Georgia Wildlife Federation

Resources < Wildlife Habitats < Guide to Native Plants of Georgia for Wildlife < Quercus georgiana

The Georgia Oak is a little-studied endemic of the granite outcrop habitats of Georgia. Granite outcrop ecosystems, like the well-known Stone Mountain and Arabia Mountain, occur sporadically throughout the Piedmont. They are relics of a time millions of years ago when the Appalachian Mountain Range rose as high as the Himalayas. The collision of North America and Africa pushed them up, while rainfall eroded them away to their modern height and exposed their granitic centers.

Granite outcrop habitats consist of exposed, hydrologically impervious granite bedrock and sparse, shallow soils made out of weathered granite sand. Prominent features include small or medium-sized ephemeral pools. Deeper soils, sometimes drained by cracks, allow the stunted growth of trees like the Georgia Oak. Trees may be hundreds of years old but still resemble shrubs. Georgia Oak has a diminutive beauty and glossy leaves with an attractive shape. This plant is extremely rare and endangered, primarily by habitat loss. Ensure that seed sources do not engage in the environmentally degrading practice of wild collection.

Also, one of the greatest threats to our native granite outcrops is tourism. Traffic via foot and vehicles is extremely damaging to the soils, pools, and organisms of granite outcrops. Georgia Oaks are frequently consigned to slow deaths from compacted soils.

Family: Fagaceae (Beech)

Description: Small and densely branched deciduous tree. Bark is gray to light brown, thin, and scaly when mature. Leaves are 1-5” long, alternate, and simply lobed. They have 3-7 broad, pointed lobes, a deep green color, and a strong luster. Fall color is a deep red to reddish purple. Yellow-green catkins occur in spring. Fruits are acorns ½” in diameter. Plants often have a stunted, shrubby appearance in situ.

Size: 15 to 30 feet tall and equally wide

Habit: Small, densely branched deciduous tree

Planting and Care: Georgia Oak is a tough tree against drought, heat, and poor, shallow, or sandy soils. It requires well-drained soils and high amounts of light. For best success, sow seeds in their final desired location because transplants fare relatively poorly.

Ornamental Value: Georgia Oak’s assets include its glossy, attractive leaves, its heat and drought tolerance, its small stature, and the reddish to purplish fall color.

Landscape Use: Georgia Oak makes a remarkable specimen in the landscape and is also suitable for urban conditions. Its ability to withstand the heat of granite outcrops gives it outstanding heat and drought tolerance. It also readily grows in impoverished, sandy, and shallow soils more so than other oaks. Its small size and slow growth make it suitable for large planters.

Wildlife Benefits: Georgia Oak’s leaves are a larval food for the Red-spotted Purple, Luna Moth, and Southern Hairstreak. The acorns are relished by woodpeckers, the yellow-bellied sapsucker, the tufted titmouse, and the Carolina wren as well as deer and small mammals like squirrels.

Native Habitat: Georgia Oak has a rare distribution and is locally confined to granite outcrop habitats in the Piedmont of the southeastern US. It favors deeper, moister soils and cracks in the bedrock.

Propagation: Acorns sown fresh in fall or stratified for spring sowing; cover with ample soil and mulch to prevent pilfering by squirrels and chipmunks!