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Quercus pubescens subsp. pubescens (Fagaceae)

This oak grows on the plain of Colle Romano monastery, in the municipality of Penne (PE).

Its size is impressive, 5,32 m of trunk circumference and 25 m of height, it is also believed that it is 320 years old. The phytosanitary conditions of the tree are fair, seen that the root system is damaged and the presence of parasites fungi. Nevertheless, it produces a big hemispheric crown each year.

More than 20 years ago, a neighbour of the ancient monument tree asked for the pruning of a part of the crown too near to his house; the cut of one side f the crown would have created a displacement of the weight and an aesthetic damage. Luckily, after careful examination, the pruning was carried out in a way that could preserve the splendour of the oak.

How to get there:

Exit from motorway A14 at Pescara Sud – Città di Castello and drive along via Vestina until Penne.

Botanical profile of the oak:

The specie has a big range, whose central area concentrates in the southern part of Europe.

The oak can be found in each Italian region.

The specie is heliophilous and xerophilous, it resists at low temperatures but need high temperatures in summer. It grows between 200-800 m of altitude on southern slopes.

It grows in dry woods and shrubbery.

In the North of Italy, on calcareous, rocky and well-drained lands, it grows together with Fraxinus ornus, Carpinus betulus and Pinus nigra. In the Centre and South of Italy it only grows in holm oak woods and in the upper parts of Turkey oak woods and durmast woods.

The wood of this specie is harder and heavier than that of other oaks, its fibres tend to detach and therefore it is less used than durmast and English oak; it is an excellent fuel and produces excellent carbon.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)