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Coast Live Oak
Quercus agrifolia
  
About Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) 76 Nurseries Carry This Plant The Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) is an iconic, majestic tree that serves as a cornerstone for wildlife and the surrounding ecosystem. It is easily-recognized by its gnarled branches and grand canopy. The Coast Live Oak flowers each spring and its acorns attract a wide variety of birds and butterflies - over 270 species rely on these trees for habitat and food.

With its rich green foliage and unique branching pattern, the Coast Live Oak is a favored choice for both residential and commercial landscapes. These resilient trees can live for centuries, often surpassing 250 years, and can grow impressively tall, reaching mature heights ranging from 30 to 80 feet.
It is one of the only California native oaks that thrives in coastal environments, it enjoys fog and mild winters. In the first year after planting, water once a week. Then, reduce it to once a month until it reaches about 10 feet tall. After that, avoid watering directly during summer.

Coast Live Oaks like to have their roots shaded. When they're young, surround them with mulch, rocks, or smaller native plants. Some California natives, such as Toyon and Manzanitas, do well as "understory" plants under the Coast Live Oak. Fallen oak leaves provide natural mulch for the tree. Don't fertilize oaks. They'll amend the soil over time with their own leaves and build the natural mycorrhizal fungus in the soil they need to thrive. Gradually, they become islands of natural fertility that improve the health of the nearby plants.

Sources: https://waterwisegardenplanner.org/plants/quercus-agrifolia/
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Tree

Size
Size
25 - 82 ft tall
15 - 35 ft wide

Form
Form
Rounded

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate, Slow

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Fragrance
Fragrance
None

Flower Color
Flower Color
Yellow, Cream, Green

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Spring, Winter

Wildlife Supported
 
A great many birds, mammals, reptiles and invertebrates utilize oak trees and oak woodlands. Oaks are among the most important wildlife plants. The following butterflies use Oaks as host plant: California Sister, Propertius Duskywing, Mournful Duskywing, Golden Hairstreak, and Gold-Hunter's Hairstreak.

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture
Moisture
Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 15° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Medium

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerates a variety of soils but prefers a deep, well draining loam which it usually develops over time from leaf drop. Soil PH: 4.0 - 8.0

Common uses
Common uses
Bank Stabilization, Hedges, Deer Resistant, Bird Gardens, Butterfly Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
A wide variety of species work as either understory or companion plants with Coast Live Oak, including Coyote Brush; California Buckwheat; Coast Sagebrush; Toyon; California Coffeeberry; Woolly Bluecurls; Snapdragon Penstemon; Fuchsiaflower Gooseberry; California WildRose; Manzanita sp.; Ceanothus sp.; Salvia sp. and annual wildflowers including Poppy sp. and Chinese Houses; in riparian areas in Encinitas: Salix lasiolepis

Maintenance
Maintenance
Oaks are susceptible to several pests and diseases including Gold Spotted Oak Borer and Sudden Oak Death. The best prevention for these maladies is to avoid moving firewood outside the area where it was grown and sterilizing pruning instruments after each use.. Best to prune during July or August, when the trees are not normally growing, and when the dry weather is less likely to support pathogens that may attack the wounds. As much as possible, avoid pruning large limbs as this exposes the tree to possible infection and can take many years to recover. Avoid over-thinning interior branches or "lion tailing."

Propagation
Propagation?
Propagation by acorns is relatively simple. Best acorns sink in water, have a more or less even mix of green, yellow and brown color, and pop out of their caps easily. Plant acorns on their sides, at depth of 1.5x its diameter. Keep moist until germinated and at least 3-4 weeks after the seedling pushes out of the ground.  For propagating by seed: Fresh seeds sow in fall outdoors or stratify to hold for spring sowing. (USDA Forest Service 1974).

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Coast live oak occurs in a number of natural settings over a large part of the state, usually below 3,000 ft.. It is often seen in valleys and slopes near (but not in) streams where it is the dominant species in live oak woodland. Chaparral or coastal sage scrub are frequently upslope, with riparian vegetation in the stream. In other areas it is found among numerous other tree species (including other oak spacies) as part of foothill woodland or mixed evergreen forest. It is occasionally found in native grassland savannahs.

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.7" - 66.6", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 3.04", Coldest Month: 36.8" - 56.8", Hottest Month: 58.0" - 85.4", Humidity: 0.41" - 36.26", Elevation: 2" - 7280"

Alternative Names
Common Names: California Live Oak


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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