Swamp Chestnut Oak

Quercus michauxii

Size: 3 Gallon Availability

Tree
Max size: 60’ tall x 50’ wide
Average size: 50′ tall x 40′ wide

Very Moist, Usually Moist
Sand
Sun, Part Shade
No Salt Tolerance

AKA: Basket Oak, Michaux Oak, Cow Oak

This deciduous tree has a bronze fall color and inconspicuous blooms. The acorns ripen in the fall and are sweeter than other acorns. Production begins once the tree is around 20 years old. Many different birds and mammals eat the acorns. It is also a larval food for brown duskywing butterfly (Erynnis horatius), gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), and white-M hairstreak (Parrhasius m-album).

The bark of the oak can be used to make dyes and paints. The barks and galls have also long been used to create a permanent ink. Oak medicines are incredibly varied; they contain tannin, which has been shown to be antiviral, antiseptic, and antitumor; various Indigenous practices worldwide have ascribed medicinal uses to various parts of the tree.