Hophornbeams are deciduous trees with scaly bark and scaly, pointed buds. Leaves are alternate and doubly toothed. Flowers are monoecious and borne in catkins. Fruit is a nutlet in a pendant, hop-like structure.
Ostrya virginiana–American Hophornbeam (Ironwood)
American Hophornbeam (Ironwood) – Ostrya virginiana
The tree gets its common names from the qualities of its wood and the hop-like fruit. Hophornbeam is a small, slender, generally round-topped tree 30—40 feet high. Stems are 7—10 inches in diameter. The top consists of long, slender branches commonly drooping toward the ends. It is mostly found on dry soils throughout the upland regions. It normally exists as an understory tree, but is larger than the American hornbeam and likely to have a single stem.
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The bark is mostly light brown or reddish-brown and finely divided into thin scales by which the tree can be recognized. Bud scales are marked with fine, longitudinal lines. Buds are not conspicuously variable in size or angled as in the American hornbeam.
The leaves are simple, alternate, and generally oblong in shape with narrowed tips. Leaves are from 2—3 inches (5—8 cm) long. Side veins of the leaves diverge into one or two branches near the margin of the leaf. Teeth are of nearly the same size, making a more uniformly toothed leaf margin than for hornbeam.
The flowers are monoecious. The male catkins form on the previous summer's twigs, while the female flowers are borne in erect catkins on the newly formed twigs. The fruit resembles that of the common hop vine and consists of a branch of leafy bracts 1—2 inches (21/2—5 cm) long containing a number of flattened, ribbed nutlets.
The wood is strong, hard, and durable. Bark is light brown to white with thick, pale sapwood. It is often used for handles of tools, mallets, and other small articles. It is a good, small, ornamental tree near the lake in Ohio. The tree is intolerant of stressful urban sites in Ohio.