Quercus rubra, the northern red oak, is an oak tree in the red oak group (Quercus section Lobatae). It is a native of North America, in the eastern and central United States and southeast and south-central Canada. It has been introduced to small areas in Western Europe, where it can frequently be seen cultivated in gardens and parks. It prefers good soil that is slightly acidic. Often simply called red oak, northern red oak is so named to distinguish it from southern red oak (Q. falcata), also known as the Spanish oak.
Under optimal conditions and full sun, northern red oak is fast growing and a 10-year-old tree can be 5–6 m (16–20 ft) tall. Trees may live up to 400 years and a living example of 326 years was noted in 2001.
It grows rapidly and is tolerant of many soils and varied situations, although it prefers the glacial drift and well-drained borders of streams.
In many forests, this deciduous tree grows straight and tall, to 28 metres (92 feet), exceptionally to 43 m (141 ft) tall, with a trunk of up to 50–100 centimetres (20–39 inches) in diameter. Open-grown trees do not get as tall, but can develop a stouter trunk, up to 2 m (6+1⁄2 ft) in diameter.
Available in a tree band.