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Quercus cerris L.

The 2 Turkey oaks are 18 and 22 meters tall and their circumference is of about 4.10 and 4.20 meters.

They belong to the Fagaceae family and they hail from the Mediterranean area.
Thanks to a well developed rout system, they are able to resist aridity periods. They bear limestone and soil compacting. They do not have particular needs, but prefers acidic sub layers anyway.
In Italy spontaneous Turkey oaks are rare in the Po valley, where they were probably introduced, while they are abundant in Friuli and absent in Sardinia. It is spread all over the Apennine especially from Tuscany downwards. Their wood is different from the one of other oak, since it does not contain tannin and so is less resilient to humidity
and breaks down more easily along the fibres.
In ancient times, the wood was used to build  railway sleepers, spokes of wheels and barrel staves. Nowadays, it is used as fuel.
The 2 Turkey oaks of Ripoli are next to a characteristic stone building.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)