FNA: Quercus alba vs. Quercus inopina

	Quercus alba	Quercus inopina
	chêne blanc, eastern white oak, white oak	sandhill oak
Habit	Trees, deciduous, to 25 m. Bark light gray, scaly.	Shrubs, evergreen, to 5 m. Bark gray.
Twigs	green or reddish, becoming gray, 2-3(-4) mm diam., initially pubescent, soon glabrous.	light to dark purplish brown, (1.5-)2-3(-4) mm diam., glabrate to sparsely pubescent, especially at apex.
Buds	dark reddish brown, ovoid, ca. 3 mm, apex obtuse, glabrous.
Leaves	blade obovate to narrowly elliptic or narrowly obovate, (79-)120-180(-230) × (40-)70-110(-165) mm, base narrowly cuneate to acute, margins moderately to deeply lobed, lobes often narrow, rounded distally, sinuses extending 1/3-7/8 distance to midrib, secondary veins arched, divergent, (3-)5-7 on each side, apex broadly rounded or ovate; surfaces abaxially light green, with numerous whitish or reddish erect hairs, these quickly shed as leaf expands, adaxially light gray-green, dull or glossy.	blade ovate or elliptic to obovate, occasionally spatulate, (25-)45-85 × (15-)25-45 mm, base acute to rounded or cordate, margins entire, strongly revolute, with 1 apical awn, apex obtuse or rounded; surfaces abaxially yellow-scurfy, occasionally somewhat pubescent, rarely glabrous, adaxially distinctly convex, rugose, glabrous or with scattered hairs, especially along midrib and at base.
Acorns	1-3, subsessile or on peduncle to 25(-50) mm; cup hemispheric, enclosing 1/4 nut, scales closely appressed, finely grayish tomentose; nut light brown, ovoid-ellipsoid or oblong, (12-)15-21(-25) × 9-18 mm, glabrous.	biennial; cup cup-shaped to bowl-shaped, 6-8 mm high × 10-15 mm wide, covering 1/3-1/2 nut, outer surface puberulent, inner surface half to fully pubescent, scale tips tightly appressed, acute; nut ovoid to broadly ellipsoid, 10-14 × 9-13 mm, glabrate, scar diam. 4.5-8 mm.
Cotyledons	distinct.
Terminal		buds dark purplish brown, ovoid to subconic, 2-6 mm, noticeably 5-angled in cross section, glabrous to tawny strigose on apical 1/3.
2n	= 24.

