huckleberry oak

Quercus vaccinifolia

Family: Fagaceae.

Type: Evergreen shrub.

Branching: Alternate.

Oak Group: Intermediate.

Leaves: Similar in appearance to huckleberry, thus its name. Entire margins with occasional teeth. Broader towards the tip than at the base, as with huckleberry as its relatives such as manzanita. The upper surface is dark, the undersurface is light, like a white oak (but see below).

Twig: See photos below; not commented upon.

Fruit & Flower: The acorn is small to medium in size, egg-shaped, with a beanie-shaped cap with smooth scales.

Miscellaneous: The huckleberry oak, like many oaks, has galls formed by wasps (two are pictured below, one on the shrub, one in hand); this can be a distinguishing feature for oaks. It grows at higher altitudes than most oaks, into the subalpine range, but grows as a groundcover shrub. It is shade-intolerant. The huckleberry oak is considered an intermediate between the black oaks and the white oaks, with traits of each group.