Oak ID help

[hemmy]

I was going to guess, the Interior Live Oak (Q. wislizeni). But again, just a wild guess.

Interior Live Oak

<p>Interior Live Oak (Quercus wislizeni) is a slow-growing, evergreen tree with a distinctive broad crown. The glossy dark green leaves and reddish-brown bark give it a formal look.</p><p><br></p><p>In winter and spring, the oak blooms with green and white flowers. The tree's long, narrow acorns...

calscape.org

 

[Wulfskaar]

I was going to guess, the Interior Live Oak (Q. wislizeni). But again, just a wild guess.

Interior Live Oak

<p>Interior Live Oak (Quercus wislizeni) is a slow-growing, evergreen tree with a distinctive broad crown. The glossy dark green leaves and reddish-brown bark give it a formal look.</p><p><br></p><p>In winter and spring, the oak blooms with green and white flowers. The tree's long, narrow acorns...

calscape.org

Fyi... these are in Ventura County.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I would have guessed interior live oak as well, given the acorns.

However, very hard to differentiate California live oaks from one another. Leaves can look different based on environment or conditions, and they can change in appearance annually.

Better to get yourself some California valley oaks... and then you won't have to wonder

 

[Wulfskaar]

I would have guessed interior live oak as well, given the acorns.

However, very hard to differentiate California live oaks from one another. Leaves can look different based on environment or conditions, and they can change in appearance annually.

Better to get yourself some California valley oaks... and then you won't have to wonder

Oh, I did! I found myself some nice Valley Oak acorns (Quercus lobata) that I planted a couple weeks ago. Their taproots have already begun their descent!

I found the Shreve Oaks by pure chance. The different leaves are what shocked me, as I'm not used to seeing oak leaves like that. Since they are fairly rare, I plan to grow them too.

At this point, I am absolutely convinced that these are Shreve Oaks. They match all descriptions I have been able to find much closer than any other tree.

Maybe I can just ask it to drip some sap in a cup and send it off to ancestry.com?

 

[Esolin]

Congrats on a 99.5% positive ID! Never heard of Shreve oak, so that's cool. It's fun to find a rare species. Last time I visited my local nursery, I spotted a little Island Oak alone in a forgotten corner. Still debating whether to go back and buy it. I've no idea if they make good bonsai, and I really don't need more trees right now, but I guess they're pretty rare. Maybe for Christmas.

 

[Wulfskaar]

Congrats on a 99.5% positive ID! Never heard of Shreve oak, so that's cool. It's fun to find a rare species. Last time I visited my local nursery, I spotted a little Island Oak alone in a forgotten corner. Still debating whether to go back and buy it. I've no idea if they make good bonsai, and I really don't need more trees right now, but I guess they're pretty rare. Maybe for Christmas.

If it's Quercus tomentella, then that would be really cool. The Channel Islands are special with several unique species of plants and animals, including dwarf mammoths! Also, it's where God created man, according to the Chumash! I'd love an oak from there!

 

[Wulfskaar]

They live! I'm really looking to see what kind of leaves they show.

I still don't think they are Coast Live Oak because of how different the leaves were and also because my CLO acorns germinated much faster. These have been in soil for A LOT longer.

There are at least 2 coming up in this one.


Another one in this one and maybe a 2nd on the way.

 

[Wulfskaar]

6 of these are growing nicely...

 

[Wulfskaar]

Still growing!

 

[Wulfskaar]

These oaks appear to be super healthy and happy. They have grown more than my Valley Oaks in their first year and have nice, soft leaves, unlike my Coast Live Oaks. I'm looking forward to developing these further.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Nice oak seedlings. Yep, I agree, Quercus of some sort.

 

[Wulfskaar]

Here they are again! They are putting out a new burst of growth. NOTE: They are evergreen and never lost their leaves.

 

[Esolin]

Cool! Hope they turn out to be a good species for bonsai. I germinated a bunch of CLO this year. Never thought I'd like oaks for bonsai, but they seem really resilient, especially when pot-raised from the beginning.

 

[nuttiest]

They look too sawtoothed to be one of the top CA species.

 

[Wulfskaar]

More growth.

 

[Wulfskaar]

Repotted one pot that had 3 of these oaks. I've learned a couple things about these so far, but still have a lot to learn.

• Evergreen.
• On a couple that I wired in 2023 (?), a lot of the bark just basically slid right off the trunk. I didn't think one of them would survive, but it's still kicking.
• The taproots weren't nearly as bad as I thought they would be. I pruned off just the lower part of the taproots as there were some fine roots growing fairly high up.

 

[chantat]

Quercus Ilex I believe. It's a pretty common landscape oak but not native though!

 

[Wulfskaar]

Quercus Ilex I believe. It's a pretty common landscape oak but not native though!

Hot damn! You may have cracked it! That does look a lot like it!

I was convinced it was Shreve oak, related to the Island oaks of the Channel Islands, which are nearby.

There's a whole bunch of them on a particular street in my town.

Thanks @chantat!!!

 

[chantat]

Funnily, I knew because I had a bunch of them on my street and was struggling to identify what it was. I ended up calling the city to ask what they are.

 

[Wulfskaar]

Funnily, I knew because I had a bunch of them on my street and was struggling to identify what it was. I ended up calling the city to ask what they are.

It never dawned on me to ask the city. My mind was always stuck on them being native to my area or somewhere between Mexico and Northern CA.

I did have a city arborist over last year to approve the cutting down of a dead coast live oak in my "back 40". We're not allowed to cut down oaks without city permission. He loved my little tree collection, but he was not aware of what type of oaks these were.