PLANT OF THE MONTH

Cuyahoga Community College SHELLEY FUNAI, LIC

Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens

We were hoping this one would be on the Hendrick’s Experience album! Track 6 – June – is a great time to feature this unique Oak which should be planted more often – not just by us nerdy plant collectors. What sets this Oak apart from any other you have seen are its leaves. As Bill points out, “The foliage (of this plant) is so unique that I often ask people to give me the genus, as they fail to see an Oak when looking at the tree.”

The straight species of Emperor Oak (Q. dentata) has a beautiful, broad leaf which resembles our native Chestnut Oak (Q. montana). They are much longer though, checking in at a little over 12 inches. The cultivar ‘Pinnatifida’ takes this giant leaf and cuts the sinuses to nearly the mid-rib, creating an very dissected-looking leaf which looks like nothing seen in the typical garden. Fat, light-brown buds (during winter) burst open in spring, emerging into fuzzy, soft leaves. We actually love the early spring Oak leaves, as they are cute, miniature versions of the mature leaf. Bill is sure to point out that you should not confuse Japanese Emperor Oak with a typical oak when it comes to its mature size. This tree is nothing like our Ohio-native shade Oaks. With a very slow growth rate, the Cut-leaf Emperor Oak is going to mature to around 15 to 20 feet tall and 10 to 15 feet wide, max. And, trust us; it will not set any speed records getting there. This is by all accounts an accent tree, meant for a conspicuous place in your design where it can be appreciated, up close.

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Expect each tree to develop its own character in branching, often with lower branches reaching out to the crown and building an upright, oval-habit, overall. Plant it in full sun to encourage the best leaf development, which is the precise reason you would choose this tree, to begin with. It seems to do best in acidic soils that do not dry out over summer, so we’d be extremely cautious in recommending it as a street tree – though we wish we could – as the mature size is just right under power lines.

Bill shared with us an observation he made while visiting Barbara Bailey, a resident of Tipp City, Ohio. Barbara is a plant collector herself, in her mid-80s, and refers to her garden as the “Barbaretum.” She also travels the world as a professional photographer. Barbara sounds awesome, but we digress…

Barbara not only owns this cultivar, but a closely related species, as well. What Bill took particular interest in was the fact that, on this visit, it was the only time he could remember seeing an acorn on a Cut-leaf. If you think about it, this observation makes complete sense, as most Oak species are self-infertile and require another tree of the same – or very closely related species – nearby, in order to produce acorns. Judging by the wicked cupule (the “hat”) on these acorns, which feature long, spiky scales that extend out like an exaggerated Sawtooth Oak (Q. accutissima), it would probably be worth planting two of these species in a garden to get this horticultural oddity to show up on each tree! We once heard someone describe the acorns of this species as “woody sea anemones,” which is a hilarious, but useful description.

As we have written before, Oaks are split into two major groups; Red and White. Red Oaks have pins at the tips of leaf lobes, acorns with flat scales on the cupule, and hairs inside, which take two years to mature. They germinate in the spring, following drop. White Oaks, on the other hand, tend to have rounded lobes and acorns with bumpy or spiky scales, with very little hair inside the cupule and mature in one season. They sprout in the fall, as they drop.

Another fun difference associated with White Oaks is their ability to form tyloses, which is basically the ability to seal off xylem tissue better than Red Oaks. Why would that matter to us? White Oak group trees are usually better at fighting

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off pest issues and are much longer lasting as wood products in the outdoors vs. Red Oaks. This is also the reason you’ll find wine and bourbon barrels made of White Oaks. They don’t leak through the xylem tissue. While Quercus dentata is a member of the White Oak group, due to the small size, you won’t be finding any of its wood in a bourbon barrel!

As you enjoy this plant through the spring and summer as a great accent with unique foliage, you will be rewarded in fall with deep, rusty-orange fall color, Some years, you may even see them highlighted with yellows. As with many Oaks, there will be some marcescence (mar-SESS-ents), which is the name of the phenomenon of Oaks (Beeches, Hornbeams) to hold on to some leaves through the winter months. With the weirdly beautiful, dissected leaves on the cultivar, we welcome the leaves as winter attraction on the stout knobby stems.

This is a hard to come by tree as demand is not where it should be. Everyone keeps planting the same accent trees as everyone else rendering them into boring everyday plants. This is a tree that will set your work apart and improve diversity in your landscapes.

Jim Funai, PhD., is full-time faculty at Cuyahoga Community College, a NALP accredited associate of applied science in hoticulture degree program. He has a PhD in Landscape Engineering and Forestry and is a Licensed Arborist. Shelley Funai is Grounds Manager at Stan Hywett Hall and Gardens in Akron, Ohio, which offers a historic estate designed by Warren H. Manning and a beautiful manor house museum. She is Landscape Industry Certified in Ornamental Plant Care.