Quick Facts
Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade
Height at Maturity: 40-75 Feet
Usage: Landscaping
Shipped As: Bare-root
Planting Zones:
Product Details
Willow oak seedlings (Quercus phellos) bring together two jobs most oaks keep separate: they thrive on low, seasonally flooded bottomland, and they make one of the most popular street and shade trees in the South. Slender, willow-like leaves give the tree a fine texture, and its small acorns are prized by wood ducks, mallards and deer. We ship wholesale willow oak seedlings bare root in 100, 500 and 1,000-count bundles for mitigation contractors, municipal and DOT crews, landscapers and waterfowl land managers.
Willow Oak Quick Facts
- Botanical name: Quercus phellos (willow oak, pin willow oak, peach oak)
- Group: Red oak group, Fagaceae
- USDA zones: 5 to 9
- Mature size: 40 to 75 feet tall, oval to rounded crown 30 to 50 feet wide
- Growth rate: Fast for an oak, often 1 to 2 feet per year once established
- Light: Full sun to part shade
- Soil: Moist, acidic soils; clay and alluvial bottomland soils
- Leaves: Narrow, 2 to 5 inches, untoothed; yellow to russet in fall
- Acorns: About 1/2 inch, a size waterfowl swallow whole
- Grades: 6-12 inch, 12-18 inch, row run 6-24 inch
Floodplain and Wetland Mitigation
Willow oak is a native tree of southeastern river bottoms, flatwoods and stream terraces, where soils stay wet through winter and spring. That makes it a dependable hard-mast species for bottomland hardwood restoration, wetland mitigation banks and riparian buffers. Crews use it to rebuild the oak component of floodplain forests alongside cypress, sycamore and swamp white oak, meeting stem-count goals with a species regulators expect to see on these sites. Browse more wet-site species in our restoration and mitigation plants.
Green-Tree Reservoirs and Duck Habitat
The small acorns of willow oak are among the best natural foods for wintering waterfowl. In green-tree reservoirs and flooded timber, wood ducks and mallards feed on acorns that drop into shallow water, while deer, turkey, squirrels and blue jays use the same crop on dry ground. Hunting clubs and wildlife agencies plant willow oak to build lasting duck habitat on bottomland tracts.
A Proven Street and Park Tree
Willow oak's fibrous root system makes it one of the easiest oaks to transplant, and its upright oval form fits along streets, boulevards, parking areas and campuses. It thrives in compacted urban soils and summer heat, casts light, even shade, and lives a long time. Landscapers and municipal buyers often line out willow oak seedlings to grow their own caliper stock for future street plantings.
Spacing Guide
| Project | Spacing | Approx. per acre |
|---|---|---|
| Bottomland reforestation / mitigation | 10 x 10 ft | 435 |
| Green-tree reservoir or duck timber | 12 x 12 ft | 300 |
| Street and park trees | 30 to 40 ft apart | Linear spacing |
| Nursery lining out | 12 to 18 in within rows | Bed density |
Plant Willow Oak With
On wet ground, pair it with bald cypress seedlings, swamp white oak and cherrybark oak for a full bottomland oak mix. For streambanks, add hazel alder or cuttings from our live stakes.
Willow Oak Seedling FAQs
Will willow oak grow in wet or flooded soil?
Yes. Willow oak is native to floodplains and bottomlands and thrives where soils stay wet in winter and spring.
How fast do willow oak seedlings grow?
Willow oak is one of the faster-growing oaks, often adding 1 to 2 feet a year once established.
Is willow oak a good street tree?
Yes. Its fibrous roots, upright oval crown and adaptability to urban soils make it a top street tree across the South.
Do ducks eat willow oak acorns?
Yes. Its half-inch acorns are a preferred food for wood ducks and mallards in flooded timber.
When do willow oak seedlings ship?
They ship bare root and dormant in November.
Can I order willow oak for a mitigation bank?
Yes. List species and quantities on a wholesale quote request and we will price the full project.
Who Grows Your Willow Oaks
Tennessee Wholesale Nursery is the wholesale arm of TN Nursery, founded in 1959 by Roscoe Tate and still run by the family on 170 acres in Altamont, Tennessee. Troy Landry of History Channel's Swamp People is one of our customers. Seedlings leave the farm dormant with roots treated in Terra-Sorb hydrogel, packed so they stay moist for up to 12 days, and every order carries our Arrive Alive guarantee.