Flora of North America species comparison

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Quercus coccinea

Quercus minima

scarlet oak

dwarf live oak, minimal oak
Habit Trees, deciduous, to 30 m; lower trunk without stubs of dead branches. Shrubs, subevergreen or evergreen, low, rhizomatous, forming clonal patches of straight, often unbranched stems 0.2-0.7(-2) m. Bark light gray or brown, smooth.
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.

light gray, 1.5-3 mm diam., glabrous or very finely tomentulose and glabrate in 2d year.
Buds

dark gray-brown, globose, 0.5-1(-1.5) mm;

scale margins glabrous or puberulent.
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 obovate to oblanceolate, sometimes orbiculate or lance-ovate, often asymmetric, 40-120 × 20-50 mm proximally on shoots, narrowly elliptic, 20-60 × 5-20 mm distally on shoots, base cuneate, rarely truncate or cordate, margins minutely revolute or flat, coarsely and irregularly 1-5 toothed on each side (proximal leaves of shoots) or entire (distal leaves on shoots), teeth mucronate (rarely spinose in suckers or juveniles), secondary veins obscure, 4-10(-12) on each side, usually 4-6 in proximal leaves, apex obtuse-rounded or acute;

surfaces abaxially whitish or glaucous, densely covered with minute, appressed, fused-stellate hairs, light green and glabrate in shade leaves, adaxially dark or light green, glossy, glabrous or with minute, scattered, stellate hairs.
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.

1-3, on peduncle 3-30 mm;

cup hemispheric or deeply goblet-shaped, (8-)10-15 mm deep × 6-15 mm wide, base often constricted, scales whitish or grayish, thickened basally, keeled, acute-attenuate, tomentulose, tips reddish, glabrous or puberulent;

nut dark brown, narrowly ovoid or subcylindric, 13-22(-25) × 8-15 mm, glabrous.
Cotyledons

connate.
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.

2n

= 24.

Quercus coccinea

Quercus minima
Phenology Flowering spring. Flowering spring.
Habitat Poor soils, well-drained uplands, dry slopes, and ridges, occasionally on poorly drained sites Coastal plain, open evergreen woodlands and scrublands on deep sandy soils, often as understory with pines
Elevation 0-1500 m (0-4900 ft) 0-200 m (0-700 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
FL; GA; MS; NC; SC
[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.)

Quercus minima is one of the most distinctive oaks of southeastern United States in morphology, habit, and habitat. It is one of our most strongly rhizomatous species, and it flowers and fruits as early as three years from seed, on vertical stems as small as 0.2-0.3 m. Other related live oaks of Quercus series Virentes (see C. H. Muller 1961) can produce rhizomatous clonal patches as well, but these typically do not bear fruit, are usually associated with large shrub or tree forms, and probably represent response to fire and/or drought conditions. Because of the juvenile phases in other live oaks that may resemble Q. minima, it is necessary to evaluate form and reproductive capacity within populations to identify those species accurately.

Putative hybrid swarms between Quercus minima and Q. chapmanii occur along the eastern side of Florida. These are rhizomatous shrubs with leaves somewhat intermediate between the two parents. The leaves are broadly rounded apically and basally, and sparsely stellate abaxially. The fruit resembles that of Q. minima. Material of such affinity, but with larger nuts (to 25 mm), was the basis for Q. rolfsii Small. More data on variation in cotyledon fusion in the putative hybrid swarms would be useful because Q. minima has connate cotyledons and those of Q. chapmanii are distinct.

Quercus minima has been reported from coastal Texas (C. H. Muller 1970), but that material is probably best referred to Q. fusiformis and possible introgressants from Q. virginiana and Q. oleoides. Typical Q. minima is not known from west of Mississippi. The Texas populations that have been referred here lack leaf dimorphism, leaf shape, and venation of Q. minima. Instead, they seem to be part of an extremely variable complex of erect shrubs, rhizomatous shrubs, and trees that have leaves varying in form between those of Q. fusiformis and Q. oleoides (e.g., the type of Q. oleoides var. quaterna C. H. Muller). If Q. minima occurred on the Texas coast in the past, its presence there has been so diluted by introgression that it is not now recognizable by the very distinctive and reliable characteristics that are used to identify it.

(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. Quercus
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. 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. 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 Q. virginiana var. minima, Q. virens var. dentata, Q. virginiana var. dentata
Name authority Münchhausen: Hausvater 5(1): 254. (1770) (Sargent) Small: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 24: 438. (1897)
Web links 
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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