Form: Medium to large sized tree, 50 - 80 ft. in height and 1 - 3 ft. in dbh. Straight trunk with upward reaching branches.

Leaves:
             

Arrangement: alternate

Shape: 2 leaf shapes: 1) 3 lobed ,resembling a turkey's foot. 2) 5 - 7 lobed, bristle-tipped, base bell-shaped.

Margin: entire

Texture: lustrous green above, tomentose below

Venation:

Bark: gray-black; deeply furrowed with broad scaly ridges

Twigs and buds: Dark red, often pubescent; multiple terminal buds with puberulent scales

Flowers and fruit: acorn matures in 2 seasons, acorn about 1/2 in. long.

Distinguishing characteristics: "turkey foot" leaf, multiple terminal buds, often pubescent.

Range: New York south to Florida west to eastern Oklahoma and north to southern Ohio

Silvics: intermediate tolerance; dry to mesic uplands

Ecological and cultural importance: Wood used in furniture, veneers, and lumber. Acorns provide food for waterfowl, wild turkey, and white-tailed deer.