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Post Oak

Quercus stellata

Other common name(s):

Iron Oak, Cross Oak

Family:

Fagaceae (Beech Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

Central Great Plains, Cross Timbers, East Central Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Texas Blackland Prairies, Western Gulf Coastal Plain
Broken Red Plains, Limestone Plains, Red Prairie
Carbonate Cross Timbers, Eastern Cross Timbers, Grand Prairie, Limestone Cut Plain, Western Cross Timbers
Bastrop Lost Pines, Floodplains and Low Terraces2, Northern Post Oak Savanna, Northern Prairie Outliers, San Antonio Prairie, Southern Post Oak Savanna
Balcones Canyonlands, Edwards Plateau Woodland, Llano Uplift
Northern Humid Gulf Coastal Prairies
Floodplains and Low Terraces1, Northern Blackland Prairie, Southern Blackland Prairie
Flatwoods, Floodplains and Low Terraces3, Pleistocene Fluvial Terraces, Red River Bottomlands, Southern Tertiary Uplands, Tertiary Uplands

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Tree

Height

40
to
50
ft.

Spread

30
to
40
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Sand, Acid, Well Drained

Light Requirement

Sun, Part Shade

Water Requirement

Low

Native Habitat

Grassland

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Yellow, Brown

Bloom Season

Spring

Seasonal Interest

Nuts, Larval Host

Wildlife Benefit

Butterflies, Birds, Small Mammals

Maintenance

Prune for shape or to raise canopy. Propagation: Seed.

Comments

Most common oak throughout Texas. This is the ultimate drought resistant tree, but also grows in soggy, flatwoods soils. Its roots are extremely sensitive to disturbance. Slow-growing and long-lived. Larval Host: Northern hairstreak, Horace’s Duskywing.
Previous Scientific Name(s): Synonym(s): Quercus stellata var. attenuata, Quercus stellata var. parviloba

References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) Miller, George O., Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas 2nd Ed., 2013, pg 48. 3) Wasowski and Wasowski, Native Texas Plants Landscaping Region by Region, 1991, pg. 344. 4) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=QUST. 5) https://portal.torcherbaria.org/portal/taxa/index.php?taxon=Quercus+stellata&formsubmit=Search+Terms. 6) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=11977&locationType=County&mapType=Normal. 7) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=19422#null

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State Office Phone: 830.997.9272

State Office Address:
Native Plant Society of Texas
PO Box 3017
Fredericksburg, TX 78624

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