The plant appears to be more drought tolerant than the Shumard oak, which is found more commonly in rich, moist soils. The latter is a much larger tree and may well have a longer life span. The Texas red oak is considered less hardy than the Shumard oak due to the origin. Most oaks are not overly fond of placement in turf situations. However, if the planting location is well drained and turf is kept from around the base of the tree, one may anticipate successful installations in turf areas.
Oaks are excurrent trees that have a central leader.
This leader should be protected and not subjected to topping, as the natural form of the tree will be lost. Young trees should be pruned to develop well-spaced scaffold branches that are balanced throughout the length of the central leader. The lower branches of newly planted trees should be retained to protect the trunk and to provide nutrition directly to the trunk. However, one should be conscious of the lowest permanent branch height. Lower branches may be removed gradually as the tree matures.