SCARLET OAK IS A COMMON TREE of the Missouri Ozarks, occupying much
the same area as shortleaf pine with which it frequently grows. Lumber from
this tree makes up a large part of the timber cut. Prolific sprouting and rapid
early growth give it an advantage over other species after fires. Usually it
grows on the poor, dryer soils in mixture with black, post, and white oaks as
well as pine. It forms nearly pure stands on broad, flat ridges in some areas
of the Ozarks.
Maturing in two years, like the other black oaks, the acorn is about half enclosed by its cup. Faint concentric rings around the tip of the acorn are a key identifying feature. The scales on the cup are tight and somewhat shiny. It is a prolific bearer of fruit which makes it an important wildlife tree.
The leaf is alternate and simple with seven or nine bristle-tipped lobes. Openings between the lobes are deep and round. The name probably originated from the autumn coloration of bright reds and orange. At first the leaves are hairy on both sides and later become smooth and dark green above and smooth and pale with tufts of hair in the intersections of the veins beneath.
The bark is relatively smooth on young trees and on the new wood of old trees. Later it becomes rough and nearly black, divided by irregular scaly ridges. Twigs are slender and hairy at first, turning smooth and reddish-brown later. The buds are egg-shaped and covered with fine gray hairs.
Although the preferred common name is scarlet oak, local people sometime call it spotted or water oak. Lichens or moss, low forms of plant life, frequently grow on the main trunk of scarlet oak and, contrary to legend, not always on the north side. Streams of oozing sap and water flow from old wood borer holes on the trunk, which indicate defective trees. Trees in this condition are described by foresters as bleeding. Carpenter ants frequently invade wood borer holes to build their colonies.
Because of dead limbs which remain on lower portion of the trunk and serve as infection centers, lumber sawn from these trees frequently is defective. Higher grades of lumber are used for flooring and the lower grades go into pallets and industrial blocking.
