Quercus chrysolepis
Common name: 
Canyon Live Oak
Pronunciation: 
KWER-kus kris-o-LEP-is
Family: 
Fagaceae
Genus: 
Quercus
Type: 
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon: 
Yes
  • Broadleaf evergreen tree/shrub, 20-60 ft (6-18 m) high, short trunk, spreading horizontal branches, sometimes shrubby.  Leaves alternate, simple, elliptical to oblong, 2.5-7.5 cm long, 1.2-4 cm wide, often with spiny teeth, some entire, thick, leathery, shiny green above and yellowish or gray below.  Acorns egg-shaped, variable in size, 2-5 cm long, with a turban-like cap; requires two seasons to mature.
  • Sun.  Well-drained soil, withstands drought.
  • Hardy to USDA Zone 7      Native to southwest Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona.
  • chrysolepis: chryso, gold, and lepis, scale, -- golden-scale, refers to the yellowish acorn cap or cup.
  • Oregon State Univ. campus: west side of the Moreland Hall "arboretum".
Click image to enlarge
  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • leafy shoots

    leafy shoots

  • shoot tips

    shoot tips

  • leaves

    leaves

  • male catkins

    male catkins

  • developing fruit (acorn)

    developing fruit (acorn)

  • developing fruit

    developing fruit

  • ripening fruit

    ripening fruit

  • ripening fruit (S. Ruettgers)

    ripening fruit (S. Ruettgers)

  • single trunks (S. Ruettgers)

    single trunks (S. Ruettgers)

  • multi-trunked, bark (about 20 years old) (S. Ruettgers)

    multi-trunked, bark (about 20 years old) (S. Ruettgers)

  • older tree, trunk, bark

    older tree, trunk, bark