Virginia gardeners looking for a stately addition to their front yard or elsewhere on their property will be pleased to know that there are many oak trees that grow well in the mild climate of this southeastern state.
Many of these trees are native to the state or elsewhere in the US, making oaks one of the easiest and most adaptable deciduous trees to plant in VA, even for beginner gardeners. Native oak trees also add immense value to your local wildlife and ecosystems.
Whether grown as an ornamental, shade, or street tree, planting oak trees in Virginia gives you plenty of options to work with.
10 Great Oaks To Plant In Virginia
1. Chestnut Oak (Quercus montana)
Part of the white oak group, chestnut oaks are large, statuesque oaks with a canopy that spreads as wide as its significant height.
It is also recognizable for its glossy leaves that have a jagged, scalloped edge and its furrowed silvery-white bark which adds exceptional interest in winter. The fall foliage of the chestnut oak is appealing too, with changing hues of red, brown, and yellow.
Chestnut oak has plenty of uses in the landscape: it is an ornamental tree that can also be used to establish screens and border planting, and it is sometimes planted as a shade tree. It is beloved by wildlife, harboring butterflies, moths, and all kinds of birds throughout the year.
Most oak trees are susceptible to diseases like chestnut blight, anthracnose, leaf spot, and more, so be aware of the kind of precautions you’ll need to take to protect your chestnut oak.
Other Common Names: Rock Chestnut Oak, Rock Oak, Basket Oak, Tanbark Oak
Growing Zones: 4-8
Average Size at Maturity: 50-70 feet tall, with a similar spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Nature Hills
2. White Oak (Quercus alba)
Native to the eastern US, the white oak is another enormous offering, able to reach heights of 90 feet and sometimes even higher.
This tree has an important history of usage by both Native Americans and early pioneers, as its water and rot-resistant wood makes excellent hardwood timber for woodwork, flooring, and barrel-making. And of course, they have been a source of food and shelter for wildlife for thousands of years.
Today they also offer value as street trees or specimens in wide open spaces and as enormous, protective shade trees. White oaks are long-lived, often living between 200-300 years, and some as long as 600! It’s an excellent choice for homeowners who want to plant multi-generational gardens.
These iconic trees should be planted in deep, moist, well-draining soil with an acidic to neutral pH, in a location with full sun exposure.
Other Common Names: American White Oak, Stave Oak, Eastern White Oak, Northern White Oak, Quebec Oak, Forked-Leaf White Oak
Growing Zones: 3-9
Average Size at Maturity: 60-90 feet tall, with a 50-90 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Mid Fall
Available at: Fast-Growing-Trees & Nature Hills
3. Post Oak (Quercus stellata)
Shorter than most of the oak trees on this list, the post oak may be a more manageable size for gardeners with smaller properties who still want to enjoy the elegance and ambiance of the classic oak tree. Native to the central and eastern US, the post oak is best known for its use in making posts and railroad ties.
The post oak is covered in dark green foliage that turns a pleasing golden brown in fall, with a growth habit that starts off pyramidal before becoming softer and more rounded in maturity. It is best used as a smaller shade tree or a street tree. Expect plenty of pollinators, birds, and mammals to flock to this tree for food and shelter throughout the year.
Post oak trees are hardy and adaptable, relatively disease resistant with the exception of oak wilt and chestnut blight. They grow best in moist, acidic, well-draining soil, though they can tolerate a wide range of soil types.
Other Common Names: Iron Oak, Post White Oak
Growing Zones: 5-9
Average Size at Maturity: 30-50 feet tall, with a similar spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
4. Willow Oak (Quercus phellos)
A member of the red oak family, the willow oak is notable for being more narrow than the average oak tree, with a canopy typically only half as wide as the tree is tall. Its trunk is straight and sturdy, with a balanced, symmetrical growth habit.
Overall the willow oak is a graceful tree that adds a touch of beauty to the landscape, with its fine foliage and light green color that turns a yellowish, dark gold with red notes in fall. It works well as a shade tree, street tree, or as a specimen in a large landscape or alongside a water feature.
Despite being a narrow tree, the willow oak still needs plenty of space to accommodate its spreading root system. It performs best in moist, acidic, well-draining soil. Aside from acidity, it adapts well to varying soil types. According to the University of Florida extension, are rarely affected by serious pests and diseases.
Other Common Names: Swamp Willow, Peach Oak
Growing Zones: 5-9
Average Size at Maturity: 60-80 feet tall, with a 30-40 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Fast-Growing-Trees & Nature Hills
5. Pin Oak (Quercus palustris)
The slender pin oak is one of the most sought-after oak trees for US gardeners for a number of reasons. Its graceful, sweeping habit and symmetrical shape add even more elegance than the average oak, and its reddish-bronze fall display is particularly brilliant. It’s a popular choice as a focal point for garden space, as a street tree, and as a shade tree due to its dense foliage.
While many oak trees tend to be slow growers, the pin oak is quite different – it grows relatively fast, adding 2 feet of height per year. This makes it a good option for VA gardeners who want to establish a shade or specimen tree quickly.
The pin oak is an easy oak to grow if the conditions are right! Plant yours in fertile, moist, well-draining soil in a location with plenty of sunlight. Test the soil to ensure it is acidic, as alkaline soil can cause chlorosis, which causes yellowing leaves and stunted growth.
