''Quercus hemisphaerica'' (sand laurel oak, laurel oak, Darlington oak, laurel-leaf oak) is a species of oak native to the southeastern and south-central United States. It is in the

red oak The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera ''C ...

section ''Quercus'' sect. ''Lobatae''. It is often confused with and closely related to the ''

Quercus laurifolia ''Quercus laurifolia'' (swamp laurel oak, diamond-leaf oak, water oak, obtusa oak, laurel oak) is a medium-sized semi-evergreen oak in the red oak section ''Quercus'' sect. ''Lobatae''. It is native to the southeastern and south-central the Uni ...

'' (swamp laurel oak) in which it differs in several key characteristics.

Description

''Quercus hemisphaerica'' is a medium-sized

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, whic ...

semi-evergreen Semi-deciduous or semi-evergreen is a botanical term which refers to plants that lose their foliage for a very short period, when old leaves fall off and new foliage growth is starting. This phenomenon occurs in tropical and sub-tropical woody spec ...

tree which can grow as tall as tall with a trunk diameter of , although it is more commonly around tall. The

leaves A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

are entire, without teeth except one apical awn (rarely with a few teeth near apex), mostly elliptical or narrowly

ovate Ovate may refer to: * Ovate (egg-shaped) leaves, tepals, or other botanical parts *Ovate, a type of prehistoric stone hand axe *Ovates, one of three ranks of membership in the Welsh Gorsedd *Vates In modern English, the nouns vates () and ova ...

, and long by wide. The petiole is very short ranging from long and the leaf base is obtuse to rounded. The

acorn The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera '' Quercus'' and '' Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and b ...

s are hemispheric in shape and by . The acorns take 18 months to mature and are a fourth to a third covered by a saucer- to bowl-shaped cap.

Similar species

''Q. hemisphaerica'' resembles ''

'' (swamp laurel oak). They can be distinguished using this criteria. *When both sand laurel oak and swamp laurel oak are growing in the same area, sand laurel oak will flower about two weeks later than swamp laurel oak. *Sand laurel oak grows on dry sandy soils while swamp laurel oak grows on flood plains, river bottoms, and occasionally poorly drained upland soils. *Sand laurel oak has narrow ovate or elliptic leaves, while swamp laurel oak has rhombic or broad ovate leaves. *Sand laurel oak has an

acute Acute may refer to: Science and technology * Acute angle ** Acute triangle ** Acute, a leaf shape in the glossary of leaf morphology * Acute (medicine), a disease that it is of short duration and of recent onset. ** Acute toxicity, the adverse ef ...

leaf apex and a rounded or obtuse (blunt, >90°) leaf base, while swamp laurel oak has an obtuse or rounded leaf apex and a cuneate or attenuate leaf base. *Sand laurel oak is mostly evergreen, while swamp laurel oak is mostly tardily

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...

Distribution and habitat

The tree can be found from Texas to Delaware.Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
/ref> It grows in somewhat

xeric Deserts and xeric shrublands are a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Deserts and xeric (ancient Greek xērós, “dry") shrublands form the largest terrestrial biome, covering 19% of Earth's land surface area. Ecoregions in this h ...

sandy soils, sand hills, and sometimes on hillsides.

Ecology

There is at least one known hybrid involving ''Q. hemisphaerica'' which is with '' Q. laevis'' (''Q. × mellichampii'' Trel.).

References

External links

North Carolina State Fact Sheet: Laurel Oak

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080530191110/http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=241 Virginia Tech, Department of Forestry Fact Sheet: Darlington oak
United States Department of Agriculture plants profile: Darlington oak

Floridata: ''Quercus hemisphaerica''

Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida: Laurel Oak or Swamp Laurel Oak?
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4112157 hemisphaerica Trees of the Southern United States Plants described in 1805