Shumard Oak

An American oak, quite rare in Ireland, Quercus shumardii is a tall, long-lived, quite vigorous, deciduous tree, with good autumn colour in acid soils, good for a very large garden, park or woodland planting. When young, the tree grows quite slowly, but becomes more vigorous when established. It has a pyramidal habit, but grows more spreading when mature. The leaves are deeply lobed, but with variation from tree to tree, 20cm long, downy on the underside, and a glossy green, turning red, sometimes golden-brown, in the autumn. Insignificant, greenish flowers are followed by large, cupped acorns, which may take two to three years to mature. Shumard Oak tolerates occasional flooding, but is drought-tolerant when established.

Site: Tolerates exposure
Soil: Any moist but well-drained soil; colours best in acidic soils
Position: Full sun
Season of interest: Spring to autumn
Hardiness: Fully hardy
Height: 59’ (18m) Spread: 32-40’ (10-12m) in 20-50 years

Photos by F.D. Richards and Bruce Kirchoff, cropped, and licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.