Other Common Names: Swamp Spanish Oak
Growing Zones: 4-8
Average Size at Maturity: 60-80 feet tall, with a 40-50 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Fast-Growing-Trees & Nature Hills
6. Swamp Chestnut Oak (Quercus michauxii)
Native to the swamps and lowlands of the southeast, the swamp chestnut oak is perfectly suited to most areas in Virginia, though it may need more care in higher altitudes. These adaptable trees are able to withstand even average or poor-quality conditions.
With their thick, sturdy trunks, considerable height, and rounded crown, they add a stately quality to many properties. Their red fall foliage also adds an extra pop of color later in the year.
According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, the swamp chestnut oak has other uses – its wood can be peeled into strips and used in basket-making, and its acorns are some of the sweetest available, able to be eaten raw by both animals and humans. It is an important source of food for local wildlife.
These trees are best used as lawn trees, street trees, or planted along water features – they thrive in moist, well-draining, acidic soil, but are tolerant of drought, wet soil, and even occasional flooding.
Other Common Names: Michaux Oak, Basket Oak, Cow Oak, Chestnut Oak
Growing Zones: 5-9
Average Size at Maturity: 40-60 feet tall, with a 30-50 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Early to Mid Fall
Available at: Nature Hills
7. Laurel Oak (Quercus laurifolia)
Native to the southeast, the laurel oak is a broad, semi-evergreen oak that is typically found growing wild in floodplains, riverbanks, swamps, and wetlands. Unlike other oaks, the laurel oak is largely useless as lumber, however, its acorns are an important source of food for wildlife and today it is often planted as an ornamental or shade tree in southern states.
Like the pin oak, it is a fast grower, reaching an additional 2 feet per year. It is most visually distinct due to its oval canopy, dense branches, and foliage made up of shiny, narrow leaves which look somewhat similar to the leaves of the laurel shrub, hence the name. They are planted for their hardiness, adaptability, attractive foliage, and growth habit.
The laurel oak can adapt to a wide range of soil types, though it grows best in rich, moist, well-draining soil with an acidic pH in a location with full sun or partial shade.
Other Common Names: Water Oak, Diamond-Leaf Oak, Obtusa Oak, Swamp Laurel Oak
Growing Zones: 7-9
Average Size at Maturity: 40-60 feet tall, with a similar spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
8. Scarlet Oak (Quercus coccinea)
Another fast-growing tree is the scarlet oak, a popular choice for landscape gardeners in the eastern and central US. It is best known for its brilliant, blazing fall display that turns from dark green to a deep scarlet red. It’s a close cousin to the pin oak, which might explain why it is in high demand for its glossy leaves, fall color, ridged bark, and open canopy.
The scarlet oak works well as a specimen, shade, or street tree, and also looks good in informal groupings. It produces acorns in mast years, with one crop appearing every 3-5 years, which results in particularly large and delicious nuts.
Scarlet oak is also surprisingly easy to grow! They are drought tolerant and highly adaptable to different soil types – though they prefer acidic soil and have a low tolerance to alkalinity. Aside from oak wilt, the scarlet oak experiences very few issues with pests and disease.
Other Common Names: Spanish Oak, Black Oak, Red Oak
Growing Zones: 4-9
Average Size at Maturity: 60-70 feet tall, with a 40-50 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Nature Hills
9. Black Oak (Quercus velutina)
Named for its furrowed, textured bark that turns so dark in maturity that it almost looks black, the black oak tree is a large red oak with a rounded, spreading crown. While it is not much used for timber, yellow and orange inner bark can be used as a source of tannin and quercitron, a yellow dye.
Somewhat “scruffy”-looking compared to some of its more aesthetic cousins, the black oak is not often used as an ornamental in landscape gardening. However, it has a typically attractive fall color like most oak trees, and its acorn production attracts and sustains plenty of wildlife.
It is also a seriously tough tree, able to grow well in poor-quality, dry soils, and rarely undergoes serious issues with pests and diseases. It grows best in moist, acidic, well-draining soil, and requires full sunlight – it is not tolerant of shade.
Other Common Names: Eastern Black Oak, Yellow Oak, Yellowbark Oak, Smoothbark Oak, Quercitron
Growing Zones: 3-8
Average Size at Maturity: 60-80 feet tall, with a 40-50 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Nature Hills
10. Water Oak (Quercus nigra)
Another notable member of the red oak family that grows well in Virginia is the water oak, a deciduous tree with a more narrow growth habit compared to some of its cousins. However, it does maintain a soft and rounded shape, with a thick trunk, and looks quite beautiful when planted as a street or shade tree.
It also attracts plenty of wildlife as a source of both food and shelter and begins producing acorns in its 10th year. This is a great benefit of the water oak, but keep in mind that this species is also very short-lived – many only live around 30 to 50 years.
As their name suggests, water oaks grow in bottomlands and along streams, swamps, and rivers. Naturally, they prefer moister conditions, but they can also tolerate dry soil. For best results plant your water oak in rich, moist, acidic soil in a location with plenty of sunlight.
Other Common Names: Possum Oak, Spotted Oak, Duck Oak, Orange Oak, Punk Oak
Growing Zones: 6-10
Average Size at Maturity: 50-70 feet tall, with a 30-40 foot spread
Fruiting Season: Fall
Available at: Nature Hills
Add A Regal Touch To Your Property
The eastern United States is one of the best regions in the world for growing native oak trees, and they are not as high maintenance as they seem! From the slender pin oak to the enormous, iconic white oak, there is a range of these handsome trees to choose from.
And they aren’t just beautiful – nature lovers in Virginia can rejoice knowing that the oaks they grow in their garden are a haven for local wildlife, further enriching the environment around them.
For more useful natives, check out some of the best edible native nut trees that thrive in Virginia.
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