Quercus Stellata (Post oak)

Scientific Name
Quercus stellata

Trade Name
Post oak

Family Name
Fagaceae

Common Names
Cucharillo, Encino, Encino negro, Mamecillo, Oak, Post oak, Roble, Roble amarillo, Roble colorado, Roble encino, Roblecito, White oak

Regions of Distribution
North America

Countries of Distribution  [VIEW MAP]
United States

Common Uses
Cooperages, Core Stock, Crossties, Decorative veneer, Domestic flooring, Factory flooring, Figured veneer, Flooring, Foundation posts, Fuelwood, Mine timbers, Parquet flooring, Pile-driver cushions, Piling, Plain veneer, Poles, Posts, Railroad ties, Stakes, Sub-flooring, Utility poles, Veneer

Environmental Profile

Q. stellata var boytoni is a variety of Post Oak, rare within its natural habitat in the state of Texas

Distribution Overview
This species occurs in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec, all in Canada. In the United States, it grows in the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin, and West Virginia. The species usually forms pure stands and prefers moist, loamy, sandy, rocky, and clay soils. Northern red oak is a popular shade and street tree because of its dense foliage and good form. It is one of the most fast-growing oaks, regenerate easily, can tolerate the climate in cities, and can endure cold weather. Red oak is also planted as an ornamental tree in Great Britain.

Heartwood Color

Varies from light tan or pale yellow brown to pale or dark brown

Sapwood Color

Grain

Texture

Luster

Natural Durability

Can be used outdoors without chemical protection. Logs are highly vulnerable to attack by the ambrosia beetle, and standing trees and logs are also readily attacked by the forest longhorn or Buprestid beetle

Odor

Kiln Schedules

Drying Defects

Ease of Drying

Tree Size

Trees growing in the lower Mississippi Valley are larger, and are known as ‘Delta Post Oak’

Product Sources
Various species in the white oak group are mixed and marketed together. Supplies are abundant, especially in the form of veneers, at moderate prices.

Blunting Effect

Boring

Cutting Resistance

Cutting resistance is generally medium but is variable. Cross-cutting and narrow-bandsawing are satisfactory

Gluing

Mortising

Movement in Service

Nailing

Planing

Machining characteristics of white oak timbers are reported to vary with species and rate of growth. Softer timbers from slow-growth trees are generally easier to work

Resistance to Abrasion

Resistance to Impregnation

Heartwood is impossible to treat with preservatives, and the sapwood is difficult to treat, but the wood is naturally durable.

Response to Hand Tools

Softer wood produced by slow-growth white oak trees is generally easier to work with hand tools

Sanding

Screwing

Turning

Veneering Qualities
Selected white oak logs are converted into veneers. Quartering is reported to produce a flaked figured, while the very popular straight line figure is primarily produced by rift cutting

Steam Bending

Proper precautions should be taken to prevent chemical staining of steamed wood in contact with iron or steel

Polishing

Staining
Liquid from some finishing products, especially those with high water content such as bleach and water-based stains, react with tannins in white oak to turn the wood green or brown.

Strength Properties

Working properties are dictated by the rate of growth of the trees: slow grown trees are generally easier to work with hand and machine tools.

Numerical Data

References
Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois and E.M. Wengert. 1988. Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Woods: Temperate and Tropical. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57, Madison, Wisconsin.

Kaiser, J. 1994. Wood of the Month: Oaks Loom in Designs, Folklore and Symbolism. Wood and Wood Products, November 1994. Page 52.

Little, E.L. 1980. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees – Eastern Region. Published by Arthur A. Knopf, New York.

Panshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. 1980. Textbook of Wood Technology, 4th Edition. McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.

USDA. 1987. Wood Handbook – Wood as an Engineering Material, Forest Service, Agriculture Handbook No. 72, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.

USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.