Narrative

Beech or American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) is found widely in North America east of the Mississippi River and locally west of the Mississippi River. This tree can grow to 100 feet tall. The ten teeth on each side of the leaf help identify this species.

This lifeform is found east of the Continental Divide in North America.

Oak Family has been separated into several divisions based on both genus and geography to facilitate their study. This group contains the non-oaks of the oak family that are found in North America.

Oak and Beech Family (Fagaceae) has about 600 species usually divided into about six different genera. The most common genus in North America is the Oak (Quercus) genus. This is a large and important genus that contains many valuable species of trees. To facilitate study of Quercus, the Oak and Beech Family have been divided into several different sections as follows:

Non Oak Group - (N. American) - (Beeches, etc)
Red Oaks of Eastern USA
White Oaks of Eastern USA
Oaks of West Texas
Oaks of SW USA (Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, etc)
Oaks of Pacific Coast region (California, Oregon, etc.)
Eurasian Species of Oaks and Chestnuts

The following is a table of the Oak species of the United States:

Oak (Quercus) Miller and Lambs book, Oaks of North America, published in l985, was used to develop a preliminary list of the oak (Quercus) species found in the United States. This list was modified by comparing it to A California Flora by Philip Munz and Arizona Flora by Kearney and Peebles. (* means that this species is discussed and pictured)

Oaks of Eastern United States (43 species)

Species - - - - - - Common Name - Location
*Quercus acutissima - Sawtooth - Asia - Int. SE USA
*Quercus alba - White - WI, TX, NY, GA
Quercus arkansana - Arkansas - Local-AR and AL
*Quercus bicolor - Swamp White - PA to MO
*Quercus chapmanii - Chapman - FL
*Quercus coccinea - Scarlet - CT to AL
Quercus durandi - Durand - Local: TX to NC
Quer d. breviloba - Bigelow - TX and Ok
*Quer ellipsoidalis - N. Pine - WI etc.
*Quercus falcata - S. Red - VA to La.
*Quer f. pagodifolia - Cherrybark - Southern Forests
Quercus georgiana - Georgia - Local, Ga and SC
Quercus ilicifolia - Bear - MA, PA, etc.
*Quercus imbricaria - Shingle - MO to OH
Quercus incana - BlueJack - VA to TX to FL
*Quercus laurifolia - Laurel - LA to VA to FL
*Quercus laevis - Turkey - FL, VA, etc.
*Quercus lyrata - Overcup - NC to TX
*Quer marilandica - Blackjack - NJ to TX
*Quer macrocarpa - Bur - ND, TX, OH, etc
*Quercus michauxii - Swamp Chestnut - LA to VA
*Quercus muehlenbergii- Chinkapin - TX, AL, OH, IL
*Quercus myrtifolia - Myrtle - FL
*Quercus nigra - Water - NC to TX, etc.
Quercus nuttalli - Nuttall - LA, AR, & MS
Quer oglethorpensis - Oglethorpe - Local-GA. and SC
*Quercus palustris - Pin - OH to MI
*Quercus phellos - Willow - TX to VA, etc.
*Quercus prinoides - Dwarf Chinkapin - NY to MI
*Quercus prinus - Chestnut - TN to PA
Quercus pumila - Runner - Gulf Coast to VA
*Quercus robur - English - Europe/Introduced
*Quercus rubra - Northern Red - MA to MN to AL
*Quercus shumardi - Shumard Oak - NC to TX
*Quercus s. texana - Texas Red - Central TX
*Quercus stellata - Post - TX, MO, FL, VA
*Quer s. margaretta - Sand Post - Sandy sites
Quer s. paludosa - Delta Post - Bottomlands
*Quercus virginiana - Live - TX, Gulf Coast, FL
Quercus v.geminata - Sand Live - NC to LA
Quer v.fusiformis - Texas Live - Central TX
Quer v.minima - Dwarf Live - NC to TX
*Quercus velutina - Black - IO to MA to GA

West Texas Oaks (9 less 1 Listed Above)

