Quercus gambelii Nutt.

Gambel oak (en)

Species

Angiosperms > Fagales > Fagaceae > Quercus

Characteristics

Shrubs or trees , deciduous, shrubs sometimes clumped and spreading, trees small or moderately large. Bark gray or brown, scaly. Twigs brown or reddish brown with few, inconspicuous lenticels, 1.5-2.5 mm diam., glabrous or stellate-pubescent. Buds brown, ovoid, ca. 3 mm, apex acute or obtuse, sparsely pubescent, becoming glabrate. Leaves: petiole l0-20 mm. Leaf blade elliptic to obovate or oblong, deeply to shallowly 4-6-lobed, (40-)80-120(-160) × (25-)40-60(-100) mm, membranous, base truncate to cuneate, margins entire or coarsely toothed, lobes oblong, rounded or subacute, sinuses acute or narrowly rounded at base, reaching more than 1/2 distance to midrib, secondary veins 4-6 on each side, each passing into lobe, branched, apex broadly rounded; surfaces abaxially dull green, sometimes glaucous, densely velvety with erect 4-6-rayed hairs, sometimes glabrate or persistently villous only near midribs, secondary veins prominent, adaxially lustrous dark green, appearing glabrate, microscopically pubescent, secondary veins slightly raised. Acorns solitary or paired, subsessile or on peduncle to 10(-30) mm; cup deeply cup-shaped, 5-8(-17) mm deep × 7-l5(-25) mm wide, enclosing 1/4-1/2 nut, base round, margin thin, scales closely appressed, ovate, markedly tuberculate, proximally gray-tomentulose; nut light brown, ovoid to ellipsoid, (8-)12-15(-33) × 7-12(-18) mm. Cotyledons distinct.
More
A small tree. It grows 9 m high and spreads 8 m wide. It loses its leaves during the year. It can spread from underground runners. It can form clumps. The leaves have 3-6 deep lobes on each side. There are fine hairs underneath. The fruit are oval acorns.
Life form perennial
Growth form tree
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality monoecy
Pollination anemogamy
Spread -
Mature width (meter) 8.0
Mature height (meter) 4.6 - 9.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) 0.9
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Montane conifer, oak-maple, and higher margins of pinyon-juniper woodlands; at elevations from 1,000-3,030 metres. Dry foothills and lower mountain slopes; at elevations from 1,350-2,800 metres.
More
It is a temperate plant. It suits hardiness zones 4-9. Arboretum Tasmania.
Light 6-8
Soil humidity 2-5
Soil texture 2-4
Soil acidity 4-8
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 5-8

Usage

The acorns are ground into a meal. They are also boiled or lightly roasted. Parched acorns are used to make soup. The ground acorns are used to flavour meat. They are ground into flour, soaked in water and baked to make bread.
Uses animal food dye fiber material medicinal poison spice wood
Edible fruits nuts seeds
Therapeutic use Analgesic (bark), Cathartic (bark), Gynecological Aid (bark), Panacea (bark), Ceremonial Medicine (leaf), Emetic (leaf), Analgesic (root), Cathartic (root), Gynecological Aid (root), Panacea (root), Reproductive Aid (unspecified), Cancer (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by seedlings.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) 120 - 365
Germination temperacture (C°) 10
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -12
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Leaf

Quercus gambelii leaf picture by Eileen Eileen Ward (cc-by-sa)
Quercus gambelii leaf picture by Straka Kelli (cc-by-sa)
Quercus gambelii leaf picture by Jose Cortez (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Quercus gambelii world distribution map, present in Colombia and United States of America

Conservation status

Quercus gambelii threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:296173-1
WFO ID wfo-0000290863
COL ID 4R4Z8
BDTFX ID 54397
INPN ID 116673
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Quercus nitescens Quercus submollis Quercus subobtusifolia Quercus vreelandii Quercus albifolia Quercus eastwoodiae Quercus gunnisonii Quercus leptophylla Quercus marshii Quercus media Quercus novomexicana Quercus utahensis Quercus confusa Quercus x var. obtusifolia Quercus alba var. gunnisonii Quercus douglasii var. gambelii Quercus douglasii var. novomexicana Quercus gambelii var. bonina Quercus gambelii var. gunnisonii Quercus gambelii var. novomexicana Quercus gambelii var. utahensis Quercus gambelii subsp. vreelandii Quercus gambelii var. vreelandii Quercus novomexicana var. andrewsii Quercus novomexicana var. nitescens Quercus pauciloba subsp. confusa Quercus stellata var. utahensis Quercus undulata var. gambelii Quercus undulata var. gunnisonii Quercus utahensis var. mollis Quercus utahensis subsp. submollis Quercus utahensis var. submollis Quercus obtusifolia Quercus gambelii subsp. eugambelii Quercus utahensis subsp. eu-utahensis Quercus novomexicana var. typica Quercus gambelii