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Quercus taxonomy
Quercus robur L.
EOL Text
Quercus robur is one of the oaks most commonly cultivated in temperate and subtropical parts of the world. In North America it is most commonly seen in the eastern and northwestern parts of the United States and and in southeastern and southwestern Canada, where it tolerates a wide array of conditions and is extremely hardy. In Washington, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, apparently reproducing populations persist in the wild. Elsewhere, although actual naturalization appears to be rare, Q . robur should be expected to persist around old homesites and other places of cultivation.
Quercus robur most closely resembles our native species Q . alba in leaf form. In contrast with Q . alba , which has relatively long petioles (longer than 10 mm), acute leaf bases, and subsessile fruit (rarely on peduncles to 25 mm), Q . robur is easily distinguished by its shorter petioles (less than 10 mm), cordate, almost clasping, leaf bases, and fruit on long (more than 35 mm), thin peduncles.
Quercus robur is one of the oaks most widely celebrated in literature; it has wood of exceptionally high quality for the manufacture of furniture, and it previously was the most important wood used in the manufacture of wooden sailing vessels in Europe.
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Rights holder/Author | eFloras.org Copyright © Missouri Botanical Garden |
Source | http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=210001863 |
Widespread in Europe, Russia, and parts of central Asia (Kazakhstan). The list of countries of occurrence is incomplete.
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Rights holder/Author | International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources |
Source | http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/63532 |
Widespread throughout Britain and much of the rest of Europe, with the exception of the far north and some areas of the Mediterranean (2).
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Copyright Wildscreen 2003-2008 |
Source | http://www.arkive.org/pedunculate-oak/quercus-robur/ |
The English oak flowers between May and June. Towards the end of summer the acorns begin to ripen, becoming fully ripe by October (2). The acorns are rich in starch and tannins, and are eaten by small mammals and a number of birds. Jays and squirrels are extremely important in dispersing acorns away from the parent trees; they bury them for later consumption, and many of these acorns germinate (4). Young oak trees are vulnerable to insect predation. They grow very quickly, but after reaching 100-200 years of age their rate of growth slows down. After this time, however they continue to increase in girth (5). This oak is a very long-lived species; specimens typically live for up to 500 years, but some oaks are known to be 700 to 1200 years old (5). Indeed, Britain has more ancient oaks than any other country in western Europe (4). Acorns were once widely used to feed pigs; they were also ground down to make a substitute for coffee and even a type of bread (5). A good crop of acorns was used to predict a good harvest, and a heavy fall of acorns was thought to signal an impending harsh winter (5). Oak Apple Day occurs on the 29th of May, and commemorates the return of Charles II to London after exile. During exile, he was hidden inside an oak tree, and he declared that the 29th of May should be set aside as a holiday for 'the dressing of trees'. It is not certain why the day is named after oak apples, the spongy galls caused by parasitic wasps (4).
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Copyright Wildscreen 2003-2008 |
Source | http://www.arkive.org/pedunculate-oak/quercus-robur/ |
Distribution: Temperate and S. Europe, Turkey, N. Iran, Caucasus, occasionally cultivated in N. America.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | eFloras.org Copyright © Missouri Botanical Garden |
Source | http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=5&taxon_id=210001863 |
"Tamil Nadu: Dindigul, Nilgiri"
Providing shelter for multiple organisms: English oak
A mature oak tree provides shelter for hundreds of moths, birds, and bugs; each part of the tree houses its own inhabitants.
"A mature oak tree, standing a hundred feet tall, provides lodging, and often board as well, for more different kinds of animals than any other European tree. Thirty species of birds, forty-five different bugs and over two hundred species of moth have been collected from oaks. Each part of the tree has its own particular lodgers." (Attenborough 1995:153)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
- Attenborough, D. 1995. The Private Life of Plants: A Natural History of Plant Behavior. London: BBC Books. 320 p.
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Rights holder/Author | (c) 2008-2009 The Biomimicry Institute |
Source | http://www.asknature.org/strategy/1b3d651366fec896ca5da92eb47829f2 |
introduced from Europe; B.C., N.B., N.S., P.E.I.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | eFloras.org Copyright © Missouri Botanical Garden |
Source | http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=210001863 |
Chile Central
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Pablo Gutierrez, IABIN |
Source | No source database. |