BEECH FAMILY

212. POST OAK (Quercus stellata Wang) most abundant tree of dry, sandy, upland woods. Leaves: 3 to 5 inches long, with 5 rounded lobes wider toward the outer end; like bur oak but smaller; dead leaves often cling in winter, especially on young trees. Flowers: as in other oaks, male in catkins, female inconspicuous, both kinds on same tree. Fruit: an oval acorn, ½ to 1 inch long in a rather shallow cup. Bark: rough, with deep grooves. Twigs: very fuzzy when young. Wood: hard, durable in soil but difficult to season, used mainly for fuel, fence posts and crossties.

213. SCRUB OAK: or dwarf post oak (probably a variety of Q. stellata). Habitat: on limestone hills where common. Leaves: similar to post oak but less than 3 inches long and less deeply lobed. Bark: thin, light gray, with loose scales. Sometimes attains tree size though usually shrubby and growing in dense thickets, typically not over 20 feet high.

214. BUR OAK or mossy-cup oak (Quercus macrocarpa Michx.) common large tree of lowlands; heavy, thick branches make it the sturdiest looking of our oaks. Leaves: 6 to 12 inches long, deeply 5 to 7 lobed with the lobes rounded and larger toward the tip, upper lobe largest and wavy margined or shallowly lobed. Acorns: large, 2 inches or more in diameter, the cup usually deep and heavily fringed. Wood: for cabinetmaking and all sorts of construction, shipbuilding, etc.

215. SWAMP CHESTNUT OAK or basket oak (Quercus prinus L.) Habitat: rich bottomlands, not common. Leaves: obovate, margins deeply wavy or with small, regularly rounded notches, downy beneath, 3 to 8 inches long. Bark: light gray, with broad flakes. Acorns: about 1½ inches long by 1 inch wide, shiny brown, with a shallow cup, eaten by cows (cow oak). Wood: used for lumber, veneer, cooperage, wheels, implements, and baskets.

216. CHINQUAPIN OAK or chestnut oak (Quercus muehlenbergii Engelm.) Habitat: various, prefers limestone soil, common. Leaves: similar to preceding species but more sharply notched. Bark: thick, usually silvery gray, large, loose scales on surface. Acorns: smaller than preceding and have very short stems. Branches: typically fewer, larger and more irregular than preceding. Wood: hard, strong, close-grained, durable, used for cooperage, furniture, crossties, fuel.

217. WATER OAK, duck oak, or pin oak (Quercus nigra L.) Habitat: low, sandy land, rare. Leaves: usually about 2½ inches long and 1½ wide, narrow toward base, usually broader toward tip, shallowly lobed toward tip or entire, smooth and dark green above, tardily deciduous. Bark: rather smooth, reddish brown. Fruit: acorns usually solitary, very short-stalked, light brown, ½ to ⅔ inch long. Wood: heavy, hard, strong, little used except for fuel and crossties.

218. BLACK JACK OAK (Quercus marilandica Muench.) Habitat: dry, upland woods, sandy soil, with post oaks where few other trees grow, common. Leaves: 4 to 10 inches long, very wide at tip, narrow toward base, only very shallowly lobed, dark above, leathery, dead leaves often clinging to young trees in winter. Bark: rough, dark, broken into small, hard flakes. Fruit: an acorn about ¾ inch long with a cup enclosing about half the nut which is yellowish brown and often striped. Wood: heavy, hard and strong but little used except as fuel.

219. RED OAK (Quercus species). Several species of red oak are not easily distinguished except by specialists and the problem is complicated by the fact that many species interbreed readily, thus producing many variations from the typical forms. Probably Q. shumardii var. schneckii is the most common red oak around Dallas. The leaves are similar in shape to the black oak but are thinner and lack the prominent rusty hairs in the forks of the veins; lobes are usually from 5 to 7 and vary greatly as to length and width. The Texas red oak (Q. texana Buckley) is a closely related smaller tree of dry uplands. The Spanish oak (Q. rubra L.) is another red oak of dry uplands; it is easily recognized when the leaves assume one typical form which is narrow and rounded at the base with the three or more narrow lobes occurring near the tip. For more complete descriptions of these trees the reader is referred to the latest edition of Sargent’s “Manual of the Trees of North America.”