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.


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.

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