''Quercus michauxii'', the swamp chestnut oak, is a species of

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

in the

white oak The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera ' ...

section ''Quercus'' section ''Quercus'' in the beech family. It is native to bottomlands and wetlands in the southeastern and midwestern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, in coastal states from

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, inland primarily in the

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–

Ohio Valley The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

as far as Oklahoma,

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, and

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Description

The leaves of the swamp chestnut oak are simple (not compound), long and broad, with 15–20 lobe-like, rounded simple teeth on each side, similar to those of chestnut oak and

chinkapin oak ''Quercus muehlenbergii'', the chinquapin (or chinkapin) oak, is a deciduous species of tree in the white oak group (''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus''). The species was often called ''Quercus acuminata'' in older literature. ''Quercus muehlenbergii' ...

(''Quercus muehlenbergii''), although they generally do not achieve the more slender form that the leaves of those trees may exhibit at times. The leaves turn red in autumn. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

is an

acorn The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera '' Quercus'' and ''Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and bo ...

long and broad, borne on a 2–3 cm peduncle, maturing in the fall, about 6 months after pollination. The tree only bears heavy acorn crops at intervals of several years.

Taxonomy

The swamp chestnut oak closely resembles the chestnut oak (''Quercus montana''), and for that reason has sometimes been treated as a variety of that species. However, the swamp chestnut oak is a larger tree which differs in preferred habitat, and the

bark Bark may refer to: * 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) Places * Bark, Germany * Bark, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland Arts, en ...

does not have the distinctive deep, rugged ridging of the chestnut oak, being thinner, scaly, and paler gray. It typically grows to around 65 ft (20 m) tall, though the tallest specimen currently known is over 150 ft (42 m) tall. The name ''Q. prinus'' was long used by many botanists and foresters for the swamp chestnut oak, even when treated as a species distinct from the chestnut oak, which was then called ''Q. montana'', but the application of the name ''Q. prinus'' to the chestnut oak is now often accepted, although sometimes that name is declared to be of uncertain position, unassignable to either species, with the chestnut oak then called ''Q. montana'', as in the ''Flora of North America''.

Ecology

The acorns of the swamp chestnut oak are eaten by generalist species like chipmunks, squirrels, white-tail deer, wild hogs, and black bears. They are also readily eaten by

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

, and the species is sometimes called the "cow oak" for this reason.

Uses

The

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of ligni ...

of the swamp chestnut oak is similar to, and usually marketed mixed with, that of other white oaks. Swamp chestnut oak is also called basket oak, since the wood is easily split into long, thin, flexible strips excellent for basket weaving. The swamp chestnut oak's acorns are large, relatively sweet, and edible. The swamp chestnut oak is sometimes cultivated as a large garden tree or street tree, and is quite easy to grow if it is not subject to extreme urban conditions. The current National Champion Swamp Chestnut Oak is in the Stumpy Lake area in

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city (United States), independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 United States cen ...

. It is high, with a crown of and a circumference of .

References

External links

''Quercus michauxii'' images from Vanderbilt University
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1460497 michauxii Edible nuts and seeds Endemic flora of the United States Plants described in 1818 Trees of the Eastern United States Trees of the Southeastern United States Taxa named by Thomas Nuttall