Quercus agrifolia

Coast live oak
Coast live oak foliage with new spring growth

Secure  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Fagaceae
Genus: Quercus
Subgenus: Quercus subg. Quercus
Section: Quercus sect. Lobatae
Species:
Q. agrifolia
Binomial name
Quercus agrifolia
Natural range
Synonyms[2]
List
  • Quercus acroglandis Kellogg
  • Quercus acutiglandis Sarg.
  • Quercus agrifolia var. frutescens Engelm.
  • Quercus agrifolia var. oxyadenia (Torr.) J.T.Howell
  • Quercus oxyadenia Torr.
  • Quercus pricei Sudw.

Quercus agrifolia, the California live oak,[3] or coast live oak, is an evergreen[4] live oak native to the California Floristic Province. Live oaks are so-called because they keep living leaves on the tree all year, adding young leaves and shedding dead leaves simultaneously rather than dropping dead leaves en masse in the autumn like a true deciduous tree.[5] Coast live oaks may be shrubby, depending on age and growing location, but is generally a medium-sized tree.[6] It grows west of the Sierra Nevada mountain range from Mendocino County, California, south to northern Baja California in Mexico.[7] It is classified in the red oak section of oaks (Quercus sect. Lobatae).[8]

This species is commonly sympatric with canyon live oak (Q. chrysolepis), and the two may be hard to distinguish because their spinose leaves are superficially similar.

  1. ^ Beckman, E. (2016). "Quercus agrifolia". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T194049A2295175. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T194049A2295175.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Quercus agrifolia Née". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew – via The Plant List. Note that this website has been superseded by World Flora Online
  3. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "​Quercus agrifolia​". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Plant Guide: Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia)" (PDF). plants.usda.gov. p. 1 (col 2).
  5. ^ Educate, Sandra (2021-12-07). "Learning about Live Oaks | Lowcountry Weekly". Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  6. ^ Sibley, David (2009). The Sibley guide to trees (First ed.). New York. p. 202. ISBN 978-0375415197. OCLC 277201819.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^ "Quercus agrifolia". Calflora. Berkeley, California: The Calflora Database.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference FNA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).