''Quercus arizonica'', the Arizona white oak, is a North American tree species in the
beech family
The Fagaceae are a family of flowering plants that includes beeches, chestnuts and oaks, and comprises eight genera with about 927 species. Fagaceae in temperate regions are mostly deciduous, whereas in the tropics, many species occur as evergr ...
. It is found in
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
,
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
, western
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
,
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...
,
Chihuahua,
Coahuila
Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...
,
Sinaloa
Sinaloa (), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is d ...
, and
Durango
Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in ...
.
Description
The Arizona white oak is one of the largest southwestern oaks. This tree may grow to 60 feet (18 meters), with a trunk diameter of . It has stout branches and a spreading crown. The leaves are about long, thick, and
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...
. It grows very slowly once it has become mature, adding approximately of diameter per year.
[
* Bark: color is light grayish. The bark is initially thin and lenticelled, but later becomes quite thick, with shallow fissures and scaly ridges.][
* Twig: medium-sized, fuzzy. The color can be light brown or reddish brown. Twigs have pointy and fat clusters of terminal buds.][
* Leaves: alternate, evergreen, simple, and oblong. The color is yellowish green or bluish green. Leaves are usually 1 to 3 in long. The margins are usually entire or toothed, and are rounded at the base. The texture of the leaves is leathery and stiff. The veins are parallel, and are sunken on the upperside and raised underneath. Leaves may begin to shed in late winter, or when new leaves emerge in spring.][
* Fruit: oblong acorn that is to 1 in long. Acorns have bowl-shaped caps that cover one third of the nut. Acorns usually mature in autumn. The quantity of acorns produced can vary year to year, producing about 32,000 acorns one year and very few the next. Germination of acorns is highly correlated with the amount of moisture during the rainy season.][
* Flowers: ]monoecious
Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy.
Monoecy is conne ...
, meaning that male and female organs occur in different flowers on the same tree. Female flowers occur as small spikes in the leaf axils. Male flowers are long, drooping, yellowish green catkins.
Distribution and habitat
The Arizona white oak can be found in a vast array of habitats such as savannas, grasslands, and chaparrals. They are usually found in mountain-like areas that are above about in elevation. Water use is low and it requires sun or part shade. Soil moisture must be dry and it must be rocky or sandy soils. Soils may be clay loam, clay, medium loam, or rocky. The Arizona white oak is both heat and cold tolerant.
Ecology
Fire
When Arizona white oaks are small they usually die by fire. The acorns are usually killed by fires as well. The foliage is extremely flammable but larger trees usually survive fires that are not as severe and if a stump survives a fire it will sprout rapidly afterwards.
Threats
The wood decaying fungus '' Inonotus andersoni'' affects the Arizona white oak negatively. Burning and herbicide treatment has also affected the growth of the Arizona white oak, so they are being managed by pinyon-juniper silvicultural systems.
Uses
The wood is usually used for fuel. Since the wood of the Arizona white oak is hard, heavy, and strong, it is rarely used for commercial reasons such as furniture production.
The Arizona white oak provides cover for such animals like deer, turkeys, javelinas, desert sheep, songbirds, and quail. The white tailed deer is also known to utilize it for cover. For white-tailed and mule deer, the Arizona white oak is highly palatable as well. The only species known to consume the acorns in quantity is the thick-billed parrot
The thick-billed parrot (''Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha'') is a medium-sized parrot endemic to Mexico that formerly ranged into the southwestern United States. Its position in parrot phylogeny is the subject of ongoing discussion; it is sometimes ...
.
The Arizona white oak can also be used as an ornamental plant.
See also
* Linden Oak
The Linden Oak is a large white oak tree in North Bethesda, Maryland, beside the junction of Rockville Pike and Rock Creek Park's Beach Drive. In 1976, the Linden Oak was proclaimed a Maryland Bicentennial Tree because it stood its ground, surviv ...
, possibly the largest living white oak in the United States
References
External links
*
*
Virginia Tech ''Quercus arizonica''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q669926
arizonica
Trees of the Southwestern United States
Oaks of Mexico
Plants described in 1895
Trees of North America
Trees of the United States
Trees of Northeastern Mexico
Trees of Northwestern Mexico
Trees of the Western United States
Flora of the Sierra Madre Occidental