Burr x Swamp White Hybrid Oak
 

Mature Size, Growth, Longevity

Landscape size: 60-70' tall & wide. Develops a broad, spreading crown of strong branches. Slow-medium growth rate. Lifespan is about 200 years.

Native Range

Kentucky Native — The two parents of this hybrid oak both occur in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, so this is also the range where this natural hybrid can occur.

Flower and Fruit Details

Flowers are monoecious, yellow-green male catkins pendant and clustered, April-May; female solitary. Fruits, Sept-Oct, are 3/4-1.5" acorns, each significantly covered by the involucre (acorn cup/cap). Acorns are brown, borne on a slender peduncle stem. Yields food for songbirds & other wildlife.

Leaf and Bark Features

Deciduous: Leaves somewhat resemble both parent species, alternate, simple, 4-9" long, 2-5" wide, oblong-obovate, w/ several pairs of rounded lobes around margin. Leaves are dark green on top and lighter green beneath. Dull yellow-green, golden-yellow to yellow-brown to brown fall color. Bark is grayish-brown, w/ longitudinal fissures. Young stems yellowish-brown, w/ multiple buds at tip.

Culture and Care

Needs full sun. Tolerates clay, drought, heat & salt. Avoid soil compaction. Zones 4-8. Acid soil helps prevent iron chlorosis. Susceptible to galls, anthracnose, leaf scorch, cankers, leaf spots, powdery mildew, rust, wilt, decay, shoe-string root rot, scales, saddleback caterpillar, oak skeletonizer, borers, miners, & mites.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Other Facts

Good wildlife value. 3-season interest: Spring, summer and fall.

Suggested Uses

Makes a good shade tree in parks and larger landscapes.

Taxa and Plants of this Species at BCA