Black Oak

Quercus velutina

no photo — written note
photo: Wikimedia Commons
Plants

A dry-ridge oak with blocky dark bark and bright orange inner bark under a knife nick.

Field facts
HabitatDry ridges, sand country, oak barrens
RangeStatewide, common in the south and northwest sand
When to lookAcorns September to November
StatusSecure (Indiana DNR / IUCN Red List)
Look-alikesNorthern Red Oak, Scarlet Oak

Field note: Its yellow inner bark once produced a dye called quercitron.

Lesson
Watching responsibly

Nick bark only where a naturalist demonstrates; wounds invite disease.

Your records

No sightings yet. Log one from the Observe tab to earn this stamp.

Log a sighting