Bareroot and container water oak (Quercus nigra) and willow oak (Quercus phellos) seedlings were treated with 3 different levels of nitrogen (N) mineral fertilizer applied during the growing season in the nursery. Comparisons were made between species, N treatments, and stock-types for seedling morphology, first-year survival and height growth, and seedling water relations. Water oak seedlings were shorter, heavier, and more first-order lateral roots than the willow oak seedlings. The N fertilizer treatments did not have a statistically significant effect on seedling morphology. Bareroot seedlings were taller, had greater root-collar diameters, and were heavier than the container seedlings. The seedlings were hand-planted on an old pasture site located near Nacogdoches, TX. First-year survival was about 80 percent regardless of species, N treatment, or stocktype. Bareroot seedlings had less first-year height growth than container seedlings. Container seedlings fertilized at the highest N rate had greater stomata1 conductance and transpiration rates early in the growing season than the container seedlings fertilized at the lowest rate
