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Quercus pubescens (Fagaceae)

This downy oak features a trunk circumference of 19 ft and a height of 46 ft – it is probably the largest Quercus pubuscens in Umbria. This majestic tree appears in good health, with its trunk forking into two main branches with a 95-ft wide green crown during the vegetative period.

How to get there:

This downy oak grows inside a private property, in Valbiancara (municipality of Perugia).

Botanical Card:

This species is found in many parts of the world and it is mainly found in the southern part of Europe. In Italy, the downy oak grows in all the regions.

The species is heliophilic and xerophilic, it can withstand low temperatures but requires hot summers. It grows between 656 ft and 2.624 ft m of altitude, usually south-facing slopes. In particular, it thrives in dry woods and shrubs.

In the north of the peninsula, on calcareous, rocky and well-drained soils, it is associated with ash, hornbeam and black pine. In the centre and the south, it only grows in the lower part of the holm oak woods and in the upper part of the Turkey oak woods.

The wood of this species is harder and heavier than other oaks; its fibres tend to detach and for that reason, it is less favoured by carpenters and artisans. It burns perfectly and produces excellent coal.

Photo source:

http://www.italiainfoto.com/gallery/alberi-monumentali-d-27italia/p40941-roverella-di-valbiancara.html

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)