Quercus floribunda Lindl.

Himalaya; Nepal; Pakistan; Afghanistan; 1600 - 3000 m;

25-30 m (the tallest oak in Western Himalaya); trunk 2-3 m in diameter; or small tree with very low branches;

6-11 x3-6 cm; semi-evergreen; leathery; oval-lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, sometimes oval; base rounded or cordate; apex obliquely acuminate; margin dentate, with 4-9 bristle-tipped teeth each side, sometimes entire; glabrous and lustrous grey green above; 10-152 veins pairs, thin, forked and reticulate, prominent on both sides; petiole becoming hairless, 0.5-1 cm longlong ;

in April-May; fruits 16-18 months later, in winter; male flowers on 2-5 cm catkins, drooping and loose; female catkin1.5 cm long, with 3-4 flowers;

acorn 2-2.5 cm long, 1.6-1.8 cm in diameter; subsessile; pointed and mucronate; glabrous, brown at maturity; solitary on a very short peduncle; +enclosed 1/3 or 1/2 by cup; cup with appressed, pubescent scales; maturing in 2 years;

not quite hardy (zone 8); all types of soils; thrives in shady sites; prefers wet climate;

– A. Camus : tome 2, p. 5, n° 128; – Sub-genus Cerris, Section Ilex; – OOTW reports hybrid: Q. × parkeri (Q. floribunda × Q. leucotrichophora)