Shumard Oak (Quercus shumardii)

A customer once asked us, “If you had to choose one and only one species of oak to plant at your deer camp or property, which one would it be?” Wow, a question like that is very important. Let’s see… well…it must provide high quality timber and plenty of mast. It also must be a red oak because biologists recommend at least 60% of oaks on a property be from the red oak section. Most importantly it must provide a wide window of acorn drop time like no other oak can provide. That leaves us no choice but to say Shumard oaks from Mossy Oak’s Nativ Nursery!Why our Shumards? Because we collect seed from different parent trees that provide a mast source encompassing almost half of the calendar year (mid Oct- Feb) from one species of oak! Shumards vary in their expressed traits (especially with timing of acorn drop) more so than any red oaks we have encountered, and also can be successfully established in a wide range of zones and sites.Zone:5 - 9Soil pH:5.0 - 7.0Mature Height:110'Wildlife Value:Generous acorn production, eaten by wild turkey, waterfowl, white-tailed deer, squirrel.Site Preference:Tolerates a variety of sites and pH ranges, but does best on well-drained soils along streams and rivers; on deep upland soils, especially loess.Nut Maturity Date:October to January (varies)Alias:Spotted Oak, Swamp Oak