Quercus laurifolia
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Laurel Oak, Swamp Laurel Oak
Fagaceae
Plant Specifics
| Form: | Tree | |
| Size: | 60-100 ft tall by 40--80 ft wide | |
| Life Span: | Long-lived perennial | |
| Flower Color: | NA | |
| Fruit Color: | Brown | |
| Phenology: | Deciduous. Blooms early spring (wind pollinated, inconspicuous flowers). Acorns ripen in 2nd fall. | |
| Noted for: | - |
Landscaping
| Recommended Uses: | Often grown as a specimen tree, fast growing. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Considerations: | Somewhat weak, and compared to live oak, short-lived. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Propagation: | Seed, small plants. Readily available as a containerized sapling. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Availability: | Big box stores, Friends, Native nurseries, FNPS plant sales, Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade, Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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| (Stays Wet ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: | Stays Wet ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Water Flooding Tolerance: | Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance: | Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil or other substrate: | Clay, Loam, Organic material (muck), Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil pH: | Adaptable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ecology
| Wildlife: |
Produces acorns that are used by rodents, including squirrels, and other mammals Acorns used by woodpeckers, jays, and wild turkeys. High in tannins. Used for cover and nesting by a variety of bird species | |
| Insects: | Larval host for Horace’s Duskywing (Erynnis horatius) and White M Hairstreak (Parrhasius m-album). Larval host for several moth species (some of the caterpillars are not appreciated) | |
| Native Habitats: | River floodplains, secondary woods. |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
10A 10B 8A 8B 9A 9B
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures
Comments
| General Comments: | Depending on who you ask, there are two laurel oaks in Florida. Q. laurifolia (swamp laurel oak) and Q. hemisphaerica (Darlington oak, sand laurel oak). The taxonomists don't agree, and it appears that the two are distinctively different in north Florida but very much alike in southern and south Florida. They are separated here because one is a wetland and floodplain plant, the other grows in dry uplands. Some authors note that regardless of ID, they get planted without much regard for origin or drainage. |