Flora of North America species comparison

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Quercus coccinea

Quercus imbricaria

scarlet oak

shingle oak
Habit Trees, deciduous, to 30 m; lower trunk without stubs of dead branches. Trees, deciduous, to 20 m. Bark grayish brown, fissures and ridges shallow, inner bark pinkish.
Bark

dark gray to dark brown, irregularly fissured with scaly ridges, inner bark orangish pink.

Twigs

reddish brown, (1-)2-3.5 mm diam., glabrous.

greenish brown to brown, 1.5-3(-4) mm diam., glabrous or sparsely pubescent.
Leaves

blade elliptic to ovate or obovate, 70-160 × 80-130 mm, base obtuse to truncate, margins with 5-9 deep lobes and 18-50 awns, lobes distally expanded, sinuses usually extending more than 1/2 distance to midrib, apex acute;

surfaces abaxially glabrous except for minute axillary tufts of tomentum, adaxially glossy light green, glabrous, secondary veins raised on both surfaces.

blade ovate or elliptic to obovate, usually widest near middle, 80-200 × 15-75 mm, base obtuse to cuneate, occasionally rounded, margins entire with 1 apical awn, apex acute to obtuse;

surfaces abaxially uniformly pubescent, adaxially lustrous, glabrous.
Acorns

biennial;

cup turbinate to hemispheric, 7-13 mm high × 16.5-31.5 mm wide, covering 1/3-1/2 nut, outer surface light to dark reddish brown, glossy, glabrous to puberulent, inner surface light brown, glabrous, occasionally with ring of pubescence around scar, scales often tuberculate, base broad, glossy, margins strongly concave with tips tightly appressed, acute to attenuate;

nut oblong to subglobose, 12-22 × 10-21 mm, glabrous, with 1 or more rings of fine pits at apex, scar diam. 6.5-13.5 mm.

biennial;

cup deeply saucer-shaped to cup-shaped, 5-9 mm high × 10-18 mm wide, covering 1/3-1/2 nut, outer surface puberulent, inner surface light brown to reddish brown and glabrous or with a few hairs around nut scar, scale tips tightly appressed, acute;

nut ovoid to subglobose, 9-18 × 10-18 mm, often striate, having 1 or more indistinct rings of minute pits at apex, glabrate, scar diam. 5-9 mm.
Terminal

buds dark reddish brown, conic to ovoid, 4-7 mm, noticeably 5-angled in cross section, usually silvery- or tawny-pubescent distal to middle.

buds brown to reddish brown, ovoid, 3-6 mm, distinctly 5-angled in cross section, scales minutely ciliate on margins.
2n

= 24.

= 24.

Quercus coccinea

Quercus imbricaria
Phenology Flowering spring. Flowering spring.
Habitat Poor soils, well-drained uplands, dry slopes, and ridges, occasionally on poorly drained sites Moderately dry to mesic slopes and uplands, occasionally in ravines and bottoms
Elevation 0-1500 m (0-4900 ft) 100-700 m (300-2300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; GA; IL; IN; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MO; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WI; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AR; DC; DE; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MD; MI; MO; NC; NJ; OH; PA; TN; TX; VA; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Trees having acorns with broad, distinctly warty cups are sometimes classified as Quercus coccinea var. tuberculata Sargent.

Quercus coccinea reportedly hybridizes with Q. imbricaria, Q. ilicifolia (= Q. ×robbinsii Trelease), Q. laevis, and Q. palustris (E. J. Palmer 1948) and with Q. phellos, Q. rubra, and Q. velutina (= Q. ×fontana Laughlin).

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

The wood of Quercus imbricaria was once an important source of shingles, hence its common name.

The Cherokee used the bark of Quercus imbricaria to treat indigestion, chronic dysentery, mouth sores, chapped skin, general sores, chills and fevers, lost voice, milky urine, and as an antiseptic and a general tonic (D. E. Moerman 1986).

This species reportedly hybridizes with Q. coccinea (W. H. Wagner Jr. and D. J. Schoen 1976); with Q. falcata (producing Q. ×anceps E. J. Palmer) and Q. ilicifolia (D. M. Hunt 1989); with Q. marilandica, Q. palustris, and Q. phellos (H. A. Gleason 1952); and with Q. rubra, Q. shumardii, and Q. velutina.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 3. FNA vol. 3.
Parent taxa Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Lobatae Fagaceae > Quercus > sect. Lobatae
Sibling taxa
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. 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. 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
Synonyms Q. coccinea var. tuberculata
Name authority Münchhausen: Hausvater 5(1): 254. (1770) Michaux: Hist. Chênes Amér., no. 9, plates 15, 16. (1801)
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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).



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