Yellow chestnut oak, Chinquapin oak, Yellow oak, Rock oak
Quercus muehlenbergii

Family: Fagaceae

What it is like

A medium sized tree. It grows 15-30 m high. It spreads 12 m wide. It is taller if amongst other trees. The trunk is 60 cm across. The trunk is straight and without branches till the crown. It is strongly tapered with a swollen base. The leaves are 10-18 cm long. They are narrow and taper to both ends. They are coarsely toothed. The upper surface is glossy green and it is greyish green and with downy hairs underneath. There are 10-15 straight veins on each side. The leaf stalk is slender and 1-3 cm long. The fruit are acorns which are 12-25 mm long. they have short stalks. The cup is deep and bowl shaped. It covers about one third of the acorn.

There are about 600 Quercus species.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It occurs on dry rocky slopes. It is often on limestone soils. It suits hardiness zones 5-9. Arboretum Tasmania.

Countries/locations it is found in

Australia, Canada, Mexico, North America, Tasmania, USA

How it is used for food

The acorns are roasted with butter and salt or dipped in clarified sugar then eaten.

Edible parts

Seeds, nuts, acorn

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Several