General Plant Information (Edit)
Plant Habit: Tree
Life cycle: Perennial
Sun Requirements: Full Sun
Water Preferences: Wet
Wet Mesic
Mesic
Soil pH Preferences: Slightly acid (6.1 – 6.5)
Neutral (6.6 – 7.3)
Minimum cold hardiness: Zone 4a -34.4 °C (-30 °F) to -31.7 °C (-25 °F)
Maximum recommended zone: Zone 8b
Plant Height: 50 to 60 feet
Plant Spread: 50 to 60 feet
Leaves: Deciduous
Fruit: Edible to birds
Fruiting Time: Late summer or early fall
Flowers: Inconspicuous
Suitable Locations: Street Tree
Uses: Shade Tree
Dynamic Accumulator: K (Potassium)
Wildlife Attractant: Birds
Resistances: Flood Resistant
Salt tolerant
Pollinators: Wind
Miscellaneous: Monoecious

Image
Common names
  • Swamp White Oak
  • Oak

Photo Gallery

Date: c. 1865
illustration [as Q. prinus discolor] by Bessa from Michaux's 'Nor
Location: Exton, Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-02-08
maturing specimen in a park
Photo by HannahsGarden
Location: Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL
Date: 2015-06-19
maturing planted tree
Location: Cosley Park in Wheaton, Illinois
Date: 2015-09-11
summer leaves
Location: Exton, Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-02-08
rough bark
Location: Botanical Graden Meise - Nationale Plantentuin Meise - Brussel
Location: Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL
Date: 2015-09-11
the full-sized but green acorns
Location: Exton (Lionville), Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-06-06
maturing tree in summer
Location: Botanical Graden Meise - Nationale Plantentuin Meise - Brussel
Date: 2017-09-27
Location: Botanical Graden Meise - Nationale Plantentuin Meise - Brussel
Location: Botanical Graden Meise - Nationale Plantentuin Meise - Brussel
Location: Marsh Creek Lake Park in southeast PA
Date: 2018-01-18
bark
Location: Wilton, IA
Date: 5-11-14
Location: My garden, Pequea, Pennsylvania 17565
Date: 2017-09-29

Date: 2009-08-29
Location: downtown Chicago, Illinois near Chicago River
Date: 2013-08-13
planted trees in professional landscape
Location: Brownstown Pennsylvania
Date: 2016-07-13
Bought at 1/2 price after Arbor Day. Only two months planted and
Location: Exton (Lionville), Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-06-06
foliage
Location: Marsh Creek Lake Park in southeast PA
Date: 2018-01-18
maturing tree in winter
Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-09-04
lower part of tree along a water run in a park
Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania
Date: 2019-09-04
leaves and bark of tree along a run in a park

Photo: Ninjatacoshell
Location: Cosley Park in Wheaton, Illinois
Date: 2014-08-19
maturing planted tree in little zoo
Location: near West Chester, Pennsylvania
Date: 2010-11-10
planted maturing tree in park
Location: near West Chester, Pennsylvania
Date: 2008-11-11
portion of trunk with bark
Location: Bel Air, Maryland
Date: 2013-01-12
planted young trees
Location: near West Chester, Pennsylvania
Date: 2010-11-10
lower portion of trunk
Location: Newtown Square, Pennsylvania
Date: 2010-07-27
mature tree in landscape
Location: Missouri Botanical Garden (Mobot) in St Louis
Date: 2016-06-18
Location: Morton Arboretum
Date: July
credit: Bruce Marlin
This plant is tagged in:
Image

Comments:
  • Posted by ILPARW (southeast Pennsylvania - Zone 6b) on Dec 7, 2017 4:17 PM concerning plant:
    Swamp White Oak has during the last few decades become a popular tree in professional landscapes of parks, public properties, schools, universities, and such. It is medium fast to fast growing of about 1.5 to 2 feet/year and it does not develop a taproot, but has a fibrous system that makes it easy to transplant. It likes acid soil best of pH 6.0 to 6.5, and can get iron chlorosis if the soil is neutral; however, it can adapt to pH around 7.0 after awhile. It is sold by many larger nurseries and native plant nurseries. Its native range is from southern New England into much of New Jersey and Pennsylvania, Maryland, some of West Virginia & Kentucky, northern Missouri, southern and central Wisconsin, all of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, and southern Michigan, growing in swamps, bottomlands, and along watercourses. Its large acorn gets to about 1.5 inches long and are loved by wildlife. Its leathery leaves are 5 to 6 inches long x 2 to 4 inches wide with large, irregular, rounded teeth and the underside of the leaves are usually whitish from thick plant hair. The bark is gray or brown-gray with papery flakes or heavy scaly for a long time before eventually becoming deeply furrowed and dark gray-brown. It lives about 150 to 200 years.

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