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Northern Red Oak
(Quercus rubra)
Northern Red Oak is the big, dependable workhorse of the red oak group. It's a fast-starting, long-lived shade tree with a broad crown, handsome striped bark and a heavy autumn acorn crop. Foresters value it for its timber, landscapers value it for its toughness, and squirrels value it for reasons that should be obvious.
Its native range stretches from Nova Scotia and southern Quebec west to Minnesota and eastern Oklahoma, and south into Georgia and Alabama. It is the only native oak that reaches all the way to Nova Scotia. Here in South Carolina, it's a native tree, but it is mostly found in the Upstate, in the mountains and the upper Piedmont. It does best on cool, moist, north- or east-facing slopes, coves, ravines, and well-drained valley floors, especially with a north or east exposure.
In fall the color ranges from russet to brick red, and a few leaves usually hang on into winter. In April and May, drooping yellow-green male catkins 2" to 4" long appear alongside the new leaves, while the tiny female flowers sit tucked against the new shoots.
Patience is required from there. Trees in a forest usually start bearing at around 20 to 25 years and don't hit full production until about 40 to 50, with bumper crops every 2 to 5 years. Like all members of the red oak group, its acorns take two growing seasons to mature, so this year's flowers become acorns in the fall of next year. They ripen from late August into October and, if they escape the crowd and they sprout the following spring. That crowd is considerable. Squirrels, mice, white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, blue jays, woodpeckers and black bears all feast on the acorns, and in most years wildlife and insects eat or damage more than 80 percent of the crop. In a poor year they can take nearly all of it.
The wood is heavy, hard and close-grained. It machines well, takes a finish beautifully and is among the best of the red oaks in lumber quality. You'll find it in flooring, furniture, cabinets, paneling, veneer, interior trim, fence posts and railroad ties. If you've ever stood on an oak floor, there's a good chance you've stood on one of these.
Important Considerations:
***CAUTION FOR HORSES***
Oak leaves and acorns contain tannins that can cause digestive trouble in horses that eat them in quantity. Keep that in mind when planting near pastures and paddocks.
For information regarding common diseases and pests of Northern Red Oak visit Clemson Cooperative Extension's Home and Garden Information Center.
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Conditions
Light:
- Full Sun to Partial Shade
Soils:
- Loam, Sandy Loam, Silt Loam and Clay Loam.
- Deep and well drained.
- Soil pH of 4.5 - 6.5
Chlorosis can develop in alkaline soils.
Tolerances:
- Tolerates Drought
- Tolerates clay, compacted soil, drought
- Tolerates Urban Pollution
- Not suited to flooding or poorly drained soils.
- Young, thin-barked trees are sensitive to fire.
Growth
Expect a Northern Red Oak to grow at a moderate to fast pace. In a forest, it develops a tall, straight trunk with a high crown. Open-grown trees keep a shorter trunk and spread into a broad, rounded crown.
Mature height will be tall, typically ranging from about 65' to 100' with a 2' to 3' trunk diameter. Open-grown trees can spread 50' to 75' wide. The tallest Northern Red Oak measured in South Carolina by the Native Tree Society reached 153'.
Northern Red Oak is long-lived and, in good conditions, may live as long as 500 years.
Manufacturer's Specs
Carbon Storage Characteristics:
- Rapid Growth Rate
- Long Lifespan
- Heavy Wood Density
Carbon Storage Estimates
Mature/Lifetime:
- CO₂E = ~ 7.0 tons
Pollution/Dust Interception:
- Moderate
Tropospheric Ozone Tolerance:
- High
Water Abatement:
- High
Oxygen Yield:
- High