Description

Leaves: Alternate; simple; 3" to 6" long, 1" to 3" wide; deciduous; entire margin, no lobes or teeth but somewhat wavy; acute apex; shiny dark green above and paler and finely pubescent beneath; fall color red-brown to yellow-brown; petiole short.

Twigs/buds: Twigs greenish to brown, shiny, hairless; thin and angled.  Buds brownish or chestnut-brown (grayish to reddish brown), frequently slightly hairy; egg-shaped to cone-shaped, sharp-pointed, 1/8" to 1/4" in length; scales overlapping.

Flowers/fruit: Monoecious.  Fruit an acorn; 1/2" to 3/4" long, brown, ovoid, short stalk; 1/3 to 1/2 of acorn covered with a cap covered by shingle-like scales; matures in two seasons.

Bark: Gray-brown, smooth when young; thick; scaly, shallowly furrowed and broadly ridged with age.

Wood: Somewhat important; similar to Q. rubra; strong; was used in the past for shingles (hence, its common name "Shingle Oak").

General: Native to east central U.S. on moist sites.  Intermediate shade tolerance.

Landscape Use: Good tree for landscapes and more tolerant of high soil pH than pin oak, but less so than many of the other oaks included here.  Also rarely planted in Utah and would be hard to find.  Zones 4-8.

Comments & Limitations:  Acorns can be a nuisance.

Characteristics