Quercus petraea Mespilifolia - Sessile Oak

Quercus petraea 'Mespilifolia' is a variety of English Oak, with medlar-like leaves. This tree produces lanceolate to oblong, elongated green-yellow leaves. In spring, the first leaves are non-lobed and distinguish it clearly from the species. The leaves produced later in the season show more similarities, with an entire and slightly wavy leaf margin. The tree has a wide and open crown with slightly pendulous branches. This variety is one of the most well-known among English Oak cultivars. It has beautiful deciduous foliage that provides pleasant shade in summer and produces numerous acorns that are enjoyed by small animals. Its growth, although more modest than the species, still requires space and a large garden.

The English Oak, also known as sessile oak, durmast oak, rock oak, or black oak, belongs to the Fagaceae family. It is native to a large part of temperate Europe. It thrives in sub-oceanic to oceanic climates, or continental climates without excessive dryness. It is a spontaneous species found in hills and low mountains, where it can be found up to 1600m in altitude. It prefers well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral loamy-sandy soils that are moist, deep, and permeable.

In its natural habitat, it can reach a height of 40m with a spread of 25 to 30m, while its trunk can measure up to 2m in diameter. In gardens, it will reach an average height of 27m with a spread of 20m. This oak can live up to 1000 years according to some estimates. Deciduous oaks have the advantage of producing good and abundant leaf litter, which is beneficial for the growth of plants that germinate under their canopy.

The growth of this oak is rather slow. Its habit is massive, slightly wider than it is tall. The quite short trunk is covered with initially green and smooth bark, which later becomes dark, thick, and slightly fissured. The crown has an irregular, rounded oval shape and is open. Its young branches are smooth, grey-brown, and shiny. The late deciduous foliage, consists of long-petioled, alternate, soft, obovate leaves that can reach 5 to 15cm in length and 3 to 8cm in width. Each leaf is divided into 9 to 12 slightly marked and irregular rounded lobes, separated by relatively deep sinuses. The leaf colour is medium green, matte on the upper surface, and paler on the lower surface. The leaves turn brown quite late in autumn and remain attached to the branches before falling. This oak flowers in April-May, shortly after the appearance of the leaves, on annual shoots. The female flowers are located in a cupule directly attached to the branch: this distinctive characteristic is the origin of the species name, sessile. The male inflorescences are elongated, pendulous catkins tinged with yellow. They are produced at the base of the annual shoots. The female flowers, in the axils of the leaves, give way to ovoid and elongated acorns, measuring 1.5 to 3cm in length. They are often grouped in 2 or 3, directly on the branches. A cupule covered with scales covers one-third of the acorn. The colour changes from green to brown when ripe, in September and October. The root system of this tree is deep and powerful, with both a taproot and extensive lateral roots, ensuring a strong and durable anchorage in deep and sandy soils.

Quercus petraea 'Mespilifolia' reaches a height of 16 to 20m at maturity with a spread of 7 to 12m.

Plant the 'Mespilifolia' English Oak individually or in rows, in a very large garden. It also provides pleasant shade, which allows light to filter through in winter. Its acorns, sometimes produced abundantly, feed small animals such as squirrels and jays. It can be associated, for example, with maples, plane trees, hackberry (hardy even in the north), lindens, and sophora in a large park. The root system of oaks, which tends to be deep, allows for the planting of companion plants: consider plants such as bear's breeches, Anemone blanda, Omphalodes verna, periwinkles, Naples cyclamen, dead nettles, shade-loving perennial geraniums, Ophiopogon, Liriope muscari...