	Quercus alba	Quercus inopina
Phenology	Flowering in spring.	Flowering spring.
Habitat	Moist to fairly dry, deciduous forests usually on deeper, well-drained loams, also on thin soils on dry upland slopes, sometimes on barrens	On deep white "sugar" sands of low sandhill ridges, scrub communities, and flat upland terraces
Elevation	0-1600 m (0-5200 ft)	0-50 m (0-200 ft)
Distribution	AL; AR; CT; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON; QC [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	FL [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Discussion	Considerable variation in depth of lobing occurs in the leaves of Quercus alba (M. J. Baranski 1975; J. W. Hardin 1975); the species is easily distinguished from others, however, by the light gray-green, glabrous mature leaves and cuneate leaf bases. In the past Quercus alba was considered to be the source of the finest and most durable oak lumber in America for furniture and shipbuilding. Now it has been replaced almost entirely in commerce by various species of eastern red oak (e.g., Q. rubra, Q. velutina, and Q. falcata) that are more common and have faster growth and greater yields. These red oaks also lack tyloses and therefore are more suited to pressure treating with preservatives, even though they are less decay-resistant without treatment. Medicinally, Quercus alba was used by Native Americans to treat diarrhea, indigestion, chronic dysentery, mouth sores, chapped skin, asthma, milky urine, rheumatism, coughs, sore throat, consumption, bleeding piles, and muscle aches, as an antiseptic, and emetic, and a wash for chills and fevers, to bring up phlegm, as a witchcraft medicine, and as a psychological aid (D. E. Moerman 1986). Numerous hybrids between Quercus alba and other species of white oak have been reported, and some have been named. J. W. Hardin (1975) reviewed the hybrids of Quercus alba. Nothospecies names based on putative hybrids involving Q. alba include: Q. ×beadlei Trelease (= Q. alba × prinus), Q. ×bebbiana Schneider (= Q. alba × macrocarpa), Q. ×bimundorum E. J. Palmer (= Q. alba × robur), Q. ×deami Trelease (= Q. alba × muhlenbergii), Q. ×faxoni Trelease (= Q. alba × prinoides), Q. ×jackiana Schneider (= Q. alba × bicolor), and Q. ×saulei Schneider (= Q. alba × montana). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)	Quercus inopina occurs from Orange County, Florida, southwest to Manatee County and south to Martin County. It flowers one to two weeks later than Q. myrtifolia (A. F. Johnson and W. G. Abrahamson 1982). The leaves of this species often have numerous small black dots on the adaxial surface. These are ascocarps (the sexual fruiting bodies of ascomycete fungi) of the genus Asterina (D. M. Hunt, pers. comm). Although no hybrids have been formally described, evidence of hybridization of Quercus inopina with Q. hemisphaerica, Q. laevis, and Q. myrtifolia has been reported (D. M. Hunt 1989). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 3.	FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa	Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Quercus	Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Lobatae
Sibling taxa	Q. acerifolia, Q. agrifolia, Q. ajoensis, Q. arizonica, Q. arkansana, Q. austrina, Q. berberidifolia, Q. bicolor, Q. boyntonii, Q. buckleyi, Q. carmenensis, Q. chapmanii, Q. chihuahuensis, Q. chrysolepis, Q. coccinea, Q. cornelius-mulleri, Q. depressipes, Q. douglasii, Q. dumosa, Q. durata, Q. ellipsoidalis, Q. emoryi, Q. engelmannii, Q. falcata, Q. fusiformis, Q. gambelii, Q. garryana, Q. geminata, Q. georgiana, Q. graciliformis, Q. gravesii, Q. grisea, Q. havardii, Q. hemisphaerica, Q. hinckleyi, Q. hypoleucoides, Q. ilicifolia, Q. imbricaria, Q. incana, Q. inopina, Q. intricata, Q. john-tuckeri, Q. kelloggii, Q. laceyi, Q. laevis, Q. laurifolia, Q. lobata, Q. lyrata, Q. macrocarpa, Q. margarettae, Q. marilandica, Q. michauxii, Q. minima, Q. mohriana, Q. montana, Q. muehlenbergii, Q. myrtifolia, Q. nigra, Q. oblongifolia, Q. oglethorpensis, Q. pacifica, Q. pagoda, Q. palmeri, Q. palustris, Q. phellos, Q. polymorpha, Q. prinoides, Q. pumila, Q. pungens, Q. robur, Q. robusta, Q. rubra, Q. rugosa, Q. sadleriana, Q. shumardii, Q. similis, Q. sinuata, Q. stellata, Q. tardifolia, Q. texana, Q. tomentella, Q. toumeyi, Q. turbinella, Q. vacciniifolia, Q. vaseyana, Q. velutina, Q. viminea, Q. virginiana, Q. wislizenii	Q. acerifolia, Q. agrifolia, Q. ajoensis, Q. alba, Q. arizonica, Q. arkansana, Q. austrina, Q. berberidifolia, Q. bicolor, Q. boyntonii, Q. buckleyi, Q. carmenensis, Q. chapmanii, Q. chihuahuensis, Q. chrysolepis, Q. coccinea, Q. cornelius-mulleri, Q. depressipes, Q. douglasii, Q. dumosa, Q. durata, Q. ellipsoidalis, Q. emoryi, Q. engelmannii, Q. falcata, Q. fusiformis, Q. gambelii, Q. garryana, Q. geminata, Q. georgiana, Q. graciliformis, Q. gravesii, Q. grisea, Q. havardii, Q. hemisphaerica, Q. hinckleyi, Q. hypoleucoides, Q. ilicifolia, Q. imbricaria, Q. incana, Q. intricata, Q. john-tuckeri, Q. kelloggii, Q. laceyi, Q. laevis, Q. laurifolia, Q. lobata, Q. lyrata, Q. macrocarpa, Q. margarettae, Q. marilandica, Q. michauxii, Q. minima, Q. mohriana, Q. montana, Q. muehlenbergii, Q. myrtifolia, Q. nigra, Q. oblongifolia, Q. oglethorpensis, Q. pacifica, Q. pagoda, Q. palmeri, Q. palustris, Q. phellos, Q. polymorpha, Q. prinoides, Q. pumila, Q. pungens, Q. robur, Q. robusta, Q. rubra, Q. rugosa, Q. sadleriana, Q. shumardii, Q. similis, Q. sinuata, Q. stellata, Q. tardifolia, Q. texana, Q. tomentella, Q. toumeyi, Q. turbinella, Q. vacciniifolia, Q. vaseyana, Q. velutina, Q. viminea, Q. virginiana, Q. wislizenii
Name authority	Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 996. (1753)	Ashe: Rhodora 31: 79. (1929)
Web links	Local Web sites: Go Botany, IL Wildflowers, KS Wildflowers, LA Plants, MD Biodiversity, MI Flora, MN Wildflowers, MO Plants WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Quercus inopina

chêne blanc, eastern white oak, white oak

sandhill oak

Habit

Trees, deciduous, to 25 m. Bark light gray, scaly.

