Oaks of the World

General dataClassificationsList of speciesLocal namesBack to
home page

  Quercus garryana
Author Dougl. ex Hook. 1839 Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 159
Synonyms douglasii var. neaei (Liebm.) A.DC 1864
garryana var. jacobi (R.Br. ter) Zabel
jacobi R.Br. ter 1871
neaei Liebm. 1854 Diagnosis here
gilberti Greene
Local names Oregon white oak ;
Range Western USA (Pacific Coasts); to 800 m; wide-spreading in Oregon; introduced en Europe in 1873;
Growth habit reaches 25-30 m, with trunk 1 m in diameter; ascending branches; crown spreading, rounded; short trunk;
Leaves 2.5-12 x 5-8 cm; oboval or elliptic; apex rounded; base variable; margin with 5-7 deep lobes; bright dark green above, light green, pubescent beneath with stellate hairs; turning yellow or red at fall; petiole pubescent 1.5-2.5 cm ;
Flowers spring;
Fruits acorn 2.5-3 cm, sessile, elliptic, apex rounded; shallow scaly cup; edible, sweet; maturing in 1 year;

Bark, twigs and
buds

bark light brown to greyish, ridged, thick, broken into large plates; twig brown or yellowish, pubescent; bud tawny, spindle-shaped, pointed, hairy, 6-12 mm long;
Hardiness zone, habitat hardy; all types of soils; slow-growing; not for shade; may live up to 300 years;
Miscellaneous -- A. Camus : n° 265 ;
-- Sub-genus Quercus, Section Quercus, Subsection Dumosae;
-- Discovered in 1820 by David Douglas;
-- Nicholas Garry worked at the Hudson’s Company Bay and helped David Douglas.
-- Hybridizes with : Q.douglasii (= x eplingii ), Q.dumosa ( = x howellii), Q.durata ( = x subconvexa) ;

Subspecies and
varieties

--- var. garryana : the type described above.

--- var. breweri (Engelm.) Jeps. 1909
= Q.breweri Engelm.1880
= Q. lobata var. breweri (Engelm.) Wenz. 1884
= Q. lobata var. fruticosa Engelm. 1877
= Q. garryana subsp breweri (Engelm.) E.Murray 1982
= Q. garryana var. fruticosa (Engelm.) Govaerts 1998
shrub spreading and rhizomatous, multiple trunks, reaching 2-5 m; semi-evergreen; leaves 2.5-9 cm, lobed, leathery, light green and tomentose beneath with stellate hairs (hairs with 4-6 rays); petiole 0.5-2 cm; acorn 2-3 cm, mucronate, enclosed 1/5 by cup; cup with flat or weakly warty scales; twig reddish, often glabrous, lacking stellate hairs; bud reddish brown, ovoid, 2-5 mm, with glandular hairs; flowers late spring;
mountain slopes in West USA, 1400 to 1900 m (Siskiyou Mts);
for some authors, Q.breweri is synonym of Q.garryana;
for Govaerts, 1998, the valid name of this variety is not "breweri" but "fruticosa".

--- var. semota Jepson 1909
= Q.oerstediana R.Br. ter 1871
= Q. garryana subsp semota (Jeps.) E.Murray 1982
shrub or small tree, multiple-trunks, spreading and layering, 1-5 m tall; twig red brown, slightly pubescent, lacking stellate hairs; bud light brown, 2-5 mm, with few glandular hairs; leaves yellow green beneath, waxy, pubescence not evident, with somewhat stiff, stellate 6-8 rays hairs; 1250-1800 m; Oregon, California;

Pictures