A large tree with regular round crown. In nature, the tree can reach a height of over 30 m, but in culture it is rarely taller than around 24 m. The young twigs are strikingly brown-red. The old bark is dark grey and slightly grooved with small flat plates. Very variable leaf shape, from obovate to narrow elongated, depending on its age. The leaf margins vary from smooth-edged to 3-5 lobed, the lobes being on the upper half of the leaf. The glossy green leaf gives the tree a healthy appearance. The broad-oval acorns are 1 to 1.5 cm long and the same width. They are only enclosed by the cupule at their base. The cupule is covered in reddish-brown scales with felt-like hair. Q. nigra is semi-evergreen but usually deciduous in North-West Europe. The tree can tolerate a lot of warmth and likes a fairly moist but well-drained, fertile soil.
Quercus nigra môže dorastať do výšky 15 - 20 m v závislosti od podmienok stanovišťa a klímy.
Quercus nigra rastie priemerne rastúci a môže dorastať do výšky 15 - 20 m v závislosti od podmienok stanovišťa a klímy.
Správny čas na výsadbu stromu je mimo vegetačné obdobie. V strednej Európe môže byť Quercus nigra so zemným balom vysadený od polovice novembra do konca apríla, avšak závisí to veľmi od klimatických podmienok a druhu stromu.