Sawtooth oak is an East Asian oak that has been planted widely in the eastern US, mostly as a food source for wildlife, and now seeds itself into woods in parts of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Its long, chestnut-like leaves are edged with bristle-tipped teeth, and its acorns sit in shaggy, bristly caps.
Appearance
- Appearance
- A fast-growing deciduous tree, usually about 40–60 ft (12–18 m) tall in US landscapes, with dark, deeply furrowed bark on older trunks.
- Leaves
- Glossy leaves 3–8 in (8–20 cm) long with many straight side veins, each ending in a hair-like bristle tooth. Dead brown leaves often hang on through winter.
- Flowers
- Male flowers hang in long in spring; the female flowers are tiny. Pollen is carried by the wind.
- Fruit
- Acorns are about 1 in (2–3 cm) long, half covered by a cap with long, curling, bristly scales. They take about 18 months to ripen and are produced in heavy crops.
Look-alikes
ChestnutsCastanea
Chestnut leaf teeth stay green to the tip, while sawtooth oak teeth end in pale bristles. In fall, chestnuts have spiny husks that split open, not acorn caps.
Why they get mixed upThe long, toothed leaves look very similar.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Parks and yards
- Wildlife plantings
- Woodland edges
- Range
- Native to China, Korea, Japan, the Himalayas, and Indochina. In the US it is planted widely in the East and has naturalized in scattered places from the Gulf Coast states north to Pennsylvania and New York.
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers well-drained, acidic soil but tolerates poor sites. Hardy in USDA zones 6–9.
Name and classification
- About the name
- There are two subspecies: the typical one in East Asia and mainland Southeast Asia, and subsp. kingii from Nepal and the eastern Himalayas to Myanmar and Laos, which has longer leaf teeth.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
- Status
- It spreads so readily in parts of the eastern US that extension experts no longer recommend planting it, and Wisconsin lists it as a prohibited invasive species.
Culture and stories
- Culture and stories
- It was promoted for wildlife plantings because it bears acorns young and heavily.
- The wood cracks and splits easily, so it's used mainly for fencing.
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