Quercus michauxii

The leaves of the swamp chestnut oak are simple (not compound), {{Convert|4-11|in|cm|abbr=off}} long and {{Convert|5-18|cm|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}} broad, with 15–20 lobe-like, rounded simple teeth on each side, similar to those of chestnut oak and chinkapin oak (Quercus muehlenbergii), although they generally do not achieve the more slender form that the leaves of those trees may exhibit at times. The leaves turn red in autumn. The fruit is an acorn {{Convert|2.5-3.5|cm|abbr=on|frac=2}} long and {{Convert|2-2.5|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} broad, borne on a 2–3 cm peduncle, maturing in the fall, about 6 months after pollination.{{eFloras|1|233501061|Quercus michauxii |first=Kevin C. |last=Nixon |volume=3}} The tree only bears heavy acorn crops at intervals of several years.

The swamp chestnut oak closely resembles the chestnut oak (Quercus montana), and for that reason has sometimes been treated as a variety of that species. However, the swamp chestnut oak is a larger tree which differs in preferred habitat, and the bark does not have the distinctive deep, rugged ridging of the chestnut oak, being thinner, scaly, and paler gray. It typically grows to around 65 ft (20 m) tall, though the tallest specimen currently known is over 150 ft (42 m) tall.

The name Q. prinus was long used by many botanists and foresters for the swamp chestnut oak, even when treated as a species distinct from the chestnut oak, which was then called Q. montana, but the application of the name Q. prinus to the chestnut oak is now often accepted,The confusion arose from differing identifications of the type specimens for the Linnaean name, by some (but not all) botanists considered resolved by close examination of the leaf pubescence, which differs in the two species. although sometimes that name is declared to be of uncertain position, unassignable to either species, with the chestnut oak then called Q. montana, as in the Flora of North America.{{eFloras|1|233501064|Quercus montana|first=Kevin C.|last=Nixon|volume=3}}

The acorns of the swamp chestnut oak are eaten by generalist species like chipmunks, squirrels, white-tail deer, wild hogs, and black bears.{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Lincoln |date=5 February 2002 |title=Swamp Chestnut Oak |url=https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_qumi.pdf |access-date=5 October 2020 |website=USDA Plants}} They are also readily eaten by cattle, and the species is sometimes called the "cow oak" for this reason.{{cite book |last=Little |first=Elbert L. |title=The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region |publisher=Knopf |year=1980 |isbn=0-394-50760-6 |location=New York |page=398}}

The wood of the swamp chestnut oak is similar to, and usually marketed mixed with, that of other white oaks.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} Swamp chestnut oak is also called basket oak, since the wood is easily split into long, thin, flexible strips excellent for basket weaving.Missouri Department of Conservation, Field Guide, Swamp Chestnut Oak

The swamp chestnut oak's acorns are large, relatively sweet,{{cite book|author=Kirkman|author2=Brown|author3=Leopold|title=Native Trees of the Southeast|year=2007|publisher=Timber Press|location=Portland, Oregon|pages=182–183}} and edible.

The swamp chestnut oak is sometimes cultivated as a large garden tree or street tree, and is quite easy to grow if it is not subject to extreme urban conditions. The current National Champion Swamp Chestnut Oak is in the Stumpy Lake area in Virginia Beach, Virginia. It is {{Convert|123|ft|abbr=on}} high, with a crown of {{Convert|109|ft|abbr=on}} and a circumference of {{Convert|23|ft|m|abbr=on|sigfig=1}}.{{cite web |url=https://www.vbsunonline.com/post/2017/12/12/123-foot-tall-oak-tree-near-stumpy-lake-named-a-national-champion-and-listed-on-national |title=Swamp Chestnut Oak National Champion |publisher=City of VB |date=12 December 2017 |access-date=11 February 2020 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

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• [http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/frame/qumi.htm Quercus michauxii images from Vanderbilt University] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923200824/http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/species/frame/qumi.htm |date=2015-09-23 }}

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michauxii

Category:Edible nuts and seeds

Category:Endemic flora of the United States

Category:Plants described in 1818

Category:Trees of Northern America

Category:Taxa named by Thomas Nuttall