Shrubs, evergreen, to 5 m. Bark gray.

Twigs

green or reddish, becoming gray, 2-3(-4) mm diam., initially pubescent, soon glabrous.

light to dark purplish brown, (1.5-)2-3(-4) mm diam., glabrate to sparsely pubescent, especially at apex.

Buds

dark reddish brown, ovoid, ca. 3 mm, apex obtuse, glabrous.

Leaves

blade obovate to narrowly elliptic or narrowly obovate, (79-)120-180(-230) × (40-)70-110(-165) mm, base narrowly cuneate to acute, margins moderately to deeply lobed, lobes often narrow, rounded distally, sinuses extending 1/3-7/8 distance to midrib, secondary veins arched, divergent, (3-)5-7 on each side, apex broadly rounded or ovate;

surfaces abaxially light green, with numerous whitish or reddish erect hairs, these quickly shed as leaf expands, adaxially light gray-green, dull or glossy.

blade ovate or elliptic to obovate, occasionally spatulate, (25-)45-85 × (15-)25-45 mm, base acute to rounded or cordate, margins entire, strongly revolute, with 1 apical awn, apex obtuse or rounded;

surfaces abaxially yellow-scurfy, occasionally somewhat pubescent, rarely glabrous, adaxially distinctly convex, rugose, glabrous or with scattered hairs, especially along midrib and at base.

Acorns

1-3, subsessile or on peduncle to 25(-50) mm;

cup hemispheric, enclosing 1/4 nut, scales closely appressed, finely grayish tomentose;

nut light brown, ovoid-ellipsoid or oblong, (12-)15-21(-25) × 9-18 mm, glabrous.

biennial;

cup cup-shaped to bowl-shaped, 6-8 mm high × 10-15 mm wide, covering 1/3-1/2 nut, outer surface puberulent, inner surface half to fully pubescent, scale tips tightly appressed, acute;

nut ovoid to broadly ellipsoid, 10-14 × 9-13 mm, glabrate, scar diam. 4.5-8 mm.

Cotyledons

distinct.

Terminal

buds dark purplish brown, ovoid to subconic, 2-6 mm, noticeably 5-angled in cross section, glabrous to tawny strigose on apical 1/3.

= 24.

Quercus alba

Quercus inopina

Phenology

Flowering in spring.

Flowering spring.

Habitat

Moist to fairly dry, deciduous forests usually on deeper, well-drained loams, also on thin soils on dry upland slopes, sometimes on barrens

On deep white "sugar" sands of low sandhill ridges, scrub communities, and flat upland terraces

Elevation

0-1600 m (0-5200 ft)

0-50 m (0-200 ft)

Distribution

AL; AR; CT; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON; QC

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Considerable variation in depth of lobing occurs in the leaves of Quercus alba (M. J. Baranski 1975; J. W. Hardin 1975); the species is easily distinguished from others, however, by the light gray-green, glabrous mature leaves and cuneate leaf bases.

In the past Quercus alba was considered to be the source of the finest and most durable oak lumber in America for furniture and shipbuilding. Now it has been replaced almost entirely in commerce by various species of eastern red oak (e.g., Q. rubra, Q. velutina, and Q. falcata) that are more common and have faster growth and greater yields. These red oaks also lack tyloses and therefore are more suited to pressure treating with preservatives, even though they are less decay-resistant without treatment.

Medicinally, Quercus alba was used by Native Americans to treat diarrhea, indigestion, chronic dysentery, mouth sores, chapped skin, asthma, milky urine, rheumatism, coughs, sore throat, consumption, bleeding piles, and muscle aches, as an antiseptic, and emetic, and a wash for chills and fevers, to bring up phlegm, as a witchcraft medicine, and as a psychological aid (D. E. Moerman 1986).

Numerous hybrids between Quercus alba and other species of white oak have been reported, and some have been named. J. W. Hardin (1975) reviewed the hybrids of Quercus alba. Nothospecies names based on putative hybrids involving Q. alba include: Q. ×beadlei Trelease (= Q. alba × prinus), Q. ×bebbiana Schneider (= Q. alba × macrocarpa), Q. ×bimundorum E. J. Palmer (= Q. alba × robur), Q. ×deami Trelease (= Q. alba × muhlenbergii), Q. ×faxoni Trelease (= Q. alba × prinoides), Q. ×jackiana Schneider (= Q. alba × bicolor), and Q. ×saulei Schneider (= Q. alba × montana).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Quercus inopina occurs from Orange County, Florida, southwest to Manatee County and south to Martin County. It flowers one to two weeks later than Q. myrtifolia (A. F. Johnson and W. G. Abrahamson 1982).

