Plant Name:  Red Oak Tree

Botanical Name:  Quercus rubra

Origin: Native to eastern North America

Height/Physical Description: Fast growing, deciduous tree that grows 60 to 75 feet tall and 50 feet wide, leaves are 5 to 8 inches long and 4 to 6 inches wide with 3 to 7 pairs of sharp-pointed lobes. Bark becomes very dark and fissured with age.

Special Attributes:  Beautiful, rounded canopy with large spreading growth habit.  It produces ¾ to 1-inch long acorns that look like a toy top. Provides interesting color all year long:  new leaves are red or bright yellow in Spring; dark green in Summer; dark red, ruddy brown or orange in the Fall.

Purchasing:  Private nurseries and online.

Planting Requirements: Requires fertile soil with good drainage and regular moisture.  Plant in Fall or Winter to allow tree to get established.  

Watering:  Requires regular moisture and fertile soil especially between the months of March through May to support the tree’s new growth.  Do not water next to the base of the tree as this could result in root diseases.  Water only over the outer third of the root system to encourage roots to grow outward.  

Fertilizing:  Compost can be added but away from the base of the tree.

Harvesting:  Acorns form and can be harvested in the Fall.

Pruning:  Periodic grooming may be required to remove dead or cross branches.  Prune trees only when they are dormant.  For deciduous trees, prune when leaves have completely dropped off; for evergreens, prune during the dry season (mid to late Summer) to avoid mildew and fungal diseases.

Pest:  Oak moths, galls, mites.  

Diseases:  The following are common diseases that occur in all oak trees:  oak root fungus (Armillaria mellea) and sudden oak death (phytophthora ramorum).  

Additional Information:  This oak can be a host of sudden oak disease.  Sunset zones 14-21.