Note from the Author: New plant!
Look at that root flare! 
The bark is very distinct. 
An acorn and some of the leaves turning their trademark scarlet color. 
More scarlet color and here you can see the branching pattern 
A nice canopy is developing on this one.
Common Name: Scarlet Oak
Other Common Names: Black Oak
Botanical Family: Fagaceae (The Beech Family)
Botanical Latin Name: Quercus coccinea
Description & Habitat: Scarlet oaks are native to the eastern and central United States and thus can be found on dry sandy soil that tends to be acidic in ph. It is a critical tree in Oak-heath forests as a canopy forming species. Scarlet Oaks tend to have a crown that is up to twenty-four feet wide with a maximum height of one hundred feet. The trunk diameter of these trees can be up to three feet at maturity. The leaves of this tree are deeply lobed with five to six primary lobes and smaller lobes on the leave tips giving its leaves an almost tasseled appearance. Scarlet Oak gets its name from its fall color display where it’s leaves turn from a rich green color to an intense scarlet. the botanical latin name of this street tree only reflects the first name as the latin word coccinea means ‘scarlet’. The latin word ‘Quercus’ just means Oak and is said to have been derived from the Proto-Indo-European word ‘kwerkwu’. Interestingly, Oaks are a genus of hardwood trees or shrubs under the Beech Family (Fagaceae). Generally speaking Oaks are considered a keystone species and as such they can be found in a large number of habitats naturally or through the actions of human beings. Additionally Oaks also live in association with numerous types of fungi such as Truffles, but also Lion’s Mane. Oaks as a species support almost a thousand species of Caterpillar and are a host to numerous types of Gall Wasps. The leaves of most oaks contain enough tannin to be toxic to a lot of cattle however pigs can eat them without issue. The most well-known use of Oak wood is in casks for alcohol, furniture, and Cork. Scarlet Oaks are fast growing by oak tree standards, and they tolerate dry soils, urban pollution and they prefer acidic soil. But because they do produce fair sized surface roots, and their root flare can easily heave curbs and sidewalks they are not the best tree for restricted tree pits in the urban landscape.
The Scarlet oak is the official tree of Washington D.C.
Special Toxicity Note: The tannin contained in the leaves and acorns of this tree aren’t toxic in general however they can cause nausea and cause iron absorption problems in people. The leaves from this tree are toxic to most livestock with the exception of Pigs.
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When & What to Harvest: You can extract Tannin from the leaves and acorns which is an essential compound if you are planning to tan leather naturally. Tannins also have a role in wine making but in a survival situation those acorns might just save your life. In autumn if you gather acorns as they turn brown you should either store them in a cool dry place for later or shell immediately for use. If you need to use them immediately, place whole, chopped or coarsely ground nut meats in a cloth like a clean t-shirt, and tie it with a string. Place this in boiling water until the water turns brown, then drain the water, and add more and repeat the process until the water stays clear. This funny colored water is full of tannins and can be used for leather tanning projects. Alternately you can place the bag in a stream so it’s constantly wet and wait a t least a day possibly several until the nuts are no longer bitter. From here you can dry them, crush them finely to make Acorn Flour, or crush them coarsely so the chunks are of even size and make something akin to Grits. Or you can roast them and eat them as a trail mix sort of snack. There are tons of recipes for making breads with Acorns, failing that there are several companies that make Acorn Flour so you can work out recipes without all the grunt work.
Related Plants: Two very similar Oaks are the Black Oak (Quercus velutina) and, the Red Oak (Q. rubra).
Recipe:
Additional Information: (If applicable)
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/quercus-coccinea/
https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content?contenttypeid=76&contentid=12060-1
Where to get Seed or Bare Root Plants:
With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog. In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.
Fall Produce:
Garlic, softneck
Soup Kits, Parsnip
Soup Kits, Turnip
Carrots
Celery
Onions
Parsnips
Red Potatoes
Turnips
Sweet Potatoes
Plants Coming Soon:
TBA, new stuff in spring
How to stay in Contact with Us!
All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.
Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville
Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:
The Videos: Look Here
>Newest videos (-): [On Winter Haitus]
Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is January 10th at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.
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