September 9, 1962 - White Oak (Winter) and LeavesWhite Oak (Winter) and Leaves
Focus on Nature
I would like to take cjura..'0"_
portu.rity to thank Judd
Berret't
for taking care of my column
while I was away on vacation.
I've read his articles and know
that you, like me, have enjoyed
therm as well as those of his
guest writers. It surely m ad e
our 'seven week trip into Canada
more pleasant knowing that Judd
more pleasant knowing that Judd
was here.
Since this is the beginning of
a new 'season, I wish more. of
you readers would contribute to
our observations (and articles)
so that this column will become
more rewarding.
' There are many ways to be-
come acquainted with the variety
of trees around us. Some people
work with the wood and others
perhaps know them by .living
among them. My acquaintance
came about many years ago
when after school .it was my job
to cut file wood for the family
stove. Yes, those were the de-
clining days of the Ipotabellies."
.Yet as I look back at what
'then ' seemed to be a lab oriaus
task, I find memories of pleas
over - crowding the rest. Isn'ti
great the way time converts such
problems, to .'happy memories?
This conversion is one of t h e
wonders of time. '
. Black or red oak was the chief
wood cut in our area while the
presence of white oak was rela-
tively uncommptf�' Even then,
under what I am sure I thought
to be "slave labor," I found rt
almost shameful' to cut t h i s
"king" of woods. The white oak
to me was never meant for. the
fire ... strong timbers for great
s h i p s or perhaps some fancy
carved interior, trim for a great
mansion ... but :fever to be
burned in a fire.
Most of our black or red,oaks
live 80 to 100 years of a g e-
while it is not uncommon to find
the white oaks .growing 300 or
400 .years old. Considering this
.age, you can well imagine the
tremendous monarchs that a r e
produced from this growth. We
here on Long Island can pr audl•y
boast of one of these — the sec -
ond largest white oak in o u r
country. Yes, right at S t on y
Brook grows the historic "Ye.
Olde Oake" that has a spread
well over 120 feet and stand3
112 feet high. Its circumference
is over 22 feet, at 41/2 feet above
the ground h makes, it quite
a tree _in_ unan's forest.
! ,,enburgh, Cutchogue
-Yet the sli of this tree would
not come to . me as a surprise
for as a boy I remember climb-
ing a ovae on a hill that over -
ldoked the countryside for miles
around and I,could always locate
our house by a mammoth white
oak that grew in'tne front yard.
It is still there today and I can't
help but look up and admire it
every time I pa _s by. That soft
silver, -gray bark with its tr�emen•
dous green crown is a landmarli
it ,.
she
sttlaerior to all of the
other oaks but the acorns are
also sweeter. Few people realize
the importance of acorns as a
source of food for our wildlife.
In the guide "American Wildlife
and Plants" the authors state
that out of 263 plants the oak
tops the list as food supplier with
the pine at 234th, the blackberry
at 118th and the cherry listing
104th place. No less than 96 dif-
ferent types of birds and mam-
mals look to the oaks for part
of their. diet.
Twenty -five per cent of the
food supply of deer, s q u i r r 'e 1,
raccoon, wood duck and blue jays
comes from the oak; while. lesser
amounts are used by g r o u s e,
grackles, nuthatches, thrashers,
woodpeckers, and a host of oth-
ers. Even the early Indians and
settle7s had acorns on t h e i r
menu. Some were ground and
c o o k e d to make them more
palatable; w h i l e others were
baked like chestnuts over an open
fire. Keeping all this in mind, it
is easy to see why a poor crap
f acorns can prove disastrous
our wildlife.
Over 60 species of oaks are to
be found in the United States of
WlNc!h 1.1 are common to Long
Island. Those interested in the
identification of our oaks should
ramember that they are divided
into two general classes — white
oaks and red (or black) oaks.
The fruit of the white oak ripens
in one year. The lobes Of the
leaves are rounded, free f r o in
mistles and the• bark and wood.
are owed.
,of the red oaks takes
two yea to mature while the
lobes of the leaves are tipped
with bristles, and the bark and
wood are darker than in the white
oaks. Few oaks bear acorns be-
fore they are twenty years old.
In lumber production oak ranks
first among the hardwoods and
fourth among all kinds of wood.
With this in mind, we can see
I shall never see.. . he oaks have had a s t r o n g
lace in the building of o u r
ountry. Now that we on Long
sland no longer find Oak being
sed as a building wood, we look
orward to this tree as one of
our inspirations whenever whenever we
walk through the woods and re-
call the words, "I think that I
'
D OBSERVATIONS
Latham Reports. August
Little Blue Heron, White
Black .bellied Plover
Woodcock
Upland Plover
(Northeisa Water Thrush
Pied- billed .Grebe
American Egret
Aden Plover
ue Grosbeak
mnis Pulesticn Re{rorts:
es Bay
Terns
d Godwits
Hawk