Several different species of Oaks, scientifically listed as Quercus, are commonly found growing wild in Central Texas. In the Red Oak family, we have Texas Red Oak, aka Buckley's Oak (Q. buckleyi), Blackjack Oak (Q. marilandica), and Live Oak (Q. fusiformis). In the White Oak family we have Bur Oak (Q. macrocarpa), Post Oak (Q. stellata), Durand Oak/Limestone Durand Oak, aka Bastard Oak, White Shin Oak, Durand White Oak and Bigelow Oak (Q. sinuata), and Chinquapin Oak aka Chinkapin Oak (Q. muehlenbergi)
Red Oaks:
1 Q. buckleyi, 2 Q. marilandica, 3 Q. fusiformis
White Oaks:
1 Q. macrocarpa, 2 Q. stellata, 3 Q. sinuata, 4 Q. muehlenbergi
To briefly go over these Red Oak species:
1. Buckley's Oak is Quercus buckleyi: Formerly regarded as a variety of Q. shumardii. Identification at species level would be easier if that was still the case, but buckleyi is now recognized as a separate species. This tree is often called Texas Red Oak, and this can create confusion as there is another Oak - Quercus texana (Nuttall's Oak) that Inat has given that common name to. Shumard Oak has been widely planted as a landscape tree. I imagine that most of wild trees occuring in this vicinity along the I-35 corridor and to the west are of the escarpment variety, which is Q. buckleyi. Although typically smaller, Q. buckleyi can grow into large trees- the largest buckleyi in Texas has a size index larger than the biggest shumardii in Texas.
2. Blackjack Oak is Quercus marilandica : Easy to spot. Like other oaks, Blackjack Oak will hybridize and that can cause some confusion over what you've found, but generally it is easy to identify with distinguishing leaves, found growing in dryer uplands. For much of the winter the dead leaves often remain on the tree.
3. Texas Live Oak is Quercus fusiformis: Formerly considered to be a variety of Q. virginiana. Identification to species level would be easier if that was still the case, but Q. fusifromis is now recognized as a separate species. The Live Oak trees this far west will undoubtedly posess inconclusive DNA strands and individual characteristics are determined largely on growing conditions.
To breifly go over these White Oak species:
1.Bur Oak is Quercus macrocarpa: Everyting about Bur Oak is large. It has large acorns, large leaves, and large size. It is usually found in bottomlands and easy to id.
2. Post Oak is Quercus stellata: Stellata is Latin for "star"; it is named this because the trichome hairs on the bottom of the leaves are stellate or star-shaped. The leaves will have a tell tale cross form.
3. Bastard Oak is Quercus sinuata: According to Robert Vines, Durand White Oak grows right up to the Balcones Escarpment. The escarpment variety is labeled as Q. sinuata var. breviloba. It is called White Shin Oak or Bigelow Oak and is typically smaller and multi-trunked. As with the others, these trees must possess a mixed bag of genes as they can grow large given favorable conditions.
4. Chinkapin Oak is Quercus muehlenbergi: Chinkapin, or Chinquapin Oak once had what was referred to as a western variety known as Bray's Chinquapin Oak, but this classification has been abandoned.
To learn more about Live Oaks, click here About Live Oaks
To learn more about Red Oaks, click here Red Oak ramblings
