Leaf:  Alternate, simple; 5 to 9 inches long and about half as broad; divided into 7 or 9 rounded, finger-like lobes, not bristle-tipped, the sinuses varying from shallow to deep; young leaves a soft silvery- gray or yellow or red while unfolding, becoming later bright green and smooth above, much paler below; turning reddish-brown to reddish-purple in autumn; leafstalks up to 1 inch long, rather stout, smooth; leaves on same tree sometimes varying considerably.

Flower:  Male and female flowers borne separate, but on the same tree, appearing when the leaves begin to unfold; minute, without petals; the staminate many in drooping, yellow, hairy catkins 2 to 3 inches long; the pistillate few in a group, red, sessile, in axils of the leaves.

Fruit:  Acorns borne 1 or 2 together, with or without a stalk, maturing the first year; the nut egg-shaped, up to 3/8 to 1 1/4  inches long, green to greenish-brown, shiny, about 1/4 covered by shallow, warty, yellow-brown cup, often minutely hairy.

Twig:  Slender, smooth, somewhat shiny; gray, whitish, or even purplish; pith star-shaped in cross-section; leaf scars alternate but crowded near the tip of the twig, half-round, slightly elevated, with several bundle traces. 

Bark:  The bark is thin, light ashy-gray or whitish with gray patches, shallowly furrowed, covered with loose scales or broad plates.

Form:  Large tree up to 100 feet tall; trunk diameter 3 to 4 feet or more; developing a broad, symmetrical crown in open places; with stiff, horizontal branches; trunk relatively short and thick. 

Discussion

White oak wood is heavy. hard, strong, and moderately resistant to decay; its high-grade wood is used for all purposes. Called "stave oak" because the wood is good for making barrel staves, it is good for all kinds of "tight cooperage":  old-time buckets, wash tubs, and kegs.  White oak was formerly employed whenever strength and durability were of utmost importance. It was used for bridges, ships, beams in barns, wagons, and many farm implements, and railroad ties.  It was also good for fence posts, mine props, and fuel.  Lumber companies shipped the tannin-rich bark to tanneries.  Today, white oak wood is in demand for whiskey barrels, flooring, and cabinetry.  Eastern red oak has replaced white oak for building materials since the red oak grows faster and is easier to treat with preservatives.  

Native Americans used white oak to treat a wide variety of ailments including diarrhea, mouth sores, chapped skin, asthma, and coughs. Products taken from white oak were also used as antiseptics, emetics, and fever-reducing washes.

Acorns are a valuable source of wildlife food, though the white oak acorns tend to have bumper crops only every 4 years or so.  More than 180 different kinds of birds and mammals use oak acorns as food; among them are squirrels, blue jays, crows, red-headed woodpeckers, deer, turkey, quail, mice, chipmunks, ducks, and raccoons.  Deer browse the twigs and foliage.

White oak is sometimes planted as an ornamental tree because of its broad round crown, dense foliage, and purplish-red to violet-purple fall coloration. 

Distinguishing Characteristics

White oak is recognized by its grayish bark and its 5 to 9 rounded-lobed, smooth leaves which are usually whitish on the lower surface. Its oblong, greenish-brown, shiny acorns are also distinctive.

Distribution

Maine across to Minnesota, south to eastern Texas, east to northern Florida.

Images

Click each small picture to see a larger image.

	October, 2002 SG	March, 2003	Early spring leaf color	Early spring lower leaf surface
March, 2003	March, 2003	March, 2003	March, 2003	March, 2003

Location

N 39.26874°     W -89.88892°                                                                           
North of the playground at Loveless Park, South Locust Street, Carlinville, Macoupin County, IL.

Copyright

Photos © 2002 Steven Gotcher, Carlinville High School, linke@carlinvilleschools.net

References

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.

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

Illinois State Museum
http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/forest/htmls/trees/Q-alba.html

Silvics of North America
http://forestry.about.com/library/silvics/blsilwhi.htm?terms=white+oak#sectC

Click here to return to the plant list for Carlinville High School