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Quercus stellata — post oak

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New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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Facts

Post oak gets its common name from the use of its tough wood in making posts, railroad ties, and lumber. Its leaves are variably shaped, from deeply to barely lobed; the lobes are longest toward the front of the leaf, giving it a top-heavy look. Infusions of the astringent bark have been used by Native Americans to treat a variety of ailments, from chapped skin and sores to dysentery.

Habitat

Meadows and fields, ridges or ledges, sandplains and barrens, talus and rocky slopes, woodlands

Characteristics

Habitat
terrestrial
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Massachusetts
  • Rhode Island
Growth form
the plant is a tree
Leaf type
the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
Leaves per node
there is one leaf per node along the stem
Leaf blade edges
the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
Leaf duration
the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
armature on plant
the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns
Leaf blade length
40–200 mm
Leaf blade width
20–120 mm
Leaf stalk
the leaves have leaf stalks
Fruit type (general)
the fruit is dry but does not split open when ripe
Bark texture
the bark of an adult plant is ridged or plated
Twig winter color
  • brown
  • gray
  • green
  • yellow
Bud scale number
there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
Show all characteristics

  • Buds or leaf scars

    Bud scale number
    there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
    Bud scar shape (Fraxinus)
    NA
    Collateral buds
    there are no collateral buds on the sides of the branches
    Superposed buds
    there are no superposed buds on the branch

  • Flowers

    Carpels fused
    the carpels are fused to one another
    Enlarged sterile flowers
    there are no enlarged sterile flowers on the plant
    Flower petal color
    NA
    Flower symmetry
    there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
    Hairs on ovary (Amelanchier)
    NA
    Hypanthium present
    the flower does not have a hypanthium
    Inflorescence type
    • the inflorescence has only one flower on it
    • the inflorescence is an ament (catkin; slender, usually pendulous inflorescence with crowded unisexual flowers)
    Number of pistils
    1
    Ovary position
    the ovary is below the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
    Petal and sepal arrangement
    the flower includes only one cycle of petals or sepals
    Petal appearance
    NA
    Petal fusion
    NA
    Sepal cilia (Ilex)
    NA
    Stamen number
    • 1 or 2
    • 10
    • 11
    • 12
    • 3
    • 4
    • 5
    • 6
    • 7
    • 8
    • 9

  • Fruits or seeds

    Berry color
    NA
    Fruit tissue origin
    there are no flower parts that form part of the fruit
    Fruit type (general)
    the fruit is dry but does not split open when ripe
    Fruit type (specific)
    the fruit is a nut (dry and indehiscent, with a hard wall, usually containing only one seed and usually subtended by an involucre)
    Wings on fruit
    there are no wings on the fruit

  • Glands or sap

    Sap color
    the sap is clear and watery
    Stalked glands on fruit (Rosa)
    NA

  • Growth form

    Growth form
    the plant is a tree

  • Leaves

    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    the upper side of the leaf is fuzzy or hairy
    Leaf blade base shape
    • The base of the leaf blade is cordate (heart-shaped, with rounded lobes)
    • the base of the leaf blade is attenuate (tapering very gradually to a prolonged tip)
    • the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    • the base of the leaf blade is rounded
    Leaf blade edges
    the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
    Leaf blade edges (Acer)
    NA
    Leaf blade flatness
    the leaf is flat (planar) at the edges
    Leaf blade hairs
    • at least some of the hairs on the leaf blade are branched
    • at least some of the hairs on the leaf blade have glands at their tips
    Leaf blade length
    40–200 mm
    Leaf blade scales
    there are no scales on the leaf blades
    Leaf blade shape
    • the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is obovate (egg-shaped, but with the widest point above the middle of the leaf blade)
    • the leaf blade is obtriangular (triangular, but widening out from a narrow base to a broad, truncate tip)
    Leaf blade texture
    the leaf blade is coriaceous (has a firm, leathery texture)
    Leaf blade translucent dots
    there are no translucent dots on the leaf blade
    Leaf blade width
    20–120 mm
    Leaf duration
    the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
    Leaf lobe tips (Quercus)
    the lobes of the leaf blade are rounded or bluntly pointed
    Leaf midrib glands
    the midrib of the leaf blade lacks glands on the upper surface
    Leaf stalk
    the leaves have leaf stalks
    Leaf stalk nectaries
    there are no nectaries on the leaf stalk
    Leaf teeth
    • the edge of the leaf blade is entire (has no teeth or lobes)
    • the leaf blade margin is undulate (wavy), but does not have teeth
    Leaf teeth hairs (Carya)
    NA
    Leaf type
    the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
    Leaves per node
    there is one leaf per node along the stem
    Specific leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets

  • Place

    Habitat
    terrestrial
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Massachusetts
    • Rhode Island
    Specific habitat
    • meadows or fields
    • ridges or ledges
    • sandplains or barrens
    • talus or rocky slopes
    • woodlands

  • Scent

    Plant odor
    the plant does not have much of an odor, or it has an unpleasant or repellant odor

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Aerial roots
    the plant has no aerial roots
    Bark texture
    the bark of an adult plant is ridged or plated
    Branch brittleness (willows only)
    NA
    Branch cross-section
    the branch is circular in cross-section, or it has five or more sides, so that there are no sharp angles
    First-year cane (Rubus)
    NA
    Pith shape
    the ouline of the pith in a twig is roughly star-shaped, with several points or arms radiating from the center
    Twig papillae (Vaccinium species only)
    NA
    Twig winter color
    • brown
    • gray
    • green
    • yellow
    Wings on branch
    the branch does not have wings on it
    armature on plant
    the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns

Wetland status

Usually occurs in non-wetlands, but occasionally in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACU)

New England distribution and conservation status

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
absent
Massachusetts
present
New Hampshire
absent
Rhode Island
present
Vermont
absent

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

Massachusetts
uncommon to fairly widespread (S-rank: S3S4)
Rhode Island
extremely rare (S-rank: S1), concern (code: C)

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Quercus bicolor:
leaf blades variably lobed, but never cruciform, abaxially with both minute, stellate hairs and taller, erect, 1- to 4-rayed hairs, and peduncles mostly 40–70 mm long (vs. Q. stellata, with leaf blades often cruciform, that is with 2 larger lobes that project at +/- right angles from the midrib, abaxially with minute, stellate hairs, and peduncle mostly up to 6 mm long).

Family

Fagaceae

Genus

Quercus

Help

From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae

15.  Quercus stellata Wangenh. N

post oak. CT, MA, RI; coastal plain. Dry-mesic woodlands, fields, and barrens, often associated with rocky ridges and slopes.

1×15. Quercus alba × Quercus stellata → Quercus ×‌fernowii Trel. is a very rare oak hybrid known from MA. It displays intermediacy in leaf blade outline and pubescence and peduncle length (see identification key for details).

12×15. Quercus prinoides × Quercus stellata → Quercus ×‌stelloides Palmer is a very rare oak hybrid known from MA, RI. It is best diagnosed by using the leaf blades, which resemble most Q. stellata with 3 or 4 pairs of short, rounded or pointed lobes that are sometimes expanded and retuse at the apex and stellate-pubescent abaxially. It is normally a shrubby plant 1–2 m tall but sometimes grows to 4 m.