It is larger and better formed than southern red oak and commonly grows on more moist sites.

Its strong wood and straight form make it an excellent timber tree.

Many wildlife species use its acorns as food, and cherrybark oak makes a fine shade tree.

Its simple, alternate leaves generally have V-shaped bases, deeply incised lobes (5 to 11), and short, broad, uncurved tips.

The species is unusual in that the lobes are not necessarily paired on opposite sides of the leaf, instead appearing alternate or sometimes haphazard in arrangement.

Leaves are dark green, smooth, and shiny on the surface; undersides are paler and pubescent.

[3] Flowers: Cherrybark oak is monoecious; staminate and pistillate catkins are borne separately on the same tree.

Leaves of southern red oak generally have rounded (U-shaped) bases and fewer, more irregularly shaped lobes than cherrybark.

Being intolerant of shade, cherrybark oak requires full light for development, which in turn promotes heavy competition from herbs, vines, and brush.

Acorn supply is one of the principal determinants of the amount of natural cherrybark oak reproduction.

Cherrybark oak is often found as individual trees in mixed stands, where it usually occurs in a dominant or codominant position.