Shumard Oak

Shumard Oak

Shumard Oak – Quercus shumardii

A large forest tree reaching heights of 100 feet or more and a trunk to 3 feet in diameter, with a wide-spreading, symmetrical crown. The Shurmard is drought tolerant after established and does well in alkaline soils.

It often occurs as a single tree or in small groups in forest stands, and is an excellent landscape tree. The beauty of this Oak is the brilliant red fall color. It is often grown just for the fall color. The bark on this tree is dark gray, immature trees have a smooth and tight bark at first, but develop flat, interlacing ridges and rough fissures with age. Old trees can have deep fissures between the smooth ridges. Acorns require two years to mature and are usually about an inch in length and about half that in width with a shallow cap. This species was named for Benjamin Franklin Shumard a former state geologist of Texas who organized the first comprehensive geological survey of Texas.

Firewise – Designation by Texas A&M Forest Service