Leaf Identification
The Sawtooth Oak has simple, alternately arranged leaves. They are lanceolate in shape, with many parallel axillary veins on either side of the midrib that end at the margin in awns (bristles). The leaf is glossy dark green above and yellow-green below.
Twig and Bud Identification
The twig of the Sawtooth Oak is green-brown with pale, warty lenticels (pores). The buds are green and have many brown-tipped scales covered in white hairs. At the terminal bud, the buds are clustered.
Bark Identification
The bark is medium brown, with many vertical plates that give the impression of small hills and valleys along the bark.
Fruit Identification
The acorn of the Sawtooth Oak has many finger-like scales that curl out as the fruit ripens, eventually covering most of the nut. The nut will turn dark brown when mature in the fall.
Flower Identification
The Sawtooth Oak is monoecious, with male and female flowers growing separately on one tree. The staminate (male) flowers bloom in hanging catkins and the pistillate (female) flowers bloom in small spikes (flowers attached directly on peduncle). They are both yellow-green and bloom in mid-spring.