Red Oak
Quercus rubra
About it
- Kind
- Trees · Perennial
- Family
- Fagaceae
- Mature size
- to 60 ft × 62.5 ft
- Hardiness zones
- Zones 4–8
- Sun
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 720 in apart
- Soil depth in a pot
- At least 24 in
- Water
- About every 4 days
ⓘ We don't know this plant's soil pH and feeding needs yet.
When to plant
We don't have planting times for Red Oak yet.
Planting partners
No cited companion planting notes for Red Oak yet.
Safety for pets and children
- Cats No information in our sources
- Dogs No information in our sources
- Horses Listed as a problem for horses (NC State Extension) — Low severity; in the leaves and seeds; toxic principle: Gallotannins, quercitrin, and quercitin
- Children No information in our sources
If a pet or child eats part of this plant, call your vet or poison control.
Read from NC State Extension ↗.
"No information" means our sources do not say, not that the plant is harmless. A non-toxic listing is not a reason to let anyone eat a plant.
Pests and diseases
No pest or disease notes for Red Oak yet.
Check the label and your local extension service before using any product.
Where this comes from
- annual growth in NC State Extension ↗ Inside the fast band (>24) and implies about 29 years to the height below -- roughly two feet a year in the open, which is what Rapid means for an oak
- category NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Plant Type: Tree
- climate requirement NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox USDA Plant Hardiness Zone: 4a-8b
- edible NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Edibility: "Acorns (nuts) are edible after tannins are leached or boiled out.", and Plant Type lists Poisonous. False for the same reason as the white oak: the column asks whether the plant is grown for a crop
- family npgsweb.ars-grin.gov ↗ GRIN page: Quercus rubra L.
- growth rate NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Growth Rate: Rapid
- life cycle NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Life Cycle: "Perennial, Woody"
- mature height in NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Height: 50 ft - 70 ft; midpoint 60 ft
- mature spread in NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Width: 50 ft - 75 ft; midpoint 62.5 ft
- min soil depth in NC State Extension ↗ Derived by 0039's method and banded by mature height; not published for this species
- space requirement NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox "Available Space To Plant: more than 60 feet"; a floor. Rows equal plants
- species NC State Extension ↗
- sunlight NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Light: Full sun and Partial Shade; the brighter of the two
- toxicity NC State Extension ↗ toxic for horse from the page's "Problem for" listing. Severity, parts and principle are the page's poison characteristics for the whole plant.
- water frequency days NC State Extension ↗ Handbook ch. 11's twice-a-week establishment watering, rendered as every 4 days. Generic to newly planted trees and shrubs