The leaves of this species often have numerous small black dots on the adaxial surface. These are ascocarps (the sexual fruiting bodies of ascomycete fungi) of the genus Asterina (D. M. Hunt, pers. comm).

Although no hybrids have been formally described, evidence of hybridization of Quercus inopina with Q. hemisphaerica, Q. laevis, and Q. myrtifolia has been reported (D. M. Hunt 1989).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source

FNA vol. 3.

Parent taxa

Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Quercus

Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Lobatae

Sibling taxa

Q. acerifolia, Q. agrifolia, Q. ajoensis, Q. arizonica, Q. arkansana, Q. austrina, Q. berberidifolia, Q. bicolor, Q. boyntonii, Q. buckleyi, Q. carmenensis, Q. chapmanii, Q. chihuahuensis, Q. chrysolepis, Q. coccinea, Q. cornelius-mulleri, Q. depressipes, Q. douglasii, Q. dumosa, Q. durata, Q. ellipsoidalis, Q. emoryi, Q. engelmannii, Q. falcata, Q. fusiformis, Q. gambelii, Q. garryana, Q. geminata, Q. georgiana, Q. graciliformis, Q. gravesii, Q. grisea, Q. havardii, Q. hemisphaerica, Q. hinckleyi, Q. hypoleucoides, Q. ilicifolia, Q. imbricaria, Q. incana, Q. inopina, Q. intricata, Q. john-tuckeri, Q. kelloggii, Q. laceyi, Q. laevis, Q. laurifolia, Q. lobata, Q. lyrata, Q. macrocarpa, Q. margarettae, Q. marilandica, Q. michauxii, Q. minima, Q. mohriana, Q. montana, Q. muehlenbergii, Q. myrtifolia, Q. nigra, Q. oblongifolia, Q. oglethorpensis, Q. pacifica, Q. pagoda, Q. palmeri, Q. palustris, Q. phellos, Q. polymorpha, Q. prinoides, Q. pumila, Q. pungens, Q. robur, Q. robusta, Q. rubra, Q. rugosa, Q. sadleriana, Q. shumardii, Q. similis, Q. sinuata, Q. stellata, Q. tardifolia, Q. texana, Q. tomentella, Q. toumeyi, Q. turbinella, Q. vacciniifolia, Q. vaseyana, Q. velutina, Q. viminea, Q. virginiana, Q. wislizenii

Q. acerifolia, Q. agrifolia, Q. ajoensis, Q. alba, Q. arizonica, Q. arkansana, Q. austrina, Q. berberidifolia, Q. bicolor, Q. boyntonii, Q. buckleyi, Q. carmenensis, Q. chapmanii, Q. chihuahuensis, Q. chrysolepis, Q. coccinea, Q. cornelius-mulleri, Q. depressipes, Q. douglasii, Q. dumosa, Q. durata, Q. ellipsoidalis, Q. emoryi, Q. engelmannii, Q. falcata, Q. fusiformis, Q. gambelii, Q. garryana, Q. geminata, Q. georgiana, Q. graciliformis, Q. gravesii, Q. grisea, Q. havardii, Q. hemisphaerica, Q. hinckleyi, Q. hypoleucoides, Q. ilicifolia, Q. imbricaria, Q. incana, Q. intricata, Q. john-tuckeri, Q. kelloggii, Q. laceyi, Q. laevis, Q. laurifolia, Q. lobata, Q. lyrata, Q. macrocarpa, Q. margarettae, Q. marilandica, Q. michauxii, Q. minima, Q. mohriana, Q. montana, Q. muehlenbergii, Q. myrtifolia, Q. nigra, Q. oblongifolia, Q. oglethorpensis, Q. pacifica, Q. pagoda, Q. palmeri, Q. palustris, Q. phellos, Q. polymorpha, Q. prinoides, Q. pumila, Q. pungens, Q. robur, Q. robusta, Q. rubra, Q. rugosa, Q. sadleriana, Q. shumardii, Q. similis, Q. sinuata, Q. stellata, Q. tardifolia, Q. texana, Q. tomentella, Q. toumeyi, Q. turbinella, Q. vacciniifolia, Q. vaseyana, Q. velutina, Q. viminea, Q. virginiana, Q. wislizenii

Name authority

Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 996. (1753)

Ashe: Rhodora 31: 79. (1929)

Web links

Local Web sites: Go Botany, IL Wildflowers, KS Wildflowers, LA Plants, MD Biodiversity, MI Flora, MN Wildflowers, MO Plants
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database
LBJ Wildflower Center
SEINet
Plants of the World Online
Encyclopedia of Life
Wikipedia
Google Image Search

Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).

Choose a data source: Flora of North America

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Flora of North America species comparison

Quercus alba

Quercus inopina

Quercus alba

Quercus inopina