The Live Oak Trees of the American South

From the iconic moss draped live oaks providing shade to the bucolic park squares of Savannah, Georgia to the lone live oak growing in bonsai form on an otherwise empty hill, live oaks are are some of the most beautiful and magnificent trees growing in the southern region of the United States. Less showy than other notable southern trees like Magnolias and palms, the many live oaks of the south's cities and countryside provided an understated presence in the setting that often goes unnoticed. Let us take a closer look at the live oak trees of the American South.

The term live oak actually refers to any of a number of species of Quercus that, unlike most species of oaks in the area, retain their leaves throughout the winter. The live oaks that have such a major role in the south eastern deciduous forest is the southern live oak, Quercus virginiana, also known as Virginia live oak and bay live oak. Southern live oaks can be found thriving from central Virginia to southern Florida over to the eastern edge of Texas. Live oaks grow as tall as fifty feet tall and can be found in an excess of seventy-five feet in diameter. The unlobed leaves are somewhat shiny and resemble a dull tipped bay leaf. Acorns from a live oak tree are particularly small compared to other local acorns. Given the opportunity to spread its branches, live oaks have a very dramatic habit, with gnarled branches that twist and turn on themselves in a matter reminiscent of carefully trained bonsai trees.

Although the Southern live oak is considered an evergreen, it does not retain its leaves through the year in every area of its range. From Virginia through much of South Carolina, this live oak will loose nearly all of its leaves during the winter month, leaving only small tufts of green leaves randomly dispersed throughout the tree that looks as if some form of bush or bushy vine once the rest of the tree has lost its leaves.

The wood from a live oak tree is particularly strong. This makes it a difficult wood to work with, but its strength has made it an important source of wood in ship building throughout this history of the United States. Even today, the U.S. Navy maintains tracts of land with live oaks for use in its ships. However, it is most commonly used today as a shade tree, growing on many avenues with plenty of room in between on another to grow.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_live_oak
http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/DENDROLOGY/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=78
http://www.floridata.com/ref/Q/querc_v.cfm