tree that may reach a height of 60 feet with a maximum of about 2 feet. Bark is smooth and pink on young trees but becomes darker with age and with netted fissures and ridges. Leaves are opposite, oddly pinnately compound, with 7 to 9 short-stalked, smooth leaflets that are pointed at the apex and toothed at the margins. Entire leaf is 9 to 12 inches long and green on both sides. Fruit with narrow wings which are attached for more than half the length of the seed, 1 to 2.4 inches in length and 0.2 to 0.4 inch wide and rounded or notched at apex.

The green ash produces large seed crops almost every year which are utilized by wood ducks, quail, turkey, cardinals, finches and other songbirds, squirrels and other small rodents. Deer and moose browse on the foliage while beavers eat the bark. The wood is hard, heavy and moderately strong and has been the choice for baseball bats for years. It is also used for tool handles, oars, paddles, snowshoes, tennis rackets, and frames. Green ash is also popular as a shade and street tree.

Statewide in Arkansas in a variety, but most commonly found in stream valleys. Elsewhere, ranges widely through the eastern United States to the lower slopes of the Rocky Mountains.

2. americana L White Ash XXVIA2

The white ash is a moderately tall tree that may reach a height of 115 feet but is usually smaller and with a diameter of 5 to 6.6 feet. Bark is smoother in young trees but soon turns thick and deeply fissured with broad, flat and scaly ridges, dark brown to gray in color. Leaves are opposite, deciduous, oddly pinnately compound, 7.9 to 11.8 inches in length, with 5 to 9 leaflets, each leaflet somewhate ovate in shape, wedge shaped or rounded at base and pointed at apex, margins entire, dark green above and whitened beneath.

Fruit is a samara, 1 to 2.6 inches in length, 0.2 to 0.6 inch wide, rounded or notched apically and occurring in clusters.

Uses similar to those of the green ash.

The white ash is widely distributed in Arkansas except for the southeastern corner of the state. Elsewhere, the range is eastern United States skipping the southeastern corner.

B. Ligustrum

1. vulgare L. Common Privet XXVIB1

The common is a relatively small shrub that may reach a height of 16 feet and is commonly used as a hedge row species. The plant was introduced into this country from Europe very in the colonization period and has been distributed widely in the eastern United States. The plant commonly escapes and naturalizes readily.

The plant is a deciduous to half-evergreen shrub with slender, often spreading branches. Young and the infloresences are short hairy. Leaves are oblong-ovate to lanceolate, 1.4 to 3 inches long, with apices that may be obtuse or acute, glabrous, green above and slightly lighter beneath and usually long petiolate. Flowers are pediceled, occur in rather dense panicles, each about 1 to 3 inches in length with anthers that exceed the tube. Fruit is subglobose to ovoid, less than 0.3 inch in length, black and lustrous in color.

The primary use of this plant is as a hedge species, but the fruits are eaten by many songbirds and probably small rodents. Deer would browse the foliage where available.

XXVII. RUBIACEAE:

Trees and shrubs with leaves that are opposite to whorled, simple, usually with entire margins, and with paired stipules that are often leaf-like. Flowers are perfect, regular, 4 or 5 merous, with petals that are usually united into a corolla tube and with an inferior ovary. Species of this family are most common in the tropics and subtropics.

A. Cephalanthus

1. occidentalis L. Buttonbush XXVIIA1

The buttonbush is typically a rather small shrub that may reach a height of some 15 feet, with a trunk that is multibranched near the ground and with a crown that is spreading and diffuse. Branches are upright to spreading, slender and crooked and with bark that is initially green but turns dark brown with age. Leaves are opposite or whorled, deciduous, simple, somewhat lanceolate and tapered at both ends. Flowers are 4-merous, white and produced in dense, rounded balls. The two seeded fruits also occur in balls.

Mallard ducks have been