Oak

The Oak (Quercus petraea Liebl (Mattuschka)) is a large semi-deciduous plant belonging to the Fagaceae family. It is very similar to the Common Oak, with which it often hybridizes giving rise to trees of difficult determination. It has a more open crown of the Common Oak, with straighter outer branches. It differs from the Downy Oak for the size of the trunk and the underside of the leaves (smooth) that are simple, deciduous, and elliptical, with a lobed margin and 5-8 pairs of rounded, hairless lobes. The apex is dull and rounded. The top side is shiny green, while the bottom is paler. The trunk is erect, robust and slender, branched only on the upper part. The branches are very knotty and form a dense, glossy and regular crown. The young branches are not hairy. Its crown extends upwards reaching a height of 30-40 meters in the woods. It is an oak with a discreet longevity, reaching 500-800 years of age and reaches its maximum final size in 120-200 years. Its wood is quite similar to that of the Common Oak, from which it cannot be distinguished. Quite valuable, it is used in the manufacturing of furniture, construction, beams, parquets, in shipyards, in the construction of barrels for aging wines and other alcoholic beverages, as well as for the construction of coffins. Great fuel, it is also used for coal production.