Species - - - Common Name - Location
Quer depressipes - Mexican Dwarf - Local-West TX
Quercus durandi - Bigelow - Listed Above
Quercus glaucoides - Lacey - Local - Cent TX
Quercus gravesii - Graves - Local-West TX
Quer graciliformis - Chisos - Local-West TX
Quercus hinckleyi - Hinckley - Local-West TX
Quercus intricata - Coahuila Scrub - Local-West TX
Quercus pungens - Vasey - Local - West TX
Quercus tardifolia - Lateleaf - Local-West TX

Southwest Oaks (16)

Species - - - Common Name - Location
Quercus arizonica - Arizona White - W.TX to AZ & MX
Quer chrysolepis - Canyon Live - AZ and CA
Quercus dunnii - Dunn - AZ and S. CA
Quercus emoryi - Emory - AZ
*Quercus gambeli - Gambel - UT and CO
Quercus grisea - Gray - TX, AZ, & NM
Quercus harvardii - Shin - OK, West TX, NM
Quer hypoleucoides - Silverleaf - Local-MX NM & AZ
Quercus mohriana - Mohr - West TX
Quer muehlenbergii - Chinkapin - Local-West TX NM
Quer oblongifolia - Mexican Blue - Local-MX & AZ
Quercus pungens - Sandpaper - Local - S.W. USA
Quercus rugosa - Netleaf - MX to South USA
Quercus toumeyi - Toumey - Local S. AZ & MX
Quercus turbinella - Shrub Live - NM, AZ, and CA
Quercus undulata - Wavyleaf - AZ and NM

Pacific Coast Oaks (16 less 3 listed above)

Species - - - - - Common Name - Location
*Quercus agrifolia - California Live - Coast S and C CA
Quercus chrysolepis - Canyon Live - Listed Above
*Quercus douglasii - Blue - - Central CA
Quercus dunni* - Dunn - - Listed Above
Quercus durata+ - Leather - CA Mountains
*Quercus dumosa - Calif. Scrub - Coastal S. CA
*Quercus engelmannii - Engleman - Local - S. CA
*Quercus garryana - Oregon White - N. CA to WA
*Quercus kelloggii - California Black - N. CA
Quercus lobata - California White - Central CA
Quercus macdonaldi - McDonald - Pacific Islands
Quercus sadleriana - Deer - - - Local,NW/CA,SW/OR
*Quercus tomentella - Island Live - Pacific Islands
Quercus turbinella# - Shrub Live - NM, AZ, and CA
Quer vaccinifolia^ - Huckleberry - N. half CA
*Quercus wislizenii - Interior Live - Central CA

*Dunn Oak (Quercus dunni) is also called by the synonym of Quercus palmeri.
+Leather Oak (Quercus durata) is mentioned in Miller and Lambs text as a subspecies of Q. dumosa.
#Quercus turbinella is listed in Miller and Lamb as a sub of Q. dumosa.
^Huckleberry Oak (Quercus vaccinifolia) from C. California to Oregon is listed in Miller and Lamb as a sub of Quercus chrysolepis.

Fagales Order is usually divided into two different families: the birches and the oaks.

Dicots (Dicotyledoneae Class) are the predominant group of vascular plants on earth. With the exception of the grasses (Monocots) and the Conifers (Gymnosperms), most of the larger plants that one encounters are Dicots. Dicots are characterized by having a seed with two outer shell coverings.

Some of the more primitive Dicots are the typical hardwood trees (oaks, birches, hickories, etc). The more advanced Dicots include many of the Composite (Aster) Family flowers like the Dandelion, Aster, Thistles, and Sunflowers. Although many Monocots reach a very high degree of specialization, most botanists feel that the Dicots represent the most advanced group of plants.

Seed plants (Phylum Embryophyta) are generally grouped into one large phylum containing three major classes: the Gymnosperms, the Monocots, and the Dicots. (Some scientists separate the Gymnosperms into a separate phylum and refer to the remaining plants as flowering plants or Angiospermae.)

For North American counts of the number of species in each genus and family, the primary reference has been John T. Kartesz, author of A Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland (1994). The geographical scope of his lists include, as part of greater North America, Hawaii, Alaska, Greenland, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

Kartesz lists 21,757 species of vascular plants comprising the ferns, gymnosperms and flowering plants as being found in greater North America (including Alaska, Hawaii, Greenland, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

There are estimates within the scientific world that about half of the listed North American seed plants were originally native with the balance being comprised of Eurasian and tropical plants that have become established.