Bottomland red oak stands contain a high diversity of tree species.  Early in life such stands are often dominated by species such as sweetgum with few red oaks apparently present.  Over time though these red oaks are able to “stratify” above sweetgum resulting in high-quality trees.  In this presentation I will show research results that demonstrate this pattern of stand development and how landowners need patience to let these processes work.  Further, planting a mixture of species will result in higher quality red oak trees than planting only red oak.