Centenary College Arboretum: Tree of the Week: Swamp White Oak (Quercus michauxii)

Sunday, December 2, 2018

Tree of the Week: Swamp White Oak (Quercus michauxii)

A certain swamp white oak (Quercus michauxii) is calling for our attention this week. We have a 25-year-old specimen that is in rude health. It has dropped all of its leaves, revealing a handsome upright, white trunk. Its large acorns, mixed into the rattling leaf-litter, are also of interest.

The bare swamp white oak is pictured center; it's growing in a wet area with plenty of sun. This 25-year-old was grown from seed collected at the Caroline Dormon Nature Preserve.

The swamp white oak grows at the bottom of a steep slope, next to the arboretum drainage.

During the summer months, this is a very shady spot. Now that the leaves are on the ground, the sun is lighting up the erect trunk of the swamp white oak. Note the bifurcation of the trunk: the trunk continues to grow straight up, even after the split.

Swamp white oaks have light-colored, flaky bark, characteristic of white oaks (Quercus alba).

From the leaf-litter: swamp white oak leaves have wavy, toothed edges. The 'teeth' are rounded. This large leaf measures nearly 9 inches in length.

The underside looks nearly identical. However, it has a different texture from the top side: it feels fuzzy.

Leaf-size varies! Also, note that the smaller leaf has a pointed tip, while the larger leaf is rounded.

Here we have a 7-inch leaf with a rounded tip.

Large, oblong acorns are also to be found in the leaf-litter. These acorns are 1.25 inches long.

They are an inch wide.

After the shell is removed, the nut is revealed. It measures approximately an inch in length.

Splitting the nut open reveals a white interior. These nuts are considered a tasty treat by wildlife and cows. Can humans eat them too? The most respectable sources are self-contradictory! Much remains to be studied about this tree.