BUR OAK (Illustrations, one-third natural size)
The [BARK] is light gray and is usually broken up into small narrow flakes. The [deciduous] LEAVES resemble somewhat those of the common white oak, but are much larger and have a pair of deep indentations on their border near the base, and wavy notches on the broad, middle and upper portions of the leaf. They range from 6 to 12 inches long and 3 to 6 inches wide. The [FRUIT], or acorn, is set deeply in the fringed cup. The fruit is usually 1 inch or more in diameter but varies widely in respect to size and the degree to which the [nut] is enclosed in the mossy-fringed cup. The fruit matures in one season.
The WOOD is heavy, hard, strong, tough and durable. It is used for much the same purposes as the other white oaks—for lumber, crossties, and fuel.
OVERCUP OAK
Quercus lyrata Walt.
Overcup oak, sometimes known as the swamp post oak or water white oak, becomes a large tree with small, often pendulous branches. It is found in moist, rich bottomlands in East Texas to the Navasota River Valley.
The LEAVES are [deciduous], 7 to 9 inches long, 1 to 4 inches broad, [oblong], wider toward the point, narrowed at the base, dark green above, often whitish beneath, with 7 to 9 distinct pointed lobes. They frequently turn to a bright scarlet or to scarlet and orange in the fall. The [BARK] is rough, flaky, and gray tinged with red.
OVERCUP OAK (Leaf and [fruit], one-third natural size; twig, two-thirds natural size)
The FLOWERS open with the unfolding of the leaves. The [FRUIT], an acorn, ripens in one season. The large rounded or somewhat flattened acorn, an inch or more across and ½ to 1 inch high, is nearly covered by the [ovate] or nearly spherical cup, which is thickened at the base but gradually grows thinner, often irregularly split at the margin of the cup.
The WOOD is heavy, hard, strong, and durable and is used for the same purposes as that of white oak.