FNPS Plant Database

Quercus lyrata

overcup oak
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

overcup oak

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Quercus lyrata

Family:

Fagaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

Tree

Size:

40–60 ft

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

Fruit Color:

brown

Phenology:

Deciduous

Noted For:

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Shade tree.

Considerations:

Falling/fallen acorns can be an issue.

Availability:

Native Nurseries

Propagation:

Seed.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Stays wet -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Clay, Loam

Soil pH:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Caterpillars, Birds, Mammals

Host plant for the White-M Hairstreak and Horace's Duskywing butterflies.

Acorns appreciated by squirrels, deer, turkey, and other wildlife Used by birds for resting and nesting Said (by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlflower Center) to attract water fowl.

Native Habitats:

Bottomland floodplains and inundated river levees, lake swamps, rarely on non-wetland portions of floodplains

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Its acorn is large (about an inch long) and is nearly enclosed by its cup or receptacle--hence the name "overcup.".
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

Burns, Russell M, and Barbara H. Honkala [Technical coordinators]. (1990). Silvics of North America: Volume 2. Hardwoods. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Agriculture Handbook 654. ( https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/1548 ). Accessed 2026.


Huegel, Craig N. (2010). Native Plant Landscaping for Florida Wildlife. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.


Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. (2025). Plant Database: Quercus lyrata (Overcup oak). ( https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=QULY ). Accessed 2026. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.


North Carolina State Extension. (Undated). North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. ( https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/ ). North Carolina Agricultural & Technical University, Greensboro, NC.


Wunderlin, R. P, B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL.

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