Quercus macrocarpa (Bur Oak) Fagaceae

Quercus macrocarpa, the Bur oak, sometimes spelled Burr oak, is a species of oak in the white oak section Quercus sect. Quercus, native to North America in the eastern and midwestern United States and south-central Canada. This plant is also called Mossycup oakand Mossycup white oak.

Physical characteristics

Leaf: starts out green and in the fall it becomes cooper; yellow and the leafs overall in the fall tend to be very showy. 

Flower | Seeds: The flower color is brown and some key characteristics are: not showy and inconspicuous.

Trunk | Bark: droop as the tree grows, and will require pruning for vehicular or pedestrian clearance beneath the canopy; showy trunk; should be grown with a single leader; no thorns

Life span: Bur oak, as with many oaks, is a very long-lived tree. The average life span is between 200 and 400 years.

Ecological characteristics

Bur oak is a spreading, deciduous, large shrub to large tree.On eastern forested sites, it is typically a large tree and reaches up to 100 feet (31 m) in height and 3 to 4 feet (0.9 to 1.2 m) or more in diameter.Bur oak grows best on the rich bottomlands of southern Illinois and Indiana, where it may reach 170 feet (52 m) with a diameter of 6 to 7 feet(1.8 to 2.1 m)On rocky bluffs with thin soil and at the north and westends of its range, bur oak more commonly grows as a small tree or large shrub.On poor soil along the top of bluffs at the western edge of its range, it often forms dense thickets of low straggling shrubs which may reach only 1.7 to 3.3 feet (5 to 10m) in height.

Distribution range