Leaf:  Alternate, simple; blades without lobes or teeth, edges straight or slightly wavy and turned under; lanceolate to oblong, short-pointed or rounded at ends with a bristle tip, narrowed to the base; 3 to 6 inches ( 7.5 to 15 cm) long and 3/4 to 2 inches (2 to 5 cm) wide; dark green, smooth and shiny on the upper surface, paler and hairy on the lower surface with a yellow midvein; leafstalks up to 1/2 inch long, stout, hairy; turning yellow or reddish-brown in autumn, often shedding late.

Flower:  Male and female borne separately, but on the same tree, appearing as the leaves begin to unfold in April or May; minute, without petals; the staminate in 2 to 3 inch slender, yellow, densely hairy, drooping catkins; the pistillate few in a cluster with short, slender, hairy stems.

Fruit:  Acorns solitary or 2 together on stout stalks nearly 1/2 inch (12 mm) long; the nut nearly spherical, 1/2 to 5/8 inch ( 12 to 15 mm) in diameter, dark brown and often marked with parallel stripes, less than half enclosed by the cup; the cup thin, bowl-like, reddish-brown, with thin, blunt scales pressed flat and covered by fine hairs, except on their darker colored margins; maturing in the second year. 

Twig:  Hairless, slender, smooth, reddish-brown; pith star-shaped in cross section; leaf scars alternate but crowded near the tip of the twig, half-rounded, slightly elevated, with several bundle traces; end buds small, more or less silky, sharp, angular; bud scale edges hairy.

Bark:  Dark brown to gray, smooth when young, becoming deeply furrowed between flat, tight plates, making scaly ridges.

Form:  Medium tree up to 70 feet tall; trunk diameter up to 3 feet; crown symmetrical, rounded or oblong, with many branches; trunk straight; columnar.
 

Discussion

The Latin species name "imbricaria" means "overlapping", a reference to pioneers using this wood for split shingles.  The wood is also useful for general construction.  Today it is used as an ornamental shade tree; it is also suitable for hedges, screens, and wind breaks.

Shingle oak generally gets a slight amount of leaf chlorosis in very high pH soils, as are often encountered in urban environments. Otherwise, it will be subject to the usual array of pests and pathogens that can affect many oaks.

Distinguishing Characteristics 

Only the shingle oak and the willow oak, among all the oaks, have leaves without any teeth or lobes.  The shingle oak generally has broader leaves than the willow oak.  The shingle oak can be told from magnolias by its star-shaped pith and formation of the acorns.  

Distribution

New Jersey across to Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska, south to Kansas, east to Arkansas and South Carolina.

Images

Click each small picture to see a larger image. 

October, 2002 BG	March, 2003	October, 2002 LW	October, 2002 LW	March, 2003
October, 2002 BG	March, 2003		March, 2003	March, 2003	March, 2003

Location

N 39.2685º     W -89.8892º
East side of south loop of fitness trail, Loveless Park, South Locust Street, Carlinville, Macoupin County, IL.

Copyright   

Photos © 2002 Ben Goodman and Lori Walters, Carlinville High School, linke@carlinvilleschools.net

References

G. H. Collingwood and Warren D. Brush, Knowing Your Trees, 1964, The American Forestry Association.

George A. Petrides, Eastern Trees, 1988, Houghton Mifflin Company.

Robert H. Mohlenbrock, Forest Trees of Illinois, 1996, Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

George A. Petrides, Tree and Shrubs, 1986, Houghton Mifflin Company.

Herbert S. Zim and Alexander C. Martin, Trees, 1956, Western Publishing Company, Inc.

George D. Fuller and E. E. Nuuttila, Forest Trees of Illinois, 1955, Illinois Department of Conservation.

William C. Grimm, Familiar Trees of America, 1967, Harper &  Row.

Elbert L. Little, Field Guide to Trees:  Eastern Region, 1980, Alfred A. Knopf.

Ohio Department of Natural Resources
http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/forestry/Education/ohiotrees/oakshingle.htm

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/forestry/usesof/treeuses.htm

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