Oaks of the World

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  Quercus canariensis
Author Willd. 1809 Enum. Pl. 975 1809.
Synonyms lusitanica Lam. var. salzmanniana Webb 1838
mirbeckii Durieu 1847
lusitanica Lam. var. mirbeckii (Durieu) A.DC 1864
gibraltarica K.Koch 1873
lusitanica Lam. subsp. mirbeckii (Durieu) Ball 1878
faginea Lam. var. salzmanniana (Webb) Samp. 1910
carpinifolia Sennen 1926 non Raf.1838
viveri Sennen 1928
faginea Lam. var. mirbeckii (Durieu) Maire 1932
salzmanniana (Webb) Coutinho 1935
nordafricana H.Villar 1938
canariensis Willd. var. mirbeckii (Durieu) C.Vicioso 1950
canariensis Willd. var. salzmanniana (Webb) C.Vicioso 1950
Local names Mirbeck's oak; chêne zéen ; chêne zan; Kabylie'oak; Canarian oak; Algerian oak; quejigo africano;
Range East and South Spain; Algeria, Morocco (in mountains); Tunisia; 700-1000 m;
Growth habit 20-30 m tall; trunk to 1 m in diameter; wide spreading crown;
Leaves 6-18 x 4-9 cm; semi-evergreen; oboval to oblong-oboval, seldom subelliptical; young leaves woolly tomentose, with thin, long, tawny, fascicled, never stellate, free, loose hairs; then glabrous except at vein axils; adult leaves dull dark green, nearly hairless above; glaucous beneath with brownish hairs along midrib; base subcordate, sometimes auricled; margin with 7-14 pairs of shallow, toothed lobes; 11-14 pairs of parallel, raised lateral veins, diverging from midrib at less than 32°; no intercalary veins; tertiary veins conspicuous ; only one layer of epidermic cells (0.1-0.2 mm thick); petiole 1.5-2.5 cm, dark pinkish, pubescent at first, soon glabrous; winter leaves in part green, in part brown;
Flowers between April and May; male catkins 4-8 cm long; pistillate flowers on short pedicel; perianth pubescent, with 6 short lobes; 3-4 styles
Fruits acorn 2.5-3.5 cm, ovoid cylindrical; short-stalked (0.5-1 cm); in clusters of 2-3; enclosed 1/3 by the cup; cup hemispherical with tomentose, lanceolate, bulging scales; mature in one year;

Bark, twigs and
buds

bark blackish, fissured, thick; twigs grey green, first densely pubescent, then smooth and glabrous; bud narrowly conical, 7 mm long, with pale brown scales covered with white hairs;
Hardiness zone, habitat hardy; prefers calcareous soils, even heavy and clayey; fast growing; reaches 300 years and more; in cultivation, fertile seeds are generally hybrids with Q.robur (= Q. x carrissoana);
Miscellaneous

-- A. Camus : tome 2, p. 150, n° 149;
-- Sub-genus Quercus, Section Quercus, Series Roburoid;
-- According to O. Schwarz (Monography of Oaks of Europe and Mediterranean Basin), in 1938, this species had yet disappeared from the Canary Islands due to human activities;

-- The natural hybrids of Q. canariensis are :
Q. x carrissoana, Q. x fontqueri, Q. fagineomirbeckii, Q. x lagunai, Q. x paui, Q. x subglaucescens, Q. x viverii


Subspecies and
varieties
Species rather polymorphous, so several varieties have been described:
_ var. salzmanianna: leaves 12 cm long, elliptic, elongated, flat, very leathery, with margins slightly wavy;
_ var. mirbeckii: leaves 20 cm long and more, oblong, base attenuate, margin wavy with numerous lobes, petiole 4 cm long;
_ var. carpinifolia: leaves 8 cm long, elliptic-oboval or obtriangular, with pointed lobes;
_ var. elongata: leaves 10 x 2-4 cm, narrow, with whitish fasciate hairs below; 5 short (less than 1 cm), round lobes each side; 4-8 vein pairs; petiole 1.2-1.5 cm long, hairy; bud oboval, light tawny, 7 x 5 cm;
_ var. fissa: few, pointed lobes with sinuses reaching halfway to midrib;
_ var. ovata: leaves oval, 7 x 4-5 cm, petiole 4 cm long;
_ var. pseudocastanea: leaves resembling those or chestnut;
_ var. suborbicularis: leaves 15 x 10 cm, elliptic; few, shallow, regular lobes;

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