Black ridge oak
Quercus phillyreoides

Family: Fagaceae

What it is like

A shrub or tree. It grows up to 10 m tall. It keeps its leaves throughout the year. The small branches are slender, greyish brown and hairy. The leaf stalk is 3-5 mm. The leaf blade is green and oval. It is 2-6 cm long by 1.5-3 cm wide. The base is rounded or heart shaped. The edges have teeth. The tip can be sharp. There are 8-13 secondary veins on each side of the main vein. The female flowering stalk is 1-4 cm long. The cup encloses about 1/2 or the nut. The nut is oval and 1-2 cm long by 0.5-1 cm wide. The cup is like an upside-down cone.

There are about 600 Quercus species.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It is native to China and Japan. It grows on cliffs and rocky places. In China it grows in mixed forests between 300-1200 m altitude. It suits hardiness zone 7. In Melbourne Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Canada, China, Japan (country/location of origin), Korea, North America

How it is used for food

Starch is extracted from the seeds are eaten.

Edible parts

Seeds, nuts

How it is grown

It can be grown from seed or stem cuttings.

Its other names

Local names

Ubame oak, Wu gang li, Ubame gashi, Imame gashi

Synonyms

Maesa singuliflora H.Leveille; Quercus fokienensis Nakai; Quercus fooningensis Hu & W.C.Cheng; Quercus ilex L. var. phillyreoides (A.Gray) Frnachet; Quercus lichuenensis W.C.Cheng; Quercus myricifolia Hu & W.C.Cheng; Quercus phillyreoides subsp. fokienensis (Nakai) Menitsky; Quercus singuliflora (H.Leveille) A.Camus;