Ostrya virginiana, the American hophornbeam, is a species of Ostryanative to eastern North America, from Nova Scotia west to southern Manitoba and eastern Wyoming, southeast to northern Florida and southwest to eastern Texas.[4] Populations from Mexico and Central America are also regarded as the same species, although some authors prefer to separate them as a distinct species, Ostrya guatemalensis.[3] Other names include eastern hophornbeam, hardhack (in New England), ironwood, and leverwood.[5][6]
Ostrya virginiana (American hophornbeam) is a small deciduousunderstorytree growing to 18m (59ft) tall and 20–50 centimetres (8–20in)trunk diameter. The bark is brown to gray-brown, with narrow shaggy plates flaking off, while younger twigs and branches are smoother and gray, with small lenticels.[5][7] Very young twigs are sparsely fuzzy to thickly hairy; the hairs (trichomes) drop off by the next year.[8]
The leaves are ovoid-acute, 5–13cm (2–5in) long and 4–6cm (1+1⁄2–2+1⁄4in) broad, pinnatelyveined, with a doubly serrated margin. The upper surface is mostly hairless, while the lower surface is sparsely to moderately fuzzy (rarely densely hairy).[5][7]
The flowers are catkins (spikes) produced in early spring at the same time as the new leaves appear. The staminate (male) catkins are 2–5cm (3⁄4–2in) long,[5] and arranged in groups of 1–4.[7] The pistillate (female) catkins are 8–15mm (5⁄16–19⁄32in) long, containing 10–30 flowers each.[5]
Pollinated female flowers develop into small nutlets3–5mm (1⁄8–3⁄16in) long fully enclosed in a papery sac-shaped involucre10–18mm (3⁄8–11⁄16in) long and 8–10mm (5⁄16–3⁄8in) wide.[5] The involucre changes from greenish-white to dull brown as the fruit matures.[7]
American hophornbeam is similar to its close relative American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), which can be distinguished by its smooth bark and nutlets enclosed in open, three-lobed bracts.[7]
Two trees in winter with some dried leaves still hanging on their branches (marcescence)
An exceptionally large trunk
Subdivisions
There are two subspecies:
Ostrya virginiana subsp. guatemalensis(H.J.P.Winkl.) A.E.Murray – central and southern Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador[9]
Ostrya virginiana subsp. virginiana – eastern half of United States, eastern Canada
Populations along the Atlantic coast have slightly smaller leaves, and are sometimes separated as O. virginiana var. lasia Fernald.[5]
Habitat and ecology
In temperate areas of the US and Canada, Ostrya virginiana is found in lowland and foothill forests, where it is predominantly an understory tree.[2]
In Mexico and Central America, Ostrya virginiana is found in cloud forests and humid portions of mid-elevation oak, pine–oak, and pine forests between 1200 and 2800 meters elevation.[10]
The buds and catkins are important source of winter food for some birds, notably ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus).[7] Additionally, the nutlets and buds are eaten by birds, deer, and rabbits.[1]
Uses
It is not typically grown as an ornamental plant and is sometimes used as a street tree.[11]
Its wood is very resilient and is valued for making tool handles and fence posts.[12]
Being a diffuse porous hardwood and having extremely high density and resistance to compression, it is an excellent material for the construction of wooden longbows.[citation needed]
References
1 2 Little, Elbert L. (1980). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region. New York: Knopf. p.374. ISBN0-394-50760-6.
↑ Mario González-Espinosa, Jorge A. Meave, Francisco G. Lorea-Hernández, Guillermo Ibarra-Manríquez and Adrian C. Newton, eds (2011). The Red List of Mexican Cloud Forest Trees. Fauna & Flora International, Cambridge, UK. 2011. ISBN9781903703281
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