Emory Oak
Quercus emoryi

GROWING CONDITIONS
AN EXPLANATION OF TERMS USED

SUN afternoon shade in the low desert, mature trees can take sun when they get taller, full to part sun for trees in the upper elevations
WATER moderate to regular
SOIL prefers sandy or rocky soil, amendments encouraged
HARDINESS hardy to about -10°F
BASIN middle to low zone
CONTAINER does ok in container but will not attain full size
NUTRITION moderate
MAINTENANCE very little

ECOLOGY
Flowers in spring with inconspicuous, wind-pollinated flowers. Acorns ripen in fall. Oaks are wildlife keystone species hosting a mind-boggling number of insects. This brings in a vast array of substrate-insectivorous birds (birds that spend their time on these trees eating the insects). The acorns are important food for many birds and mammals (and some species eaten by people). The trees also provide important habitat for many birds and mammals. Almost all the oaks host a multitude of moths and butterflies including the following species:

Mexican-M Hairstreak (Parrhasius moctezuma)

Arizona Sister (Adelpha eulalia)

Short-tailed Skipper (Zestusa dorus)

Arizona Dull Firetip (Apyrrothrix araxes ssp. arizonae)

Burgess’s Sleepy Duskywing (Erynnis brizo ssp. burgessi)

Clitus Duskywing (Erynnis juvenalis ssp. clitus)

Meridian duskywing (Erynnis meridianus ssp. meridianus)

Scudder's Duskywing (Erynnis scudderi)

Mournful Duskywing (Erynnis tristis)

Oaks also host a diversity of insects that cause growths called “galls”. Galls are protective nests for the larvae of various insects (mostly tiny stingless wasps) to develop protected from pests. The have a diversity of shapes from giant ball-like growths, to small growths, on leaves or young stems. These galls do not harm healthy trees. Emory oaks that grow in riparian zones and get really tall are a favorite nesting site for owls and other raptors.

Oaks attract numerous other insects which, in turn, attracts canopy-gleaning birds.

ETHNOBOTANY
This is one of the best-tasting, and probably the most harvested edible acorn for humans. Acorns are ground into meal and used in numerous ways.

NATURAL DISTRIBUTION
Found in chaparral, piñon-juniper, and oak woodlands, and desert grasslands at 3,500-7,000’ in the southern portion of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, south into central Mexico.

TAXONOMY AND NAME
This plant is in the family Fagaceae, the beech family. There are 627 accepted species in the genus Quercus widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere.
The genus "Quercus" is from Latin, meaning "oak" while the species “emoryi” is named for Major William Hemsley Emory (1811-1887) who led the Mexican Boundary Survey.