Turkey Oak is a common oak of the Coastal Plain in North Carolina, particularly abundant in the Sandhills region. This small oak is adapted to xeric sandy soils and usually grows in the understory of Longleaf Pine forests.

Robeson Co., NC 5/29/08.

The other oaks associated with this habitat are Quercus margaretta, Q. marilandica, and Q. incana, none of which is similar in leaf.

One unique feature of the leaves is their arrangement — they are held vertically instead of horizontally, presumably to avoid the sun during mid-day and receive more solar radiation when the heat load is not as high.

Moore Co., NC 6/10/06.

The leaves are yellowish-pubescent beneath. Despite the name laevis, they are not smooth, though the pubescence may wear off by late in the growing season.

The common name comes from the resemblance of the leaf shape to the outline of a Wild Turkey's foot. Fall color is brilliant red, about like that of Scarlet Oak.

Turkey Oak is endemic to the southeastern US, growing from southeastern Virginia to eastern Louisiana.

Moore Co., NC 6/10/06.

Turkey Oak flowers in mid-April, as the leaves are emerging.

Pender Co., NC 4/19/09.

Emerging leaves showing the turkey-foot shape the tree is named for. Mid-April is also turkey hunting season in the Coastal Plain.

Pender Co., NC 4/19/09.

Pender Co., NC 4/19/09.

Acorns ripen in late summer/early fall.

New Hanover Co., NC 8/30/08.

New Hanover Co., NC 8/30/08.

New Hanover Co., NC 8/30/08.

Acorns resting on dead leaves.

Moore Co., NC 3/14/07.

The bark is broken into rough blocks, good for resisting the frequent fires that sweep through Turkey Oak habitat.

Weymouth Woods, Moore Co., NC 6/10/06.

Bark of a medium-sized tree.

Pender Co., NC 4/19/09.