Sessile oak

Sun

Full sun; tolerates light shade, especially when young.

Water

Water regularly while establishing. Established trees tolerate some drought, but prolonged dry weather can cause leaf scorch and dieback.

Soil

Deep, well-drained loam or clay loam, preferably acidic to neutral. Tolerates poorer, stony soils but dislikes prolonged waterlogging and shallow, compacted ground.

Height

65-100 ft (20-30 m), occasionally taller

Spread

50-80 ft (15-24 m)

Flowers

Spring: yellow-green male catkins and tiny, inconspicuous female flowers.

Foliage

Rounded, lobed green leaves with distinct leaf stalks; usually yellow to brown in autumn. Young trees may retain dead leaves through winter.

Growth

Moderate when young, slowing with age; mature size takes many decades.

Care needed

Low

• Drought tolerant
• Wildlife

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   10 ft (3 m)

2. After 1 year

   13 ft (3.8 m)

3. After 2 years

   15 ft (4.7 m)

4. After 3 years

   18 ft (5.5 m)

5. After 5 years

   24 ft (7.2 m)

About 26 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Toxic

Native to

the UK

Growth rate

Slow

• Plant during the dormant season when soil is workable; choose a young tree rather than a large transplant.
• Water deeply during dry spells for the first two or three growing seasons.
• Maintain a broad mulch ring, keeping mulch away from the trunk and grass clear of the base.
• Stake only if the root ball moves in the wind; check ties regularly and remove support once roots hold firmly.
• Do not routinely fertilise; protect the root area from paving, digging and soil compaction.

Pruning. Prune young trees lightly during dormancy to retain a sound main leader and remove damaged or crossing branches; never top an oak. Use a qualified arborist for large limbs, and in North American oak-wilt areas follow local pruning-season restrictions.

Autumn

Collect freshly fallen, sound acorns for immediate sowing; do not let them dry out.

Late autumn to winter

Plant young trees while dormant, avoiding frozen or waterlogged soil.

Winter

Check young trees for competing leaders and damaged branches; prune lightly where local oak-wilt guidance permits.

Spring

Renew the mulch ring and check that stakes and ties are not rubbing or constricting the trunk.

Summer

Water establishing trees deeply during dry periods and check foliage for caterpillar damage or mildew.

Autumn

Leave some fallen leaves beneath the canopy as habitat and soil cover, keeping the trunk base clear.

• Plant as a single shade tree in a large lawn or parkland setting, well away from buildings and services.
• Use in a mixed woodland with birch, rowan and hazel for varied canopy layers.
• Place beside a meadow to provide a strong woodland edge and long-term wildlife habitat.
• Use widely spaced trees in an estate-scale landscape to frame distant views.

Garden styles it suits: English country, Grand estate, Woodland, Wildlife garden, Rewilded and English manor.

Plant it with: Silver birch, Rowan, Common hazel, Holly, Wood anemone and Foxglove.

Wildlife: In its native range, supports many insects, including moth and butterfly larvae, and provides nesting sites and cavities as it ages. Jays, squirrels and other animals eat and disperse the acorns; its wildlife relationships differ outside its native range.

• Powdery mildew: white patches are common on young leaves and usually need no treatment; reduce drought stress and avoid heavy nitrogen feeding.
• Leaf-eating caterpillars: established trees usually recover without spraying. In UK and European oak processionary moth areas, do not touch caterpillars or nests; keep people and pets away and report them to the relevant authority.
• Oak wilt in parts of North America: sudden wilting or browning needs prompt professional diagnosis; prevent pruning wounds during locally designated high-risk periods.
• Poor establishment or dieback: check for drought, waterlogging, deep planting or compacted soil; correct the cause and keep the root flare exposed.

Acorns, young leaves and buds contain tannins and can poison dogs, cats, horses and people if eaten in sufficient quantities. Serious digestive illness and kidney damage are possible, especially in grazing animals; keep horses away from fallen acorns and oak browse. Raw acorns are not suitable for people to eat without careful processing.

• English oak (Quercus robur)

  English oak usually has very short leaf stalks, ear-like lobes at the leaf base and acorns on long stalks. Sessile oak has longer leaf stalks, a tapered leaf base and almost stalkless acorns;

• Downy oak (Quercus pubescens)

  Downy oak has persistently hairy young shoots and leaf undersides. Mature sessile oak leaves are mostly hairless, though small hair tufts may remain beneath at vein junctions.

• Turkey oak (Quercus cerris)

  Turkey oak has conspicuously shaggy acorn cups and often pointed, bristle-tipped leaf lobes; sessile oak has neatly scaled cups and rounded lobes.

The common name refers to the almost stalkless, or sessile, acorns, while the Latin petraea means 'of rocky places', reflecting its occurrence on stony upland ground.

Propagation. Sow fresh acorns in autumn in deep pots or a protected nursery bed, covering them with about their own depth of soil. Protect from rodents and plant seedlings out while young, before their roots become crowded.

Accepted botanical name

Quercus petraea

Native range

Albania, Austria, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Central European Rus, Corse, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, East European Russia and France.

Measured

Soil pH 5.5 to 6.5. Average height 2010 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0) and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.