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Fagaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Quercus palustris

Quercus palustris

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

All parts of the plant contain tannins. Whilst tannins are found in many foods, and have a range of medicinal uses. They are usually only present in low concentrations. In some foods made from oaks (particularly the seeds), the tannin content can be quite high unless the food is treated to reduce tannin content. Tannins are only of low toxicity and, because of their bitter taste and astringency, are unlikely to be eaten in large quantities. However, if they are taken in excess, they can cause stomach pains; constipation followed by bloody diarrhoea: excessive thirst; and excessive urination[1].

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
GrowthFast

Young plants tolerate reasonable levels of side shade but older plants grow better in a sunny position[2, 3]. Prefers a good deep fertile loam which can be on the stiff side[4, 5]. Prefers an acid soil[6], plants are somewhat lime tolerant according to one report[7], whilst others say that they are intolerant of alkaline soils[6, 3]. Plants are tolerant of long periods with the soil inundated[3]. Withstands atmospheric pollution[8]. Tolerates moderate exposure, surviving well but being somewhat stunted[2]. A fairly fast growing tree[2], it is occasionally cultivated for timber in eastern central Europe[9]. It coppices fairly well[8]. The tree seldom lives longer than 150 - 200 years in the wild, commencing to bear seeds when 15 - 25 years old[10]. Seed production is cyclic, a year of high yields being followed by 2 - 3 years of low yields[10]. The tree flowers on new growth produced in spring, the seed taking two summers to ripen[10]. There are some named varieties selected for their ornamental value[2]. Intolerant of root disturbance, trees should be planted in their permanent positions whilst young[5]. This species has a relatively shallow tap-root, making it easier to transplant[11]. Hybridizes freely with other members of the genus[2]. Pin Oak is susceptible to Oak Wilt (Ceratocytis fagacearum) and other common pests and pathogens of the Red Oak group in the eastern US. However, no reports of widespread population decline are available, suggesting this does not currently pose a major threat to the species[12]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[2].

Propagation

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. Average germination rate is about 68%[8]. 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[5]. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Quercus+palustris>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]Poisonous Plants of North Carolina — http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/poison.htm ↩︎An excellent concise but comprehensive guide to toxic plants that grow in N. Carolina. It lists even those plants that are of very low toxicity, including several well-known food plants such as carrots and potatoes.
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  3. [3]Southern Trees Fact Sheets — Gilman E.F. · University of Florida, IFAS Extension · http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/department_envhort-trees ↩︎A series of fact sheets on trees that can be grown in Florida. They can be downloaded from the Internet
  4. [4]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  5. [5]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  6. [6]KemperCentreForHomeGardeningPlantFinder — Missouri Botanical Garden · http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ ↩︎Basic cultivation details, plant uses, habitat etc for several thousand species of plants, mainly from the temperate zone.
  7. [7]The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers — Brickell. C. · Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. · 1990 · ISBN 0-86318-386-7 ↩︎Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
  8. [8]Trees of North Texas — Vines. R.A. · University of Texas Press. · 1982 · ISBN 0292780206 ↩︎A readable guide to the area, it contains descriptions of the plants and their habitats with quite a bit of information on plant uses.
  9. [9]Flora Europaea — ? · Cambridge University Press · 1964 · ISBN - ↩︎An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
  10. [10]The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. — Elias. T. · Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. · 1980 · ISBN 0442238622 ↩︎A very good concise guide. Gives habitats, good descriptions, maps showing distribution and a few of the uses. It also includes the many shrubs that occasionally reach tree proportions.
  11. [11]Identification Guide to the Trees of Canada — Lauriault. J. · Fitzhenry and Whiteside, Ontario. · 1989 · ISBN 0889025649 ↩︎Very good on identification for non-experts, the book also has a lot of information on plant uses.
  12. [12]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  13. [13]Gray's Manual of Botany.Eighth Edition — Fernald. M. L. · American Book Co.; New York · 1950 · ISBN 0442222505 ↩︎A bit dated but a good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.
  14. [14]Wild Food Plants of Indiana. — McPherson. A. and S. · Indiana University Press · 1977 · ISBN 0-253-28925-4 ↩︎A nice pocket guide to this region of America.
  15. [15]Flora of China — Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. · 1994 · http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
  16. [16]Fire Effects Information System — http://www.feis-crs.org/feis/ ↩︎An on-line information site with comprehensive information on over 1,100 species of plant. Mainly developed to supply information on the effects of fire on plants and animals, it also contains a wealth of other information on the plants
  17. [17]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
  18. [18]A Modern Herbal. — Grieve. · Penguin · 1984 · ISBN 0-14-046-440-9 ↩︎Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
  19. [19]Antibacterial and Antifungal Activities of Some Quercus Species Growing in Turkey — Didem Söhretoğlu; Melike Ekizoğlu; Ekrem Kiliç; M. Koray Sak · 2007 ↩︎
  20. [20]Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. — Riotte. L. · Garden Way, Vermont, USA. · 1978 · ISBN 0-88266-064-0 ↩︎Fairly good.
  21. [21]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  22. [22]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  23. [23]Manual of the Trees of N. America. — Sargent. C. S. · Dover Publications Inc. New York. · 1965 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ · ISBN 0-486-20278-X ↩︎Two volumes, a comprehensive listing of N. American trees though a bit out of date now. Good details on habitats, some details on plant uses. Not really for the casual reader. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  24. [24]Economic Botany. — Hill. A. F. · The Maple Press · 1952 · ISBN - ↩︎Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some detail about the plants it does cover.
  25. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