Arkansas Tree Database

Southern Red Oak

Southern Red Oak

Scientific name:

Quercus Falcata

Size:

70'-80' tall

Leaves:

alternate, simple, 4"-9" long, with rounded bell shape at base and long terminal lobe on mature leaves, with 3 lobes at the end but variable, always bristle-tipped

Flowers:

inconspicuous

Fruit:

small striped acorn shallowly enclosed by cup, ripening in autumn of the second year

Fall Interest:

reddish-brown, not significant; deciduous

Culture:

sun to partial sun; dry to moist soil

Disease/Insect:

Use:

wood for flooring, furniture, sashes and doors, veneer, cooperage, crossties, fuel

Cultivars:

Notes:

bark dark brown and broken into deep grooves and broad ridges, not scaly; "falcata" is from "falcate" which describes a shape like a scythe or scimitar, with a long-tapering sideways curving blade, referring to the leaf; butterfly larval host; native to Arkansas

Resources:

Click thumbnail to enlarge images

Southern red oak bark on trunk Southern red oak bark on mature tree trunk Southern red oak leaf, showing bell-shaped base Southern red oak leaves Southern red oak leaves, fall Southern red oak acorns Southern red oak tree Southern red oak tree, fall Southern red oak tree, fall Southern red oak tree, fall Southern red oak twig