Jan–MarApr–JunJul–SepOct–Dec
Planting
Days to maturity
Seasonal yields
Sow indoors · Direct sow · Transplant outdoors
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Plant · P-567
Sweet Acorn Oak
Quercus ilex
Holm Oak is a slow-growing evergreen oak with one of the very few acorns sweet enough to eat straight off the tree, though sweetness varies tree to tree, so seedlings are worth tasting before deciding which ones to keep. Its wood burns well even unseasoned, which is unusual for firewood, and its bark and galls yield a rich source of tannin. It thrives on thin, alkaline, limestone ground and hot dry summers, and tolerates hard trimming well enough to be grown as a windbreak or hedge. Once mature it casts dense, year-round shade that suits grazing stock but crowds out anything sun-loving planted beneath it.
Record at a glance
Growing profile
- Sun
- Full Sun · Partial Sun
- USDA zone
- USDA 7–10
- Soil
- Sand · Loam · Clay
- Moisture
- Dry · Well-Drained · Moist
Vertical layer
Canopy- Soil pH
- 6–8.5
- Plant type
- Evergreen Tree
- Mature height
- 40–70 ft
- Mature spread
- 40–70 ft
- Plant spacing
- 16.4–23 ft
- Root type
- Tap
- Spread pattern
- Seed
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The deeper layer
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- Primary
- Locked ecological function
- Secondary
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- Byproduct
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Behind the record
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