Quercus leucotrichophora
| Quercus leucotrichophora | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Evergreen | |
| Height: | 82' |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Quercus leucotrichophora
Propagation: Seed - it quickly loses viability if it is allowed to dry out. It can be stored moist and cool overwinter but is best sown as soon as it is ripe in an outdoor seed bed, though it must be protected from mice, squirrels etc. Small quantities of seed can be sown in deep pots in a cold frame. Plants produce a deep taproot and need to be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible, in fact seed sown in situ will produce the best trees[1]. Trees should not be left in a nursery bed for more than 2 growing seasons without being moved or they will transplant very badly.
Cultivation: Prefers a good deep fertile loam which can be on the stiff side[2][1]. Young plants tolerate reasonable levels of side shade[3]. Tolerates moderate exposure, surviving well but being somewhat stunted[3].
This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10°c[3].
Prefers warmer summers than are usually experienced in Britain, trees often grow poorly in this country and fail to properly ripen their wood resulting in frost damage overwinter[3].
Trees can be coppiced if their trunks are up to 25cm in diameter[[4][5].
The seed ripens in its first year[3].
Intolerant of root disturbance, trees should be planted in their permanent positions whilst young[1].
Hybridizes freely with other members of the genus[3].
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[3].
Range: E. Asia - Himalayas from Pakistan to C. Nepal.
Habitat: Forests where it is usually gregarious and common, 1200 - 2400 metres[6]. Prefers rather dry hillsides[4].
Edibility: Seed - cooked[7]. The seed is about 2.5cm long[3], it can be dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in stews etc or mixed with cereals for making bread. The seed contains bitter tannins, these can be leached out by thoroughly washing the seed in running water though many minerals will also be lost. Either the whole seed can be used or the seed can be dried and ground it into a powder. It can take several days or even weeks to properly leach whole seeds, one method was to wrap them in a cloth bag and place them in a stream. Leaching the powder is quicker. A simple taste test can tell when the tannin has been leached. The traditional method of preparing the seed was to bury it in boggy ground overwinter. The germinating seed was dug up in the spring when it would have lost most of its astringency.
The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.
Medicinal: The seeds are astringent and diuretic[8]. They are used in the treatment of gonorrhoea, indigestion, diarrhoea and asthma[8].
Any galls produced on the tree are strongly astringent and can be used in the treatment of haemorrhages, chronic diarrhoea, dysentery etc[9].
Usage: A mulch of the leaves repels slugs, grubs etc, though fresh leaves should not be used as these can inhibit plant growth[10].
Oak galls are excrescences that are sometimes produced in great numbers on the tree and are caused by the activity of the larvae of different insects. The insects live inside these galls, obtaining their nutrient therein. When the insect pupates and leaves, the gall can be used as a rich source of tannin, that can also be used as a dyestuff[9].
The bark contains up to 23% dry weight of tannin[4].
Wood - hard, red-brown in colour, warps and splits badly when seasoning. Used for furniture and agricultural implements[11][4][5]. It is also a good fuel[6][4][12] and makes a good charcoal[11][4].
Pollinators: Wind
Soil: Can grow in medium and heavy soils.
Wind: Tolerates strong winds
In Leaf: Evergreen
Flower Type: Monoecious
Also Known As: Q. incana. Roxb.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Gamble, James. A Manual of Indian Timbers. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, 1972.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Gupta, Basant. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press, 1945.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Polunin, Oleg and Adam Stainton. Flowers of the Himalayas. Oxford Universtiy Press, 1984.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Riotte, Louise. Carrots Love Tomatoes. Garden Way, 1978.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Manandhar, Narayan. Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press, 2002.