Wednesday 11 November 2009

Holm Oak

yup, in this spiky land, we get the spiky oak.
smallish trees, knarley trunks. Smaller bush plants have shiny green leaves, which go slightly bluer and duller when bigger.
Acorns.

from wikipedia:
The wood is hard and tough, used since ancient times for general construction purposes as pillars, tools, wagons, vessels, and wine casks. Used as well as firewood, or in charcoal manufacture.
The Holm Oak is one of the top three trees used in the establishment of truffle orchards, or truffieres. Truffles grow in an ectomycorrhizal association with the tree's roots.
The acorns, like those of the Cork Oak, are edible (toasted or as a flour), and are an important food for free-range pigs reared for serrano ham production. Boiled in water, the acorns can also be used as a medicinal treatment for injury dis-infections.
It can be clipped to form a tall hedge, and it is suitable for coastal windbreaks, in any well drained soil. It forms a picturesque rounded head, with pendulous low-hanging branches. Its size and solid evergreen character gives it an imposing architectural presence that makes it valuable in many urban and garden settings. While Holm Oak can be grown in much of maritime northwestern Europe, it is not tolerant of cold continental winters.

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