''Quercus texana'', commonly known as Nuttall's oak, is a fast-growing, large

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

It is a tree growing up to 85 feet (25 meters) tall, with dark brown

bark Bark may refer to: Common meanings * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Arts and entertainment * ''Bark'' (Jefferson Airplane album), ...

. It has

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

with sharp pointed lobes somewhat similar to those of the Georgia oak (''Q. georgiana'') and

pin oak ''Quercus palustris'', also called pin oak, swamp oak, or swamp Spanish oak, is a tree in the red oak section (''Quercus'' sect. ''Lobatae'') of the genus ''Quercus''. Pin oak is one of the most commonly used landscaping oaks in its native rang ...

(''Q. palustris''). It is fast-growing and usually has a pleasing red color in autumn, much more reliably so than the pin oak. This species was for years erroneously called ''Quercus nuttallii'', but it is now known as ''Q. texana''; this has created much confusion with

Texas red oak ''Quercus buckleyi'', commonly known as Texas red oak, Buckley's oak, or Spanish oak is a species of flowering plant. It is endemic to the southern Great Plains of the United States (Oklahoma and Texas). Buckley's oak is smaller and more likely ...

, which was known as ''Q. texana'' but is now known as ''Q. buckleyi''. It is native to the south-central United States primarily in the lower

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

Valley in

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, and western

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. There are additional populations in eastern

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, southeastern

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, southeastern

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, far western

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, and the southernmost tip of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. It is still relatively obscure in the horticultural industry but is slowly gaining popularity due to its fast growth rate, ease of transplanting, good fall colors and ability to grow in wet soils. It is known for its ability to rapidly recover its gas exchange after flooding. The current world record Nuttall's Oak tree is located at the White River National Wildlife Refuge, Desha County, Arkansas. According to the National Forests Champion Trees Official Register, it boasts a trunk circumference of 274 inches, a height of 100 feet, and a crown spread of 102 feet.

References

External links

Nuttall's Oak in the Biosurvey of Oklahoma

photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Missouri in 1989
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7271351 texana Trees of Northern America Endemic flora of the United States Flora of Texas Plants described in 1860