Quercus durata
Common name: 
Leather Oak
Pronunciation: 
kwer-KUS du-RAH-ta
Family: 
Fagaceae
Genus: 
Quercus
Type: 
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon: 
No
  • Broadleaf evergreen shrub 3-10 ft (~1-3 m), forms a dense tangle of branches, rounded crown, twigs tomentose, sometimes becoming hairless (glabrous).  Leaves alternate, simple, leathery, 1.5-3 cm long, oblong to elliptic, convex above, tip sharply pointed, margin entire, rolled under to spiny toothed, upper surface minutely pubescent, dull green, lower surface somewhat hairy, pale green; petiole several mm long.  Fruit (acorn) matures in 1 year, cup about 15 mm wide and 6 mm deep, bowl-shaped, nut 15-25 mm, ovoid to cylindrical, tip blunt or rounded.
  • Sun  
  • Hardy to USDA Zone 8      Native to California, in chaparral, foothill woodlands; Coast Ranges, northern Sierra Nevada Foothills, San Francisco Bay Area, and San Gabriel Mountains.  Separated into two varieties, Quercus durata var. durata [Leather Oak], limited to serpentine soils and Quercus durata var. gabrielensis [San Gabriel Mtns. Leather Oak], found on loose slopes in non-serpentine soils.  Serpentine soils are low nutrient soils which contain high amounts of magnesium and low amounts of calcium.
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  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • leafy branches

    leafy branches

  • leaves

    leaves

  • leaves

    leaves

  • leaves, underside

    leaves, underside

  • fruit (acorns) and leaves

    fruit (acorns) and leaves