Oak tree species

Species of the genus “Quercus

Different classes of oak trees

Among the approximately 600 species of the genus Quercus, they could be described as follows:

Downy oak

Downy oak (Quercus pubescens)

  • Downy oak, pubescent oak (Quercus pubescens): Tree up to 15 m high, which can be found in Europe, Crimea and Turkey. The most abundant and pure populations are in the Pyrenees.

It is mainly characterized because the underside of the leaves is downy when young, ie has abundant hair,. Subsequently, usually leaving only those close to the nerves.

It has not too long fruits, with short stems, with half of the cup nut also pubescent. In the fall, the leaves turn ocher and remain on the tree throughout the winter (marcescent leaves) Its medicinal properties are similar to those of English oak.

  • Gall Oak, Lusitanian Oak, Dyer’s Oak (Quercus lusitanica = Quercus faginea): Up to 20 meters high, a native of the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa. Adapted to withstand extreme conditions. It has small, bright green leaves on the top and pubescent on the underside. Its rather elongated fruits are used to feed livestock. It is used to treat vaginal warts and for the treatment of corns.
  • Sessile oak (Quercus petraea = Quercus sessiflora): Central Europe and Southeast Europe that can measure 30 m. high. Has hardened leaves bright green on the top and pubescent on the underside with rounded lobes up to 15 cm. Up to 1500 m in the woods along with the English oak (Quercus robur) Widely used for the quality of its wood, used in herbal medicine to remove warts. From this species nutgalls are mainly obtained for the production of natural dyes
  • French oak, English oak (Quercus robur): Up to 45 m in height. Erect stems with bark full of cracks and wrinkles, light gray in youth and darker as the tree gets older. leaves alternate, lobed, sessile, with rounded lobes and petioles very short, provided 2 atria to the larger base of the petiole up to about 12 cm. Fruit catkins, yellow-green. Acorns gathered in groups of 1-3 on the same stalk.

    cork oak showing the corkTrunk of cork oak showing the cork

  • Cork oak (Quercus suber): Natural from Iberian Peninsula. It is the tree whose bark cork is obtained from. It can reach 15 m high. It presents leaves much like evergreen oak, a little more narrow and elongated. They are dark above and whitish below because of its dense green hairiness. In phytotherapy, it can be used with properties similar to French oak.
  • Sawtooth oak (Quercus acutissima): Tree growing in Japan, Korea and China, which can reach 15 m. Its long leaves, up to 15 cm, are very similar to those of chestnut. In herbal

medicine it is used as an astringent.

  • White oak (Quercus alba): Tree from the United States and Canada that can reach 30 m. high. It has leaves up to 30 cm reaching purple hues in autumn. Its acorns are very small. It is one of the main trees for timber production in these countries, because it is very resistant to moisture and rot. It is used in herbal medicine as hemostatic, astringent, tonic and antiarthritic.

    holm oakPhoto of holm oak (Quercus ilex). Leaves and fruits (acorns)

  • Holm oak (Quercus ilex): Up to 20 m. erect stems gray. Elliptic leaves, bright green above, whitish below, up to 4 cm in length, with up to 11 pairs of lateral nerves. yellow flowers, gathered in hanging spikes. Fruit is a nut, (acorn) dark brown at maturity, bitter, inedible. Humid Mediterranean forests. In herbal medicine it can be used with properties similar to English oak.
  • Holm oak (Quercus ilex subsp ilex = Quercus ilex rotundifolia subsp ballota..): up to 15 m. erect stems gray. pubescent elliptical leaves with whitish green above and gray below, up to 4 cm long, with up to 8 pairs of lateral veins. yellow flowers, gathered in hanging spikes. Fruit dark brown at maturity, edible. dry Mediterranean forests. In herbal medicine can be used with properties similar to English oak.
  • Turkish oak, Austrian oak (Quercus cerris) from Southern Europe and Turkey. It is a tree that can reach 36 m high. It has narrow gray-green leaves with irregular lobes.. In herbal medicine used for the treatment of tumors.
  • Kermes oak (Quercus coccifera): Evergreen shrub up to 2 meters. Stalks of a grayish color. Leaves entire or slightly toothed, dark green with a thorny margin. The young leaves have a lighter green and hairy beneath. The fruit is a nucule (acorn) more globular than the rest of Quercus and with scaly cup, ripening occurs in the second year. In scrubs and dry places. In herbal medicine used for the treatment of tumors.
  • Japanese Chinquapin (Quercus cuspidata): Tree native to China and Japan up to 25 m in height. Fruita with a distinctive odor that are pollinated by flies. It is used for the treatment of ascites or perineal dropsy, is the accumulation of fluid in the lower abdomen as a result of certain diseases such as cirrhosis, heart problems, tumors, etc.
  • Daimyo oak (Quercus dentata): Deciduous tree from eastern Asia (Korea, Japan and China) up to 15 m in height. abundant leaves, irregularly lobed up to 30 cm. In herbal medicine the bark and dust from its gills is used as an astringent.
  • Red oak (Quercus falcata): Tree native to the southeastern United States that can reach 25 m high. The young buds are oxide red which gives it its name. Leaves up to 20 cm with very pronounced lobes and dense hairs on the underside. It lives in acid and poor soils. In herbal medicine it is used for the treatment of cancer.
  • Texas live oak, plateau oak (Quercus fusiformis): Named for the elongated shape of acorns. It lives in Texas where it forms thickets. The leaves have a tooth at the apex and some lateral teeth and have a great pubescence on the underside. It is used in herbal medicine to treat coughs, asthma and as a tonic.
  • Gambel oak, scrub oak, oak brush, Rocky mountains white oak (Quercus gambelii) is an evergreen shrub that can measure from 4 to 9 meters. It occupies the slopes of the Rocky Mountains above 1500 m above sea level, forming a dense thicket where acorns are a good food source for many animals. It is used for treating cancer.
  • Bluejack oak, cinnamon oak, upland willow oak (Quercus incana = Quercus cinerea): shrub up to about 3 meters high that grows in dry areas of the southeastern United States. Its name derives from the bluegreen leaves. In herbal medicine is used as an astringent, as a diuretic and for the treatment of gonorrhea.
  • Black oak, Eastern black oak (Quercus velutina): From the Eastern United States, it is quite cultivated in Europe. Its scientific name derives from the fact that it presents velvety buds. It is a tree that can reach 30 m high. dyes are extracted from its yellow inner bark. Its leaves are provided with pointed lobes can reach 30 cm in length. In herbal medicine it is used with properties similar to English oak.

