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Fagaceae- Beech/Oak Family |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
American Beech
Fagus grandifolia
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Deciduous tree that grows to 80ft;
leaves alternate, sharply toothed, and persistent in the winter;
bark grayish and smooth; buds sharp and cigar-shaped; nuts triangular
shaped |
Nuts edible and used as worm expellant by Native
Americans; bark tea used for lung problems; leaf tea used
to wash burns and frostbite.
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White Oak
Quercus alba
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Tall tree, 60-120ft; bark
light, flaky, flat-ridged; leaves with evenly rounded lobes, without
bristle tips; whitened beneath when mature; bowl-shaped cup covers
on acorns |
Astringent inner-bark
tea once used for chronic diarrhea, dysentery, and bleeding; contains
tannins |
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Scarlet Oak
Quercus coccinea
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Deciduous tree that grows 40-50ft;
leaves deeply lobed; buds blunt or sharp, often whitish tipped;
acorn cups bowl-like, ¼” deep |
Acorns consumed by wildlife |
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Shingle
Oak
Quercus imbricaria
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Deciduous tree that grows 50-60ft;
leaves lack either teeth or lobes but has single bristle tip;
foliage shiny above and densely hairy beneath; acorn cup bowl-shaped
covering up to ½ acorn |
Acorns consumed by wildlife |
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Willow Oak
Quercus phellos
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Deciduous tree that grows
70-80ft; narrow, bristle-tipped leaves resemble willow leaves,
but are not related; acorn cups very shallow and saucer-like; trunk
dark and shallowly grooved |
Widely used in street and park plantings
in the South. Acorns consumed by wildlife. |
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Northern
Red Oak
Quercus rubra
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Tree, 60-120ft; bark dark,
smoother than white oak; leaves hairless, thin, dull, with 7-11
bristle-tipped lobes, 5-9”; cup covers 1/3 of acorn |
Contains tannins; astringent
inner-bark tea once used for chronic diarrhea, dysentery, and gargles
for sore throats |
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Gingkoaceae- Gingko Family |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
Gingko
Gingko biloba
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Large tree to 100ft; alternate, 2-lobed,
fan-shaped leaves; a living fossil surviving over 200 millions
of years; female produces oval, fleshy, foul-smelling fruit |
Leaf extracts used to increase circulation,
improve oxygen metabolism to extremities and brain, antioxidant,
and to improve memory |
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Hamamelidaceae - Witchhazel Family |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
Witchazel
Hamamelis virginiana
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Deciduous shrub to 15ft;
leaves obovate, scalloped margins, with uneven, wedge-shaped bases;
end buds scapel shaped; |
Widely used today as astringent;
Native Americans took leaf tea for colds and sore throats; approved
in Germany for treatment of burns, minor skin injuries, varicose
veins, and piles |
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Juglandaceae-Walnut/ Hickory Family |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
Bitternut Hickory
Carya cordiformis
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Deciduous tree that grows
50-60ft; buds bright yellow and powdery; leaves compound with 5-11
leaflets; nuts smooth, cylindrical, and bitter; bark tight with
network of ridges |
Nuts are edible and also
consumed by wildlife. |
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Shagbark Hickory
Carya ovata
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Deciduous tree that grows
60-90ft; compound leaves with 5-7 hairless leaflets; twigs stout,
red-brown, slightly hairy to shiny; bark light colored and very
shaggy; nuts egg-shaped, four-angled, and not ridged |
Nuts are edible and also consumed
by wildlife. |
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Lauraceae - |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
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Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
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Shrub, 4-15ft;
leaves entire, ovate, aromatic; fruits aromatic, glossy, red with
single large seed |
Berry tea
used for coughs, cramps, delayed menses, measles; berries used
by settlers for allspice substitute |
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Sassafras
Sassafras albidum
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Tree, 10-100ft;
leaves are fragrant and have 3 different shapes: oval, mitten-shaped,
or 3-lobed; yellow flowers in clusters, appear before leaves; fruits
blue-black |
Root-bark
tea once used for blood tonic and purifier; also for stomach aches,
gout, arthritis, high blood pressure, colds, fevers, and skin eruptions; !
warning! Safrole is reportedly carcinogenic |
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Magnoliaceae - Magnolia Family |
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Common & Scientific
Name |
Description |
Uses |
Cucumber
Magnolia
Magnolia acuminata
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Deciduous magnolia, tree
to 80ft; leaves large, oblong to lanceolate-shaped; fruits resemble
small cucumbers; greenish cup-shaped flowers |
Bark chewed to break
tobacco habit; fruit tea used as tonic |
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