Cherrybark Oak

Cherrybark Oak

(Quercus pagoda)

The Beech Family (Fagaceae)

Leaves are alternate and deciduous with dense, whitish hairs on the underleaf. The dark, scaly, rough bark on older trees resembles Black Cherry tree bark.

Habitat:

Floodplains, poorly drained bottomlands and lowlands.

Interesting Facts:

Often with a branch-free trunk, the Cherrybark, of all red oaks, is one of the fastest growing with the most desirable timber. The leaf shape (held upside down) resembles the outline of a pagoda.

Fruit:

.5” long, orange-brown with a scaly cap covering about one-third of the nut, produced in the fall.

Flower:

The flowers are either catkins (male) or spikes (female). Both flowers are found on the same tree (monoecious).

Wildlife value:

Squirrels, raccoons, deer and many birds eat the acorns while insects eat the leaves and acorns. Many animals use the tree for cover.

Flowers