Native to the region from Japan to India. This tree was used in forest restoration projects because it is a fast grower (for an oak) which can put out a crop of acorns in as little as five years. This same "beneficial" quality is exactly what makes it a weedy species. It is even listed in Kaufman and Kaufman's Invasive Plants, despite the popular opinion that an oak is as far from a weed as a plant can get.