Scientific list of Quercus species

Quercus acerifoliaQuercus acuminata

Quercus acuta

Quercus acutissima

Quercus aegilops macrolepis

Quercus agrifolia

Quercus alba

Quercus aliena

Quercus alnifolia

Quercus annulata

Quercus aquatica

Quercus aquifolioides

Quercus arizonica

Quercus arkansana

Quercus aucheri

Quercus austrina

Quercus ballota

Quercus berberidifolia

Quercus bicolor

Quercus borealis

Quercus boyntonii

Quercus buckleyi

Quercus bungeana

Quercus californica

Quercus calliprinos

Quercus canbyi

Quercus catesbaei

Quercus cedrosensis

Quercus cerris

Quercus chapmannii

Quercus chinensis

Quercus chrysolepis

Quercus coccifera

Quercus coccinea

Quercus conferta

Quercus cornelius-mulleri

Quercus crispula

Quercus cualensis

Quercus cuneata

Quercus cuspidata

Quercus daimio

Quercus densiflora

Quercus dentata

Quercus depressa

Quercus depressipes

Quercus dilatata

Quercus douglasii

Quercus dumosa

Quercus dumosa revoluta

Quercus durata

Quercus eduardii

Quercus edulis

Quercus ellipsoidalis

Quercus emoryi

Quercus engelmannii

Quercus faginea

Quercus falcata

Quercus floribunda

Quercus frainetto

Quercus fruticosa

Quercus fusiformis

Quercus gambelii

Quercus garryana

Quercus geminata

Quercus georgiana

Quercus glabra

Quercus glandulifera

Quercus glauca

Quercus graeca

Quercus gravesii

Quercus grisea

Quercus havardii

Quercus hinckleyi

Quercus hindsii

Quercus hintoniorum

Quercus hirtifolia

Quercus hispanica

Quercus hondurensis

Quercus humboldtii

Quercus humilis

Quercus hypoleucoides

Quercus hypoxantha

Quercus ilex

Quercus ilex ballota

Quercus ilicifolia

Quercus iltisii

Quercus imbricaria

Quercus incana

Quercus infectoria

Quercus inopina

Quercus intricataQuercus ithaburensis macrolepis

Quercus john-tuckeri

Quercus kelloggii

Quercus laceyi

Quercus laevigata

Quercus laevis

Quercus lamellosa

Quercus lanata

Quercus lanuginosa

Quercus laurifolia

Quercus laurina

Quercus leucotrichophora

Quercus libani

Quercus lineata

Quercus lobata

Quercus lyrata

Quercus macranthera

Quercus macrocarpa

Quercus macrolepis

Quercus marilandica

Quercus michauxi

Quercus michauxii

Quercus minima

Quercus minor

Quercus mohriana

Quercus mongolica

Quercus montana

Quercus muehlenbergii

Quercus muhlenbergii

Quercus myrsinaefolia

Quercus myrtifolia

Quercus nigra

Quercus nutalli

Quercus oblongifolia

Quercus obtusiloba

Quercus occidentalis

Quercus oglethorpensis

Quercus pachyphylla

Quercus palmeri

Quercus palustris

Quercus parvula

Quercus peduncularis

Quercus pedunculata

Quercus petraea

Quercus phellos

Quercus phillyreoides

Quercus polymorpha

Quercus pontica

Quercus prinoides

Quercus prinus

Quercus pseudococcifera

Quercus pubescens

Quercus pumila

Quercus pungens

Quercus pyrenaica

Quercus rhysophylla

Quercus robur

Quercus rotundifolia

Quercus rubra

Quercus rugosa

Quercus sadleriana

Quercus salicifolia

Quercus sapotaefolia

Quercus schneckii

Quercus schumardii

Quercus semecarpifolia

Quercus serrata

Quercus sessiliflora

Quercus sessilis

Quercus shumardii

Quercus sonomensis

Quercus stellata

Quercus suber

Quercus tardifolia

Quercus texana

Quercus tinctoria

Quercus tomentella

Quercus toumeyi

Quercus trojana

Quercus turbinella

Quercus undulata

Quercus utahensis

Quercus vacciniifolia

Quercus variabilis

Quercus vaseyana

Quercus velutina

Quercus virginiana

Quercus vulcanica

Quercus wislizeni

punto rojo More information on oak.

This article was endorsed by Julián Masats - Technical agricultural engineer specialized in horticulture and gardening.
Editorial
Written by Editorial Botanical-online team in charge of content writing

15 May, 2023

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