Tree Description:

Usually a medium-sized tree to 35 feet tall with one or more trunks 10" in diameter but can reach heights of 70 feet on fertile sites. 

Range/Site Description:

Found on dry, limestone hills and ridges, and sometimes in the more fertile soils at their base, in Central Texas west to the Edwards Plateau.

Leaf:

Simple, alternate, 3" to 5" long and 2.5" to 3" wide, widest above the middle, divided into 5 to 7 bristle-tipped lobes, with the terminal lobe often 3-lobed and the sinuses usually deep. Leaves have a slender petiole about 1" long, are dark green and shiny above, paler below, and turn deep shades of red in the fall.

Flower:

Male and female flowers borne separately in spring on the same tree; male catkins 1.5" to 3.5" long, yellowish-green, female flowers reddish, about 0.5" long, usually solitary.

Fruit:

An acorn, requiring two years to mature, usually single or in pairs, short-stalked, reddish-brown, pubescent, and often streaked with dark lines; measuring 0.25" to 0.75" long, ovoid, and set in a cup that covers one-quarter to one-half of the fruit.

Bark:

Dark gray to black, smooth at first, then very rough with deep fissures and ridges.

Wood:

Used for fuelwood and posts. Also used as a landscape tree in Central Texas.

Tree Description:

A medium-sized oak to 40 feet tall and a trunk to 2 feet in diameter, with a broad, rounded crown.

Range/Site Description:

Naturally occurring only in one known U.S. population, near the Devil's River in Val Verde county, but more common in Mexico. Now planted widely as a landscape tree.

Leaf:

Simple, alternate, 2" to 5" long, highly variable, but often with several shallow lobes or teeth towards the tip. Leaves are thick, leathery, and semi-evergreen, with distinct raised veins on the yellowish underside. New leaves in spring are peach-colored and in colder climates the leaves are late-deciduous and turn yellow-brown.

Flower:

Male and female flowers borne in spring on the same tree, the male flowers on catkins up to 4" long, the female flowers less conspicuous.

Fruit:

An acorn, maturing in one year, up to 1" long and enclosed one-half by the acorn cup.

Bark:

Dark to light gray, developing scales and flaky plates, then shallow fissures on older trunks.

Wood:

Primarily used as a landscape tree in the nursery trade, and often sold as 'Monterrey oak.

Tree Description:

A large tree of the prairies reaching a height of 80 feet or more and a trunk diameter of 5 feet, with a short body and heavy branches that form an open, spreading crown of dark green foliage.

Range/Site Description:

Occurs on limestone soils in Central Texas as far west as Tom Green county, often on rich bottomlands along streams or hillsides and banks along spring-fed rivers. Also planted widely as a landscape tree throughout Texas.

Leaf:

Simple, alternate, 6" to 12" long and 3" to 6" wide, with 5 to 9 highly variable lobes that lack bristle-tips; lobes are divided by at least one pair of very deep sinuses, and the upper one-third of the leaf typically has a roughly-toothed or weakly-lobed margin.

Flower:

Separate male and female flowers appear in spring on the same tree. Male flowers borne on a yellowish catkin 4" to 6" long; inconspicuous female flowers reddish in color.

Fruit:

An acorn, requiring a single season to mature, 1" to 2" long, ovoid, set deeply in a mossy-fringed cup that gives the species its common name.

Bark:

Twigs and branches are thick, developing conspicuous corky ridges after the second year; bark is light gray, rough and breaks into small, narrow flakes on young trees, then develops very thick bark with deep fissures and narrow plates.

Wood:

Heavy, hard, strong, tough and durable; used for lumber, crossties, and fuelwood.

Tree Description:

A large tree to 75 feet tall with a tall straight trunk 2 to 3 feet in diameter and stiff branches that form a narrow, oblong crown.

Range/Site Description:

The most common elm tree in Texas, distributed widely in East, South, and Central Texas. Most often found near streams, in solid stands on flatwoods near rivers, or on dry limestone hills. Also planted widely as a landscape tree.

Leaf:

Alternate, simple, 1" to 2.5" long and 0.75" to 1" wide, oval to elliptical in shape, finely-toothed or sometimes double-toothed along the margin, and blunt at the tip. The upper surface is dark green, shiny, and rough, while the lower surface and petiole are pubescent. Twigs sometimes have thin, corky "wings" and the leaves can turn gold to orange-red in the fall.

Flower:

Appear in late summer or autumn as hairy, short-stalked clusters in the leaf axils.

Fruit:

An oval "samara," 0.25" to 0.5" long, the seed centered in the middle of the wing, deeply notched at the tip and hairy all over, especially along the margin. Seeds are borne in the fall, which distinguishes this species from the other native elms.

Bark:

Light brown to gray, with flattened ridges that break into thin, loose, flaky scales.

Wood:

Reddish-brown, brittle, with a thick layer of light-colored sapwood. The wood is sometimes used to manufacture wheel hubs, furniture, and fencing. Commonly sold in the nursery trade as a landscape tree.