Mia Sime, age 11, of Great Falls, Mont., her question:
HOW MANY KINDS OF OAK TREES ARE THERE?
Oaks are among the world's sturdiest trees. They are found in many different lands, and scientists tell us there are about 275 different species or kinds.
In North America, oaks grow almost any place that other kinds of trees grow. But they do not do well in regions of great cold. Oaks are also found in South America.
They flourish from Malaysia and China westward across the Himalaya and the Caucasus mountain ranges. They grow throughout most of Europe, from Sicily northward to the Arctic Circle.
The main feature that sets the oak apart from other trees is the acorn, the tree's fruit. It is a round, smooth shelled nut, pointed at one end. A tough, scaly saucer or cup encloses the base of the nut.
Most oak trees can also be recognized by their notched or lobed leaves. But a few kinds, including the live oak, have smooth edged leaves.
Oaks grow very slowly, and it usually takes a young tree 20 years before it is able to bear acorns. Most oak trees live to be 200 to 300 years old. In England, some are said to be more than 900 years old. The oaks were sacred in the days of the Druids, more than 2,000 years ago.
Among famous oak trees in American history is the Charter Oak of Hartford, Conn. The charter of Connecticut was hidden in this tree from the colony's English governor.
Noblest of all American oaks is the white oak, which sometimes grows to be 150 feet high. The trunk may measure eight feet thick. The bark is pale gray. As this time of the year, in the autumn, the finger shaped lobes of the leaves turn a deep red or golden brown.
The white oak thrives all the way from Canada south to the Gulf of Mexico. The largest white oak in the United States can be found in Talbot County, Maryland. Called the Wye Oak, it stands 95 feet tall and has a trunk that is more than 27 feet around.
Black oaks grow from Maine to Florida and west to Minnesota, Kansas and the eastern part of Texas. The bark of old trees is almost black.
Red oaks are common in the eastern part of the United States. The inner layers of the grayish brown bark are red.
The live oak is a favorite tree in the Southern states. Often this oak is draped in Spanish moss which gives the tree an elegant, charming look.
Oak wood is valued for its strength and beauty, and timber cut from oak trees has been used for many hundreds of years. Before steel became popular for shipbuilding, oak ranked as the chief kind of lumber used for boats.