Swamp White Oak
Quercus bicolor
Family: Fagaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: Brown. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Late spring, Mid spring. Form: Oval, Rounded.
Quercus bicolor is a deciduous Tree growing to 25 m (82ft 0in) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 4 and is not frost tender. It is in flower in May, and the seeds ripen in October. The species is monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and is pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist or wet soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.
Height (m): 25
Where it is found
Bottomlands, stream margins and swamps. Tolerant of poorly drained sites, it is frequently found in heavy mucky soils.
Eastern N. America - Quebec to Minnesota, Georgia and Arkansas.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 4
Seed - raw or cooked. A rather sweet flavour. The seed is quite large, about 2 - 3cm long and 15 - 20mm wide, and unlike most other oaks, is attached to the tree by a long stem. It matures in its first year. The seed can be dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in stews etc or mixed with cereals for making bread. The seed from some trees can contain bitter tannins, these can be leached out by thoroughly washing the seed in running water though many minerals will also be lost. Either the whole seed can be used or the seed can be dried and ground it into a powder. It can take several days or even weeks to properly leach whole seeds, one method was to wrap them in a cloth bag and place them in a stream. Leaching the powder is quicker. A simple taste test can tell when the tannin has been leached. The traditional method of preparing the seed was to bury it in boggy ground overwinter. The germinating seed was dug up in the spring when it would have lost most of its astringency. Roasted seed is a coffee substitute.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Coffee: the various substitutes that can be used instead of coffee.
Medicine
Rating: 2
Any galls produced on the tree are strongly astringent and can be used in the treatment of haemorrhages, chronic diarrhoea, dysentery etc.
Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.
Dysentery: Used in treating dysentery - an infection of the intestines that causes diarrhoea containing blood or mucus.
Other
Rating: 3
The leaves of most species in this genus are more or less rich in tannins. A mulch of the leaves can be placed around vulnerable plants in order to repel slugs, snails, grubs etc. Fresh leaves should be used with caution, since these can utilize some of the nitrogen in the soil and this inhibit plant growth. Oak galls are excrescences that are sometimes produced in great numbers on the tree and are caused by the activity of the larvae of different insects. The insects live inside these galls, obtaining their nutrient therein. When the insect pupates and leaves, the gall can be used as a rich source of tannin, that can also be used as a dyestuff. The bark has been boiled with hemlock (Tsuga sp.?) and soft maple bark (Acer spp), and the liquid used to remove rust. The mixture was also believed to prevent rust. The wood is close-grained, strong, hard, tough, heavy. It weighs 48lb per cubic foot. Trees do not self-prune and dead branches remain on the trees for many years. This does mean that the wood is usually quite knotty. The wood machines well, though it can check and warp if not dried properly. It is of some importance commercially. And is used for construction, cabinet making, furniture, interior finishes, veneers, fence posts etc. The wood makes a good fuel.
Repellent: Plants that are said to deter but not necessarily kill various mammals, birds, insects etc.
Rust: Plants that can be used to prevent or treat rust.
Tannin: An astringent substance obtaied from plants, it is used medicinally, as a dye and mordant, stabilizer in pesticide etc.
Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Pest tolerant, Specimen, Street tree. Prefers a good deep fertile loam which can be on the stiff side. Young plants tolerate reasonable levels of side shade. Tolerates moderate exposure, surviving well but being somewhat stunted. Prefers warmer summers than are usually experienced in Britain, trees often grow poorly in this country and fail to properly ripen their wood resulting in frost damage overwinter. A relatively fast-growing tree in the wild, living 300 - 350 years, though it is relatively shallow-rooted and is considerably more susceptible to forest fires than most other oaks. This species is one of the best of the white oaks for growing in this country. However, it is said that the seed is rarely formed in Britain. The tree flowers on new growth produced in spring, the seed ripening in its first year. Trees do not commence bearing until about 25 - 30 years old, large crops being produced every 3 - 5 years. Intolerant of root disturbance, trees should be planted in their permanent positions whilst young. The seed of this species is attached to the tree by unusually long (by oak tree standards) stems. Hybridizes freely with other members of the genus. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus. Special Features: Attracts birds, North American native, Attracts butterflies, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms. The plant is heat tolerant in zones 8 through 1. (Plant Hardiness Zones show how well plants withstand cold winter temperatures. Plant Heat Zones show when plants would start suffering from the heat. The Plant Heat Zone map is based on the number of "heat days" experienced in a given area where the temperature climbs to over 86 degrees F (30°C). At this temperature, many plants begin to suffer physiological damage. Heat Zones range from 1 (no heat days) to 12 (210 or more heat days). For example Heat Zone. 11-1 indicates that the plant is heat tolerant in zones 11 through 1.) For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a standard with a non-suckering single trunk.
Propagating it: Seed - it quickly loses viability if it is allowed to dry out. It can be stored moist and cool overwinter but is best sown as soon as it is ripe in an outdoor seed bed, though it must be protected from mice, squirrels etc. Small quantities of seed can be sown in deep pots in a cold frame. Plants produce a deep taproot and need to be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible, in fact seed sown in situ will produce the best trees. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Canopy; Bog Garden;
Habit: Tree
Hardiness: 4-8
Growth: Medium
Soil: Medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist, wet