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Uses

Edible uses

Notes

Seed - cooked. It can be dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in stews etc or mixed with cereals for making bread. The seed, which is up to 25mm long and 15mm wide[1][2], contains bitter tannins, these can be leached out by thoroughly washing the seed in running water though many minerals will also be lost. Either the whole seed can be used or the seed can be dried and ground it into a powder. It can take several days or even weeks to properly leach whole seeds, one method was to wrap them in a cloth bag and place them in a stream. Leaching the powder is quicker. A simple taste test can tell when the tannin has been leached. The traditional method of preparing the seed was to bury it in boggy ground overwinter. The germinating seed was dug up in the spring when it would have lost most of its astringency. The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.

Unknown part

Material uses

A mulch of the leaves repels slugs, grubs etc, though fresh leaves should not be used as these can inhibit plant growth[3].

Oak galls are excrescences that are sometimes produced in great numbers on the tree and are caused by the activity of the larvae of different insects. The insects live inside these galls, obtaining their nutrient therein. When the insect pupates and leaves, the gall can be used as a rich source of tannin, that can also be used as a dyestuff[4].

Wood - strong, hard, heavy, coarse grained[5][1][6][2]. It weighs 46lb per cubic foot[7]. Inferior to wood from the white oaks, it is used in construction, furniture etc[5][1][6][2].

Unknown part

Medicinal uses(Warning!)

Any galls produced on the tree are strongly astringent and can be used in the treatment of haemorrhages, chronic diarrhoea, dysentery etc[4].

Unknown part

Ecology

Ecosystem niche/layer

Canopy

Ecological Functions

Nothing listed.

Forage

Nothing listed.

Shelter

Nothing listed.

Propagation

Seed - it quickly loses viability if it is allowed to dry out. It can be stored moist and cool overwinter but is best sown as soon as it is ripe in an outdoor seed bed, though it must be protected from mice, squirrels etc. Small quantities of seed can be sown in deep pots in a cold frame. Plants produce a deep taproot and need to be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible, in fact seed sown in situ will produce the best trees[8]. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly.

Practical Plants is currently lacking information on propagation instructions of Quercus coccinea. Help us fill in the blanks! Edit this page to add your knowledge.



Cultivation

Prefers a good deep fertile loam which can be on the stiff side[9][8]. Young plants tolerate reasonable levels of side shade[10]. Tolerates moderate exposure, surviving well but being somewhat stunted[10].

Prefers warmer summers than are usually experienced in Britain, trees often grow poorly in this country and fail to properly ripen their wood resulting in frost damage overwinter[10]. A very ornamental tree[9], it is fast-growing but short-lived in the wild[2]. Seed production is cyclic, a year of high yields being followed by 3 - 4 years of low yields[2]. The tree flowers on new growth produced in spring, the seed taking two summers to ripen[2]. Intolerant of root disturbance, trees should be planted in their permanent positions whilst young[8]. Hybridizes freely with other members of the genus[10].

Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[10].

Crops

Problems, pests & diseases

Associations & Interactions

There are no interactions listed for Quercus coccinea. Do you know of an interaction that should be listed here? edit this page to add it.

Polycultures & Guilds

There are no polycultures listed which include Quercus coccinea.

Descendants

Cultivars

Varieties

None listed.

Subspecies

None listed.

Full Data

This table shows all the data stored for this plant.

Taxonomy
Binomial name
Quercus coccinea
Genus
Quercus
Family
Fagaceae
Imported References
Edible uses
Medicinal uses
Material uses & Functions
Botanic
Propagation
Cultivation
Environment
Cultivation
Uses
Edible uses
None listed.
Material uses
None listed.
Medicinal uses
None listed.
Functions & Nature
Functions
Provides forage for
Provides shelter for
Environment
Hardiness Zone
4
Heat Zone
?
Water
moderate
Sun
full sun
Shade
light shade
Soil PH
Soil Texture
Soil Water Retention
Environmental Tolerances
  • Strong wind
Ecosystems
Native Climate Zones
None listed.
Adapted Climate Zones
None listed.
Native Geographical Range
None listed.
Native Environment
None listed.
Ecosystem Niche
Root Zone Tendancy
None listed.
Life
Deciduous or Evergreen
Herbaceous or Woody
Life Cycle
Growth Rate
?
Mature Size
Fertility
?
Pollinators
Flower Colour
?
Flower Type

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"image:Quercus coccinea0.jpg|248px" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.

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References

  1. ? 1.01.11.21.31.41.5 Sargent. C. S. Manual of the Trees of N. America. Dover Publications Inc. New York. ISBN 0-486-20278-X (1965-00-00)
  2. ? 2.02.12.22.32.42.52.62.7 Elias. T. The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. ISBN 0442238622 (1980-00-00)
  3. ? 3.03.1 Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. ISBN 0-88266-064-0 (1978-00-00)
  4. ? 4.04.14.24.3 Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin ISBN 0-14-046-440-9 (1984-00-00)
  5. ? 5.05.15.2 Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim (1959-00-00)
  6. ? 6.06.16.2 Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press (1952-00-00)
  7. ? 7.07.1 Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. ISBN 0-486-22642-5 (1970-00-00)
  8. ? 8.08.18.2 Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray (1981-00-00)
  9. ? 9.09.1 F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press (1951-00-00)
  10. ? 10.010.110.210.310.410.5 Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press ISBN 0-333-47494-5 (1992-00-00)
  11. ? Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named PFAFimport-43

"image:Quercus coccinea0.jpg|248px" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.