365 Urban Species. #277: Northern Red Oak

[urbpan]

Photos by urbpan. This row of stately northern red oaks lines a street running along Brighton and Brookline.

Urban species #277: Northern red oak Quercus rubra

Oak trees--there are more than 500 species of them--have long been symbolic of strength, wisdom, and longevity. In Europe or the northeast of North America, the oaks may be the biggest trees in the forest, and their wood has always been among the most valuable. Oaks can roughly be divided between "white" oaks, with rounded leaf-lobes, and "red" oaks, with pointed leaf-lobes. White oaks are stronger and more valued, but do not do as well in the city. Their roots need more room than the compressed soil, asphalt, and concrete landscape can give them. The red oaks, on the other hand, do fairly well, and a number of red oak species are popular street trees.

Northern red oaks grow quickly, and can grow to impressive dimensions. Some street trees reach to 70 feet tall or more, even with the weight of cars and sidewalks on their roots. They are exceptional shade trees, and their foliage changes from rich green to a range of golden brown, to rusty, to scarlet, in autumn. The fruit of all oak trees is the familiar acorn, a tempting lump of starchy food in an adamant package. A whole suite of rodents--the tree squirrels--has evolved to take advantage of them, and to some degree oak trees depend on squirrels to bury their acorns, to reproduce. Native Americans made use of acorns for food, but red oak acorns were not their first choice; white oak acorns are far less bitter, but still require several changes of water to remove the tannins that make them inedible to humans. Acorns provide winter food for animals as diverse as non-migratory Canada geese, wild turkeys, woodpeckers, deer, raccoons, and many others. Over 200 different species of organisms produce galls in which to inhabit oak trees, and countless others live in their bark, branches, and cavities.


A fallen northern red oak leaf next to an acorn, a gall, and a honey locust leaflet, on a sidewalk in Allston.



A line of young northern red oaks, planted along Harvard Avenue in Allston.


The pointed lobes of the red oak leaf.


This is the largest tree in Olmsted Park, about 150 years old and more than seven feet in diameter. Unfortunately, the stress of its location at the edge of a parking lot is taking its toll, and it's starting to show signs of illness.

Comments

[droserary.livejournal.com]

If you had missed it on NPR, here's a link to a segment on green spaces and tree-lined areas and how it can alter human behavior (though I have a hunch you listened and enjoyed this bit as much as I did).

http://talesfromurbanforests.org/
The Urban Forest Healing Center (mp3)

[droserary.livejournal.com]

Another link for you:
Live Oak Trees Struggle For Survival In Growth Areas

[nutmeg.livejournal.com]

No doubt salt problems.

Red Oak is the state tree of NJ!

[dragonwrites.livejournal.com]

the kids i work with (first graders) are studying plant life cycles. most of the books for young children on this subject refer to the oak tree as an example of a familiar plant and its familiar seed. the only problem is that oak trees just aren't that common around here, understanding the basic concept, they've been picking up various seeds and nuts and showing off their "acorns." the teacher keeps telling them they're not going to find acorns in the desert (possibly in a riparian area?) but i guess the books give an element of romance to the mighty oak and the kids really want to be a part of that. (the also get a little cranky when they learn about "winter" in the temperate regions and demand to know why they can't have some snow.)

Red-Scarlet-Black Oak??

[(Anonymous)]

I grew up in NH, where, as I recall, we had primarily Northern Red Oak. I am trying to learn black and scarlet oaks and distinguish them from red. Down here in Stoughton we have a lot of black, scarlet, and who knows what else, mixed in with the red. I have learned that the black (not sure about the scarlet) has much more of a horizontal component in the bark of the mature trees than the red, which is dominated by its vertical fissures and is somewhat smoother. The black takes on more of the effect of rectangular or square clumps.

Can anyone add to this or correct it, and or/give some ways to distinguish scarlet oak?

But back to red oak, it has such large xylem or phloem vertical passageways in its wood, that you can blow bubbles, as if from a somewhat clogged straw through a 3-4 inch chip of the wood, such as what a couple sharp axe blows might whack off. Big ones up country could fetch a special price, if the local basket company took a liking to one on your land.

Dwight

Re: Red-Scarlet-Black Oak??

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

A forester told me that black oaks have flatter, shallower acorn cups than scarlet oak. I don't think I could tell the difference.

Re: Red-Scarlet-Black Oak??

[(Anonymous)]

Scarlet oaks also have more distinct bark with a interlocking trail pattern, black oaks have tight blockier bark with rusty inner bark that tastes bitter!