The Oak Family

Northern Red Oak Bear Oak Willow Oak White Oak

What are they?

Oaks are hugely important as forest trees throughout much of the world and equally so in Cape May County. For centuries the wood and fruits of many members of this family have been important to Man, and even longer to native wildife.

Where are they found?

Oaks and the American Beech are an integral part of most forest types in Cape May County, both wet and dry. Most species are typical climax woodland species and thus more likely to be found in older, undisturbed woodland rather than in young, regenerating sites.

Identification

Identification of many species is possible just from leaves, but some groups are a little trickier and require the acorns and acorn cups, buds or sometimes the bark to be checked.



American Beech      Fagus grandifolia

Found at scattered locations throughout Cape May County, though never a dominant tree. Occurs in mixed forests on drier soils, though not generally found on the sandier Pine Barrens soils. Flowers April. Leaves thin but tough once fully expanded; bark smooth, pale gray, but often covered in mosses and lichen. The three-sided nuts are carried in pairs in four-winged, spikey cases and are known as 'mast'. Though a deciduous tree, the dead leaves often hang on through the winter (especially in sheltered woodland) and this can sometimes be a useful identification clue during the colder months (along with the elongated buds).
American Beech American Beech American Beech
Flower clusters
Leaf
Beech mast

American Beech American Beech
Winter bud
Bark

American Chestnut      Castanea dentata

The American Chestnut once formed significant stands in Eastern North American forests but was almost wiped out by a highly virulent disease and now persists mostly as low, scrubby specimens. However, around Cape May County, a few reasonable-sized trees can be found in private gardens and in the Lake Nummy area of Belleplain State Forest. Flowers June. Male flowers are long, yellowish catkins, while female flowers develop into very spiney cases which carry edible chestnuts.
American Chestnut American Chestnut American Chestnut American Chestnut
Male flowers
Female flower
Leaf
Leaf edge with
forward-pointing teeth

American Chestnut American Chestnut American Chestnut American Chestnut
Fruits
Fruits
Winter bud
Bark

Northern Red Oak      Quercus rubra

Widespread and probably uncommon as a native tree, but often planted. Flowers May. A medium to large tree with leaves bearing rather spikey tips to the lobes. Leaves similar to Black Oak but hairless, and less shiny above.
Northern Red Oak Northern Red Oak Northern Red Oak
Habit
Leaf
Leaf

Northern Red Oak Northern Red Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Scarlet Oak      Quercus coccinea

Fairly common in woodland in the north of the county but scarce or absent further south. Flowers May. A medium to large tree, but often found as a smaller, scrubby specimen, when the broad, shallowly-lobed leaves are borned in the shade. Leaves more shiny above than Northern Red Oak and typically hairier below than others in the bristle-tipped group.
Scarlet Oak Scarlet Oak Scarlet Oak
Leaves
Leaf
Acorn

Scarlet Oak Scarlet Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Pin Oak      Quercus palustris

Not native in our area but occasionally found planted on roadsides or as a relic of an old garden. Very similar to our native Scarlet Oak and often very difficult to tell from it. In general, Pin Oak tends to have lower branches that distinctively slope downward toward the ground; the leaves are more deeply cut, and the leaves have larger tufts of hairs in the vein axils beneath.
Pin Oak Pin Oak Pin Oak Pin Oak
Habit
Leaves
Leaf
Leaf underside

Pin Oak
Bark

Black Oak      Quercus velutina

Not uncommon in pine barren habitats in the north of the county. Flowers May. A medium to large tree with leaves bearing rather spikey tips to the lobes. Leaves similar to Northern Red Oak but hairy below.
Black Oak Black Oak Black Oak Black Oak
Upper Leaf
Shade leaf
Bristle-tip on leaf
Leaf underside
Black Oak Black Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Southern Red Oak      Quercus falcata

(Spanish Oak) A southern species, on the north-east edge of its range in South Jersey. Common, both as a garden tree and as a woodland tree, especially in the southern half of the county. Favors dry, sandy sites. Can grow to a large size, often being wider than tall if given enough space. Flowers May. Leaves deeply cut with lobes often slightly curved (falcate); undersides felty with whitish hairs.
Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak
Habit
Flowers
Leaves
Leaves of mature tree

Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak Southern Red Oak
Leaves of young tree
Acorn
Winter buds
Bark

