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Interior Live Oak
Quercus wislizeni
  
41 Nurseries Carry This Plant

About Interior Live Oak (Quercus wislizeni) 41 Nurseries Carry This Plant Interior Live Oak (Quercus wislizeni) is a native tree or shrub in the Fagaceae (Beech) family. Despite the common name it grows near the coast as well as in the Coast Ranges, central valley, and Sierra foothills. It tends to grow at elevations from sea level to 5,000 feet and is a major component of foothill woodland. This is a tall, broad tree with evergreen leaves. The leaves are thick, leathery, and may have either toothed or smooth margins. The long, narrow, pointed acorns sit deep in the cap; the take two years to mature. There are two recognized Varieties: Var. frutescens is a shrub form and is more common in the southern portion of the species' range, while var. wislizeni is the tree form. Due to its ultimate size, it requires a large garden but is a very rewarding tree to grow.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Tree, Shrub

Size
Size
15 - 50 ft tall
10 - 50 ft wide

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Flower Color
Flower Color
Cream, Green

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

Wildlife Supported
 
Many insects are attracted to Oaks generally, including the following butterflies which use Oaks as host plant: California Sister, Propertius Duskywing, Mournful Duskywing, Golden Hairstreak, and Gold-Hunter's Hairstreak.

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 14 confirmed , 159 likely * ) SHOW ALL
Erynnis tristis Image
Mournful Duskywing Erynnis tristisErynnis tristis
Satyrium auretorum Image
Gold Hunter's Hairstreak Satyrium auretorumSatyrium auretorum
Archips argyrospila Image
Fruit-Tree Leafroller Moth Archips argyrospilaArchips argyrospila
Malacosoma constricta Image
Pacific Tent Caterpillar Malacosoma constrictaMalacosoma constricta
Catocala andromache Image
Andromache Underwing Moth Catocala andromacheCatocala andromache
Caloptilia reticulata Image
Caloptilia reticulataCaloptilia reticulata
Dyseriocrania auricyanea Image
Dyseriocrania auricyaneaDyseriocrania auricyanea

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture
Moisture
Very Low, Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries
Carried by 41

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 10° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium, Slow

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerant of a variety of soils. Soil PH: 5.0 - 7.0

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

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
This oak is compatible with a very wide ranges of native trees, shrubs, vines, perennial herbs and annuals wildflowers.

Propagation
Propagation?
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
Hillsides, canyons and floodplains across most of California in locations where winters are wet but not freezing and summers are hot and dry.

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.0" - 91.9", Summer Precipitation: 0.15" - 3.16", Coldest Month: 24.6" - 55.2", Hottest Month: 45.5" - 84.1", Humidity: 0.10" - 35.01", Elevation: 7" - 11310"


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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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