interior live oak (Trees & Shrubs of the Sunol Region

interior live oak

Quercus wislizeni

Summary ⁷

Quercus wislizeni, known by the common names Interior Live Oak, and Sierra Live Oak, is an evergeen oak, highly variable and often shrubby, found in areas of California in the United States. It also occurs south into northern Baja California in Mexico. It generally occurs in foothills, being most abundant in the lower altitudes of the Sierra Nevada, but also widespread in the Pacific Coast Ranges and the San Gabriel Mountains. It was named for its...

Description ⁸

Interior live oak is a slow-growing, variable evergreen, which grows as a large shrub or small tree. Plants may reach 30 to 75 feet in height or assume a shrub-like growth form with heights of only 8 to 10 feet. Leaves, which persist for 2 years, are mostly oblong-to-elliptic or lanceolate, and spiny-toothed to entire. Both leaf surfaces are shiny green but the upper surface is darker. Interior live oak is monoecious. Male flowers are borne in catkins 1 to 3 inches in length, whereas female flowers grow in clusters of two to four in the upper leaf axils.

Distribution: For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site. This plant is native to California and Mexico. Interior live oak occurs from northern California in Siskiyou and Shasta counties, south along the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and inner Coast Ranges, plus the Channel Islands. Adapted to the following zones in California: Douglas-fir, Ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, redwood, western hardwoods, and chaparral - mountain shrub.