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Forestry
Champion Trees
Bur
Oak -
(Quercus macrocarpa Michx.)
This colossal Bur Oak tree is the largest known of its
kind in Arkansas. It is humbling to quietly stand beneath this magnificent
specimen and listen as a soft breeze stirs a rustle among its awesome leaves. It
takes a while to walk across the summer midday shadow provided by the dense
foliage of this arboreal giant; From drip-line to drip-line is 135 feet. Lonoke
county, you’ve done yourself proud, the former Arkansas Champion
Fulton County Bur Oak had a Bigness Index (BI) of 306. It was, however,
forced to relinquish its title of Royalty to the King of Keo, boasting a Bigness
Index (BI) of 404. This champion Bur oak was nominated by Reggie Talley,
University of Arkansas, retired Monroe County Cooperative Extension Service Agent.
This magnificent specimen Bur oak is located a short distance
north of Keo, Arkansas. To see it, travel 1 and 1/2 miles north from the intersection
of Highways 165 and 15 at Keo, on hwy 15 north look for the intersection of
county road "Warren". The tree is approximately 100 yards west in a
fenced pasture adjacent to a large pecan grove. Please do not enter this
posted area without permission!
The Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa Michx.) is a
deciduous tree belonging to the White Oak Group; all oaks are members of the
Beech family, Fagaceae. Relatively uncommon, it occurs sparingly throughout most
of the northern half of our state, having been reported in 38 counties of
Arkansas. It is most likely found in small stream valleys or on north facing
slopes where moisture supply is adequate and the drainage is good. It occurs
uncommonly in dense stands and is more likely to be found singly or in small
groups in open or semi-open situations. The Lonoke county champion should be
considered unusual to be found growing where it is located. The National
Register of Big Trees 2000-01 lists the National champion Bur oak with a (BI) of
444 located at Paris, Kentucky.
Bur oaks can reach a height of 150 feet, with heavy spreading
limbs and a broad crown. It bears large acorns (3/4" up to 2" long,
the largest of the oaks), variable in size and shape, the cup enclosing one half
to three quarters of the acorn with the upper cup scales exhibiting awn-like
tips that produce a fringed border on the cup, giving a mossy appearance which
gives rise to another common name, Mossy Oak. The simple, alternate
leaves are likely the largest of the oaks, from 6 to 12 inches in length, 5 to 9
lobed with lobes separated by very deep sinuses . The bark is light gray, or
reddish brown, thick, deeply fissured, and broken into irregular narrow flakes.
The wood is dark to light brown, close grained, and heavy, weighing about 46
pounds per cubic ft. The Bur oak ranges from central and east Texas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas, and Louisiana; eastward to Georgia, north to Nova Scotia, and west to
Kansas and Wyoming, north to Manitoba. It apparently is not at home on the
Atlantic and Gulf Coast plains, preferring higher grounds.
Bur oaks have been in cultivation since 1811 in the United
States. The genus name Quercus is the latin name, and the species name macrocarpa
refers to the huge acorn. The Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin, Minnesota, and
southern Canada used the Bur oak in many ways. The acorns were baked and ground
into meal and eaten, the inner bark was scraped and pounded into a powder, mixed
with other roots, and leaves and used to treat wounds. The women preferred the
hard wood for handles, and awls, and the wood was, of course, used as fuel. The
Chippewa people called the Bur oak, "Mi' tigo' mic".
The acorns are greedily eaten by squirrels, black bear, white
tailed deer, razorback hogs, and livestock browse on
the young plants. Early settlers would gather and transport large quantities of
the acorns to feed domesticated hogs.
By: Reggie Talley
Retired Monroe County Extension Agent
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