Quercus nigra
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Water Oak
Fagaceae
Plant Specifics
| Form: | Tree | |
| Size: | 50-80 ft tall by 20-50 ft wide | |
| Life Span: | Long-lived perennial | |
| Flower Color: | NA | |
| Fruit Color: | Brown | |
| Phenology: | Deciduous. Blooms early spring (inconspicuous). Fruits ripen the second fall. Life span 70-100 years. | |
| Noted for: | - |
Landscaping
| Recommended Uses: | Shade tree. Semi-evergreen with leaves falling just before new leaves emerge. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Considerations: | Acorns can be a maintenance problem. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Propagation: | Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Availability: | Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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| (Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Short very dry periods) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: | Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Short very dry periods | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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: | Loam, Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil pH: | Acidic to neutral | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ecology
| Wildlife: |
Provides cover for and nesting areas for birds and squirrels The acorns are used by squirrels, turkeys, and deer . | |
| Insects: | Larval host plant for Horace's dusky wing (Erynnis horactius), red-banded hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops) and white-M hairstreak (Parrhasius m-album) butterflies | |
| Native Habitats: | Floodplains, seep slopes, mesic secondary woods. May invade flatwoods if there is fire exclusion. |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
10A 8A 8B 9A 9B
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures
Comments
| General Comments: | The wood is weak. |