Tree Identification

[mugelbbub]

Hello Arbtalk Members,

 

I was hoping someone could help with confirming a tree identification.

 

I live in Essex with a North Facing garden (open to fields) in which I have, what I have been told, a Turkey Oak. It is multi stemmed and around 50-60ft.

 

I want to know for sure what it is because it behave very differently from the oaks around it.

 

It is limp whereas the others are sturdy, it gets its leaves later and starts to shed them much earlier, even as early as July, along with a lot of dry twig and branch breakage (it does have new growth each year). It does not produce acorns but instead sheds hundreds of clusters of pea size dry black pod like 'fruits'? that I cant find images of on the net (do not appear to be gall fly oak wasp balls). There is some bark damage/rot (not sure)

 

I have tried to post some helpful images although can take any others needed.

 

The leaves and twigs pictures are example of what is falling in July.

 

Really appreciate any guidance you can give. Thanks in advance.

[openspaceman]

1 hour ago, mugelbbub said:

Hello Arbtalk Members,

 

I was hoping someone could help with confirming a tree identification.

 

I live in Essex with a North Facing garden (open to fields) in which I have, what I have been told, a Turkey Oak. It is multi stemmed and around 50-60ft.

 

I want to know for sure what it is because it behave very differently from the oaks around it.

 

It is limp whereas the others are sturdy, it gets its leaves later and starts to shed them much earlier, even as early as July, along with a lot of dry twig and branch breakage (it does have new growth each year). It does not produce acorns but instead sheds hundreds of clusters of pea size dry black pod like 'fruits'? that I cant find images of on the net (do not appear to be gall fly oak wasp balls). There is some bark damage/rot (not sure)

 

I have tried to post some helpful images although can take any others needed.

 

The leaves and twigs pictures are example of what is falling in July.

 

Really appreciate any guidance you can give. Thanks in advance.

The twigs certainly look Q cerris but the acorns look strange as turkey oak acorns look hairy, if it is still in leaf it is probably a lucombe oak which is semi evergreen

 

errata it cannot be a lucombe if it drops leaves early.

Edited January 7, 2018 by openspaceman
misread post that said leaves drop early

[Al Cormack]

I thought Turkey oak was the only one to have the hairy bits at the base of the leaf stalks?

[openspaceman]

5 hours ago, Al Cormack said:

I thought Turkey oak was the only one to have the hairy bits at the base of the leaf stalks?

I was wondering if the hybrids did too.

 

Anyway I have never noticed a turkey oak with galls as bad as that and no acorns.

 

It's not a tree I am fond of at all.

[Gary Prentice]

10 hours ago, openspaceman said:

 

Anyway I have never noticed a turkey oak with galls as bad as that and no acorns.

 

Last year galls seemed particularly prolific, in certain areas where I really looked, every oak had them.

 

I wondered if the milder preceding  winter had allowed a population rise in the causes agents?

[Graham]

They look like the galls from the second generation of Knopper gall wasps.  The first generation galls are from eggs laid on robur and petrea and the second generation are laid on cerris. Or it might be the other way round...can't remember which.

[mugelbbub]

Thanks everyone for your input.

 

The balls were prevalent (hundreds if not into the thousands) both 2016 and 2017 summers.

 

Here are two more images. Once showing the growth of the balls on the tree and the other giving a better idea of size.

 

Regards