Scientific Name
Quercus palustris
Pin oak has been a mainstay of urban landscape planting in much of the eastern half of the U.S. for many years, especially in the Midwest, to the point that it became recognized as being overplanted in many areas. This tree is a great choice because it grows quickly and handles city pollution well. Its root system is more fibrous than other oaks, which makes it easy to move and replant. Also, it usually grows around a strong center trunk and develops a wide top that provides excellent shade. This tree also survives well in many soil types and can even handle occasional flooding. The fall color can range from rusty bronze to red, varying by tree and from year to year. The leaves have the pointed tips typical of red oaks, but with much deeper notches. These deep cut-outs give the tree a lighter, more delicate look compared to a northern red oak. The lower branches as the tree develops tend to angle downward, to the point of sweeping the ground, which can be a negative for pedestrians and which will probably necessitate corrective trimming.
The native habitat of pin oak is roughly an east-west area about 350 miles wide centered on a line from Philadelphia to Kansas City. Thus, it is inherently less well adapted to the deep south or the far northern states. This tree’s main weakness is that it can’t handle certain types of soil, which makes it hard for the tree to get iron and causes the leaves to turn yellow and weak. However, there are plenty of areas outside pin oak’s native range that are not too harmful where the tree can be successful. Fixing the yellow leaf problem is possible, but it can cost a lot of money and take a long time to do it. Luckily, the Regis tree has not experienced this problem. It’s on the Colorado champion list, tied for fourth place. It is currently 62 feet tall with a trunk diameter of 3 feet. The pin oaks ahead of it on the list have trunks only a few inches wider but are between 8 and 12 inches taller. These heights are typical for pin oak even in areas with more mild climates than Colorado’s. That is not always the case with oaks and other trees from the eastern U.S. that when planted here only mature at 60 or 70% of their size in their home ranges.