Monticello Gardens

Common name: White Oak

Family: Fagaceae (Beech)

Distribution: Eastern United States

Hardiness: USDA Zone 3

Life form: Deciduous tree

Usage: Ornamental, Timber

Comments: In an 1805 letter to Madame de Tesse, Jefferson listed the North American species included in a box of seeds sent to her, including Quercus alba; he wrote: "of the oaks I have selected the alba, because it is the finest of the whole family, it is the only tree with us which disputes for pre-eminence with the Liriodendron [Tulip Poplar]. it may be called the Jupiter while the latter is the Juno of our groves."