Northern Red Oak
(Quercus borealis maxima)
Adopted on June 13, 1950.
The official state tree is the red
oak, Quercus borealis maxima. The
red oak was authorized by a
Joint Resolution signed by Governor
Alfred E. Driscoll June 13, 1950. The
state memorial tree is the dogwood,
authorized by
Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 2 of
1951.
The red oak is a hardwood tree that
you can recognize by its pointy-lobed
leaves with prickly tips. It produces
many acorns, an important food for the
Native Americans of long ago. In autumn
the leaves turn a vibrant red, adding
bursts of color to our rural landscapes.
Northern red oak (Quercus rubra),
also known as common red oak, eastern
red oak, mountain red oak, and gray oak,
is widespread in the East and grows on a
variety of soils and topography, often
forming pure stands. Moderate to fast
growing, this tree is one of the more
important lumber species of red oak and
is an easily transplanted, popular shade
tree with good form and dense foliage.
Joint Resolution
PROCLAMATION
State of New Jersey
Executive Department
WHEREAS, The Senate and the General
Assembly of this State, while
sitting as the One Hundred and
Seventy-fourth Legislature, did
concur in Assembly Concurrent
Resolution No. 12 resolving that
"The State of New Jersey hereby
adopts the red oak -- Quercus
borealis maxima (March) Ashe -- as
the State tree;"
and
WHEREAS, In the preamble to said
Concurrent Resolution it is declared
that the red oak is a representative
tree of New Jersey with beauty of
structure, strength, dignity and
long life, that it is most useful
commercially and enjoys great
freedom from disease, that it is
adapted to our New Jersey soils and
is compatible with all native shrubs
and evergreens, permitting lawn and
grass areas to be successfully grown
under its canopy, and that the fall
color of its foliage places it
foremost in our natural landscape
scene; and
WHEREAS, It is fitting that a
proclamation should issue marking
the aforesaid concurring action of
the Senate and the General Assembly;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Alfred E.
Driscoll, Governor of the State of
New Jersey, do hereby proclaim that,
by virtue of the concurrence of the
Senate and the General Assembly
while sitting as the One Hundred and
Seventy-fourth Legislature in
Assembly Concurrent Resolution No.
12, the red oak --Quercus borealis
maxima (Marsh) Ashe -- stands
adopted as the State tree of the
State of New Jersey.
Given under my hand and the Great
Seal of the State of New [SEAL]
Jersey, this thirteenth day of June,
in the year of Our Lord one thousand
nine hundred and fifty, and in the
Independence of the United States,
the one hundred and Seventy-fourth.
ALFRED E. DRISCOLL,
Governor.
By the Governor:
Lloyd B. Marsh,
Secretary of State.
Description:
-
 Leaf:
Alternate, simple, 5 to 8 inches
long, oblong in shape with 7 to 11
hairless bristle-tipped lobes.
- Flower: Staminate flowers
borne on catkins. Pistillate flowers
borne on spikes. Appears with the
leaves in April or May.
- Fruit: Acorns are 3/4 to
1 inch long and nearly round. with
less than 1/3 covered by the flat,
saucerlike cup. The cap is flat and
thick, covering about 1/4 of the
acorn.
 Cup
covered by reddish-brown, tightly
overlapping scales. Matures in 2
years, ripens August to late
October.
- Twig: Quite stout,
red-brown and glabrous. Terminal
buds are multiple, quite large,
ovoid, and covered with red-brown,
mostly hairless scales.
- Bark: On young stems,
smooth. Older bark develops wide,
flat-topped ridges and shallow
furrows. The shallow furrows form a
pattern resembling ski tracts.
- Form: A medium-sized to
large tree that develops a short
trunk and round crown when open
grown, straight with a clear bole
when grown with competition.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
|
| Kingdom |
Plantae -- Plants |
| Subkingdom |
Tracheobionta --
Vascular plants |
| Superdivision |
Spermatophyta – Seed
plants |
| Division |
Magnoliophyta –
Flowering plants |
| Class |
Magnoliopsida –
Dicotyledons |
| Subclass |
Hamamelidae – |
|
Order |
Fagales – |
| Family |
Fagaceae – Beech family |
| Genus |
Quercus L. – oak |
|
Species |
Quercus rubra L. –
northern red oak |
New
Jersey State Tree
Flowering Dogwood
(Cornus florida)
Adopted on January 15, 1951.
The official state tree is the red
oak, Quercus borealis maxima. The red
oak was authorized by a
Joint Resolution signed by Governor
Alfred E. Driscoll June 13, 1950. The
state memorial tree is the dogwood,
authorized by
Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 2 of
1951.
White flowers bloom in spring. Dark
green foliage changes to red in fall.
Red berries remain on tree late in fall.
Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) is
one of America's most popular ornamental
trees. Known to most people simply as
dogwood, it has other common names,
including boxwood and cornel. The
species name florida is Latin for
flowering, but the showy petal-like
bracts are not in fact flowers. The
bright red fruit of this fast-growing
short-lived tree are poisonous to humans
but provide a great variety of wildlife
with food. The wood is smooth, hard and
close-textured and now used for
specialty products.
Description:
- Leaf: Opposite, simple,
arcuately veined, 3 to 6 inches
long, oval in shape with an entire
margin.
- Flower: Very small, but
surrounded by 4 large white
(occasionally pink) bracts, 2 inches
in diameter. Appearing March to
April in the south, June in the
north.
- Fruit: A shiny, oval red
drupe, 1/4 to 1/2 inch long, in
clusters of 3 to 4. Maturing in
September to October.
- Twig: Slender, green or
purple, later turning gray, often
with a glaucous bloom. The terminal
flower buds are clove-shaped,
vegetative buds resemble a cat claw.
- Bark: Gray when young,
turning very scaly to blocky.
- Form: A small tree with a
short trunk that branches low,
producing a flat-topped crown.
Branches are opposite, and assume a
"candelabra" appearance.
Assembly Concurrent Resolution
No. 2 of 1951.
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced January 15, 1951
By Mrs. DWYER
Referred to Committee on Ways and
Means
A Concurrent Resolution providing
for the adoption of the
dogwood tree (Cornus Florida) as the
New Jersey State
Memorial Tree.
WHEREAS, It is the practice of many
patriotic and public-
spirited organizations and the State
of New Jersey, and the State
Highway Department , to plant
dogwood trees along the border of
New
Jersey's Memorial Highway known as
the "Blue Star Drive" in honor of
the men and women in our Armed
Forces; and
WHEREAS, It is in the public
interested and welfare to foster
the widespread use of the dogwood as
a memorial tree in our parks,
parkways, monuments, and building
sites; therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of
Assembly of the State of New
Jersey (the Senate concurring):
1. That the dogwood tree (Cornus
Florida) be and it is hereby
adopted and designated as the New
Jersey State Memorial Tree.
|
|
| Kingdom |
Plantae -- Plants |
| Subkingdom |
Tracheobionta --
Vascular plants |
|
Superdivision |
Spermatophyta – Seed plants |
| Division |
Magnoliophyta –
Flowering plants |
| Class |
Magnoliopsida –
Dicotyledons |
| Subclass |
Rosidae – |
| Order |
Cornales – |
| Family |
Cornaceae – Dogwood
family |
| Genus |
Cornus L. –
dogwood |
|
Species |
Cornus florida L. –
flowering dogwood |
Source:
Dendrology at Virginia Tech
U.S. Department of Agriculture
|