PlantFiles: Chinkapin Oak, Yellow Chestnut Oak
Quercus muehlenbergii

The Quercus muehlenbergii is very drought tolerant and can handle most soil conditions. It has been named a Texas Superstar. As one member previously commented, the acorns are very sweet and are a preferred food source for a variety of wildlife.
This is quickly becoming one of my favorite trees. I am looking for a tree for my yard and would plant a
Chinkapin Oak if I had the room for it.

I dont see this tree anymore. My great grandparents had a tree growing in sandy soil in Northern Louisiana. We did not refer to its nuts as acorns altho I now know that they surely are. We just called them Chinqapins! The nuts were smaller and more slender than most acorns and were almost black and very shiny. I would like to see more of them grown because the nuts are so sweet and delicious, and can be eaten without any preparation right off the tree. There is none of the bitter tannin taste of the usual acorn.

Chinkapin oak is one of the great denizens of the historic central KY landscape, along with bur oak and blue ash. The old specimens which persist out in the open agricultural lands exhibit the broad and contorted canopy of a tree which grew up without forest competition.

These trees grow equally well on well-drained upland circumneutral calcareous soils or the richer moister bottomland soils along creeks and watersheds. Along with the aforementioned species, chinkapin oak associates with KY coffeetree, white ash, black cherry, sugar maple, black locust, honeylocust, sycamore, and various hickories.

While the typical chinkapin oak around here has rather reserved yellow fall color, there is variation in the species. I have recently purchased individuals with frighteningly red fall foliage for planting in Louisville's parks.

This is an exceptional oak species which deserves greater use in landscapes that can accommodate its large size.

This tree belongs to the White Oak group. It grows to a height of (up to) 60'. Acorns are small, foliage is deep green and the tree grows at a slow-moderate rate. Foliage in the fall can be nice if the right conditions are present (rain, for one). It does not like heavy soils, like clay. Soil must be well-drained for it to survive.