Quercus Macrocarpa - Cultivation and Uses

Cultivation and Uses

Bur oak makes an outstanding ornamental tree. Among the white oaks, it is one of the most tolerant of urban conditions, and is one of the fastest-growing of the group. It has been planted in many places, ranging north to Anchorage, Alaska and as far south as Mission, Texas. It withstands chinook conditions at Calgary, Alberta.

The wood is of high quality, and is almost always marketed as "white oak".

The name sometimes is spelled "burr oak", as for example in Burr Oak State Park in Ohio, the city of Burr Oak, Kansas, the village of Burr Oak, Michigan, and in the title Burr Oaks by poet Richard Eberhart.

It is also less commonly called "burl oak", as in the Burl Oaks Country Club in Mound, Minnesota.

The bur oak is among the most fire-tolerant tree species. One of its most common habitats, especially in Midwestern United States, is the oak savanna, where fires often occurred in early spring or late fall, especially in hill country.