WILLOW OAK (Quercus phellos)
Height: 40 to 70 feet
Spread: 25 to 50 feet
Bloom Time: April
Bloom Description: Yellowish Green
Sun: Full sun
Suggested Use: Shade Tree, Street Tree
Flower: Not Showy
Tolerate: Air Pollution, Clay Soils, Wet Soils
Water: Medium to Wet Native to: Appalachia
This tree is part of the red oak family and has an oak shape, willow like leaves, and has a fast growth rate. This is a fine tree for the back yard, or along the road in front of your house. Thomas Jefferson considered the Willow Oak one of his favorite trees and had them planted in masses around his home and the White House.
The Willow Oak hosts 477 species of butterflies and moths in Jefferson County including the Banded Purple Butterfly, Spun Glass Slug, Clymene Moth, and Great Leopard Moth. Willow Oaks attract a variety of bird species including Woodpeckers, Orioles, Vireos, Wrens, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Finches, Grosbeaks, Titmouse, Nuthatches, Mockingbirds, Chickadees, Warblers, Towhees, and Thrushes.
