Quercus pagoda

Illustrator: John Myers

Copyright: Flora of North America Association

Trees, deciduous, to 40 m. Bark nearly black with narrow and noticeably flaky ridges, often resembling that of wild black cherry, inner bark orange. Twigs yellowish brown, 2-3.5 mm diam., pubescent. Terminal buds light reddish brown, ovoid, 4-9 mm, strongly 5-angled in cross section, puberulent throughout. Leaves: petiole 20-50 mm, glabrate or pubescent. Leaf blade ovate to elliptic or obovate, 90-300 × 60-160 mm, base cuneate to rounded or truncate, margins with 5-11 lobes and 10-25 awns, lobes oblong, rarely falcate, terminal lobe rarely exceeding lateral lobes in length, apex acute; surfaces abaxially pale, tomentose, adaxially glossy, glabrous, secondary veins raised on both surfaces. Acorns biennial; cup saucer-shaped to cup-shaped, 3-7 mm high × 10-18 mm wide, covering 1/3-1/2 nut, outer surface puberulent, inner surface pubescent, scale tips tightly appressed, acute; nut subglobose, 9-15 × 8-16 mm, often striate, puberulent, scar diam. 5-9 mm.

Phenology: Flowering spring.
Habitat: Poorly drained bottoms and mesic slopes
Elevation: 0-300 m

Distribution

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Ala., Ark., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Ky., La., Miss., Mo., N.C., Okla., S.C., Tenn., Tex., Va.

Discussion

Quercus pagoda is often treated as a variety of Q. falcata; it is quite distinctive, however, both morphologically and ecologically (S. A. Ware 1967; R. J. Jensen 1989).

This species reportedly hybridizes with Q. falcata and Q. phellos (D. M. Hunt 1989).

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.