Flowering Trees & Shrubs Codexery

Quercus velutina

A widespread North American oak with velvety buds.

Last updated

Black oak (Quercus velutina) is a tree species in the family Fagaceae, accepted by GBIF as a valid taxon.[1] Its inner bark yields a yellow-orange pigment called quercitron, historically used as a textile dye.[2] The common name "yellow oak" is applied to this species because its inner bark contains the yellow-orange pigment quercitron, which was historically exported to Europe for use as a textile dye.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. CladeTracheophytes
  2. CladeAngiosperms
  3. CladeEudicots
  4. CladeRosids
  5. OrderFagales
  6. FamilyFagaceae
  7. GenusQuercus
  8. GenusQuercus
  9. SpeciesQuercus velutina

Named by Lam.

Close relatives

Other species of Quercus with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Quercus velutina (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Conservation status

Least Concern (LC)

  1. LC▲ this species
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX
Population trend
Not held in our sources — see the assessment
Assessment published
2015

Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category

How big is it?

Size comparison: Quercus velutina and a personA 0.2 m long quercus velutina drawn to scale next to a 1.8 m tall person. Schematic shapes, not a likeness.0.2 m1.8 m

Largest length in the source, 0.2 m, next to a 1.8 m person.

Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Quercus velutina

Where the quercus velutina has been recorded

Where the quercus velutina has been recorded5 mapped locations from 14,004 GBIF occurrence records

Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (14,004 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 349 inland records left out (institution coordinates).

Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain)

Biology and range

The acorns are medium-sized and broadly rounded, with a large cap covering almost half the nut.[3] On the twig, black oak leaves are arranged alternately, measuring 10–20 cm in length, and they feature 5–7 lobes tipped with bristles that are separated by deep U-shaped notches.[4] The leaf's top side is a glossy, dark green, while the bottom side is yellowish-brown and bears stellate hairs that form clumps.[4] Buds are velvety and coated with white hairs, and leaves that develop in full sunlight display especially deep U-shaped sinuses.[4]

This tree can grow on any aspect or slope position, but it achieves its best growth in coves and on middle and lower slopes that face north or east.[5] In the southern Appalachians, black oak is found at elevations reaching up to 1200 m.[5] Good acorn crops are produced consistently every 2 to 3 years.[4]

What the specialist sources record

The GBIF Backbone Taxonomy lists Quercus velutina Lam. as an accepted species in the order Fagales, family Fagaceae.[1] GBIF holds 21,352 occurrence records for this taxon as of 18 October 2026.[1]

References

  1. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Quercus velutina (taxon key 8086561). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Quercus velutina" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Quercitron - CAMEO", cameo.mfa.org; (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Quercus velutina" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Zim, "Trees: A Guide to Familiar American Trees", Golden Books, 1987; (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Quercus velutina" (CC BY-SA 4.0) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Quercus velutina" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Black Oak Silvics of North America", research.fs.usda.gov (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Quercus velutina (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Named in this entry

Oak

More in Flowering Trees & Shrubs

Quercus virginianaPolylepisMagnoliaMagnoliaceaeMagnoliidsNothofagusNothofagus fuscaNothofagus menziesiiPopulusPopulus tremulaPopulus tremuloidesPopulus trichocarpa

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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