Willow Oak Tree | Types Of Willow Trees

A Quick Guide to the Willow Oak Tree

The willow oak tree is a very large tree that can compliment any landscape where there is room to grow it. People tend to like large trees because they are large and majestic, and they are also very useful as shade trees.

With the willow oak tree you get one of the grandest of all the giant trees. There are several willow oak trees around the United States that are contending for the title of being the largest of these massive trees. Today, there is a willow oak tree in Memphis Tennessee that is 123 feet tall and has a spread of 100 feet.

The willow oak tree is native to the southeaster region of the United States and can be found from Oklahoma to Florida, as well as up to southern New York. One of the major differences between this type of tree and other oak trees is that the leaves resemble those of a willow tree more than the leaves of an oak tree.

The leaves of the willow oak tree are about 3 to 4 inches long and will be about three quarters of an inch wide. The leaves of this tree are tipped with a bristle, which is one method of telling that the tree is a member of the family of red oaks. Although this tree is very large, its acorns are smaller than what you may normally find on an oak tree.

Although the willow oak tree is not the fastest growing shade tree, it will grow an average of about 2 feet a year once it is well established. If you want to plant a tree that will be large enough to provide shade in a short period of time, this is probably not the best tree to choose, though it is one of the most sturdy and beautiful.

The willow oak tree is a suitable choice as a landscaping tree, though it is normally only used in large areas such as city parks, alongside roadways, etc. Unlike other types of oak trees, with this tree you will not get a massive coverage of fallen leaves in the autumn so you will not have to worry so much about getting the leaves off of your lawn quickly. The tree will lose its leaves, but due to the fact that the leaves are not as big, there will not be the mass of leaves you might expect.

With this tree the leaves will turn a bright yellow in the fall and quickly fall off of the tree; many of them are blown away by the wind before too much of a pile accumulates on the grass.

Some of the advantages of the willow oak tree is that it is a tree that is easy to transplant, and will tolerate a wide variety of soil types. Though this tree tends to do well in most types of soil, it will be healthier and grow bigger in fertile soil, such as you find in the bottomlands of the Southeastern United States. Once this tree is well established, it will tolerate drought, but until then it will need plenty of water.

Due to its massive size, the willow oak tree is not usually a good choice for planting in home landscaping, unless you have a very big yard for it to grow. If you do choose to plant this tree in your yard you will want to be aware that it does tend to have some problems with disease and pests. It will be necessary to familiarize yourself with the different problems that the willow oak tree is susceptible to so that you can treat the condition if it should appear.

Copyright Â© 2007 Types Of Willow Trees. All rights reserved.