I found about a dozen of these trees along a major river in eastern Iowa. After studying these for several years and deciding they were n0t a common Bur or Swamp White Oak tree, I gave it the name of Swamp Bur Oak. They grow on rich bottom land that is good black soil. In 2008 with the terrible floods we had here in Iowa in June they were underwater for over 8 weeks and suffered no ill effects.
Leaves on a swamp bur oak
The leaves on the swamp bur oak look like the regular bur oak.
Bark on a Swamp Bur Oak
The bark on the Swamp bur oak look like a regular bur oak with some trees showing a more rougher bark characteristic.
Large massive limbs
Acorns on Swamp Bur Oak Tree
The acorns on the Swamp Bur Oak are quite different, with very large acorns, and many of them having no fringe as the bur oaks do. They have very few weevils in the seed compared to other oak species, and on a good year have got over 25 bushels of acorns off of only one tree. They have always have some acorns every year with the exception of 2016 in which they produced no acorns with no apparent reason why, but the next year had a record heavy crop
The swamp bur oak is the middle one. On the left is a large bur oak and on the right is a swamp white oak acorn
Swamp bur oak Transplants, 3 years old, many over 4 ft tall, undercut every year. Very fast growth on these trees.
One of the main reasons I love this trees is they consistently grow 3-4 ft per year in good soil. In our transplant beds they grow faster than any other oak species we have ever grown. Highly recommended for windbreaks and yard trees and grow very large, space them 30-50 ft apart for best growth. Always keep all oak trees at least 30 feet from any evergreen rows to prevent over topping of branches and excessive root competition from the oak species.
Kelly Tree Farm, 191 Quincy Ave. Clarence IA 52216 - PH: 563-452-4300 - ktf@netins.net