The largest of New England oaks, reaching heights of 60-90', with a rounded, spreading crown, it is a popular shade and street tree for its dense foliage and ability to endure transplants, the cold, and city conditions.

BUDS: Multiple, clustered, end buds; sharp pointed and fat; bud scales are light chestnut and numerous at crown.

TWIGS: Reddish to greenish-brown; slender to slightly stout.

BARK: "Ski trails"--long, smooth, vertical anastomosing strips of bark like ski trails on a mountain; dark gray or blackish.

HABITAT: Woods; adapted to diverse soil conditions except very wet lands.

RANGE: Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to the divide west of Lake Superior, south to Tennessee, Virginia, and along the mountain ranges of Georgia, west to Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Texas. Most planted of the American oaks in Europe.

USES: Most important lumber species among red oaks, used for flooring, furniture, pulpwood, railroad ties. Popular shade and street tree, transplanting easily, hardy to urban conditions, endures cold.