Bear Oak      Quercus ilicifolia

(Scrub Oak) A small, scruffy-looking tree or even simply a large shrub, common in dry, poor soils in the Pine Barrens and occasionally elsewhere. Flowers May. Leaves rather variable but usually small and with whitish fuzzy hairs beneath.
Bear Oak Bear Oak Bear Oak Bear Oak
Leaves
Leaves
Leaf underside
Flowers

Bear Oak Bear Oak Bear Oak Bear Oak
Leaves
Leaf
Acorn
Winter buds

Blackjack Oak      Quercus marilandica

An uncommon tree, found scattered through the dry oakwoods in the north of the county. Flowers April.
Blackjack Oak Blackjack Oak Blackjack Oak Blackjack Oak
Habit
Leaves
Leaf
Flowers

Blackjack Oak Blackjack Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Water Oak      Quercus nigra

A rare small tree in New Jersey, confined to a handful of wet woods in the south of the state. In Cape May County, known from a small handful of locations around Erma and Cold Spring. Flowers April.
Water Oak Water Oak Water Oak Water Oak
Leaves
Acorn
Winter buds
Bark

Willow Oak      Quercus phellos

Widespread and fairly common in damp ground throughout the area. Flowers May. An odd-looking oak with leaves that could be passed off as a willow. Bark mid-grey, with relatively few grooves for an oak.
Willow Oak Willow Oak Willow Oak
Leaves
Flowers
Acorn

Willow Oak Willow Oak
Winter buds
Bark

White Oak      Quercus alba

Widespread and very common in all kinds of habitats. Achieves its greatest size in deeper, bottomland soils. Flowers May. The 'classic' oak of the region. Leaves with rather narrow, rounded lobes, usually at about 45 degrees to the main shaft. Bark pale and very flaky with layers bending out from the trunk enough to fit finger tips behind.
White Oak White Oak White Oak
Leaf
Leaves
Acorns
White Oak White Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Post Oak      Quercus stellata

Widespread and common in a variety of habitats, but seeming to do particularly well in dry, sandy soils, even coastal dunes. Flowers May. Bark typical of the round-tipped oak group, but easily told by its unusual leaves which bear two large, square-ended lobes, one on either side.
Post Oak Post Oak Post Oak
Leaves
Leaf
Acorn

Post Oak Post Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Swamp Chestnut Oak      Quercus michauxii

(Basket Oak) An uncommon tree of swampy bottomlands which in southern New Jersey is at the northern edge of its range. Flowers April. Leaves similar to the much more common Chestnut Oak but they tend to be more tapered at the tip and the side lobes are deeper and more fingered (compare with Saul's Oak). Bark is pale and similar to that of White Oak but usually not quite so deeply fissured. Unlike Chestnut Oak, the leaves are densely downy below and this can be detected by touch even after they have fallen from the tree.
Swamp Chestnut Oak Swamp Chestnut Oak
Leaf
Leaf downy below

Swamp Chestnut Oak Swamp Chestnut Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Chestnut Oak      Quercus montana

Widespread and common in a variety of soils in both open and mature woodlands. Flowers May. An attractive oak with distinctive leaves, resembling those of the American Chestnut. Note that this species used to be known as Quercus prinus and still appears in many books under that name.
Chestnut Oak Chestnut Oak Chestnut Oak Chestnut Oak
Habit
Leaves
Leaf
Acorn

Chestnut Oak Chestnut Oak
Winter buds
Bark

Dwarf Oak      Quercus prinoides

A shrubby plant of the Pine Barrens which barely gets into Cape May in the sandy woods of the north of the county. Flowers May. An easily missed species being low and bushy and generally the same height as surrounding huckleberry plants. Care should be taken in separating this species from young shoots of Chestnut Oak.
Dwarf Oak Dwarf Oak Dwarf Oak Dwarf Oak
Habit
Leaves
Leaf
Leaf underside

Saul's Oak      Quercus x saulii

Oaks are famous amongst botanists for their promiscuity (the downside of liberally scattering masses of pollen to the four winds) and hybrids between certain oak species are not uncommon. Saul's Oak is a hybrid between White Oak and Chestnut Oak and the specimen shown here can be seen at the Villas Wildlife Management Area, where both its parents grow plentifully. As would be expected the tree shows mixed characters of both species, both in its leaves and its bark.
Saul's Oak Saul's Oak Saul's Oak
Habit
Leaves
Leaves

Saul's Oak Saul's Oak
Winter buds
Bark