You might see white oaks everyday, in your backyard or around town. For our August plant of the month, let's dig into how to recognize this familiar tree and their traditional uses.
Name: White Oak (Quercus alba)
Native range: Widely across eastern North America, ranging from the southern reaches of Canada, down to Northern Florida, and west to Texas. [1]
How to ID: Look for their deeply lobed leaves with 5 to 9 lobes with rounded tips and smooth edges. (A lobe is a finger-shaped protrusion from a leaf.) White oak bark is light-grey with narrow, rectangular ridges. Their acorns are egg-shaped, growing between ⅜ to 1 ¼ inches long [1].
Traditional use: The wood is used to make bows, rope fiber, and more. The acorns are high in proteins, carbs, and fat and can be eaten after leaching out their high concentration of tannins. All parts of the plant are traditionally worked with as medicines and valued for their astringent and antiseptic properties [2].
Fun fact: There’s a movement among people who study medicinal plants to say “work with” plants instead of “use,” as a nod of respect to the plants that we all rely on.
Sources
[1] Little, Elbert. Field Guide to Trees: Eastern Region. Knop, 1980.
[2] Warren, Mark. Wild Plants and Survival Lore: Secrets of the Forest. Lyons Press, 2020.
